I was unable recently to act on behalf of a client in a conveyancing transaction because my firm was already acting on behalf of her seller. The client instructed a local licensed conveyancer to act on her behalf and, on speaking with her conveyancer a few days later, I was reminded that it is permissible in most cases for a licensed conveyancer to act on behalf of both buyer and seller, whereas solicitors are in general prohibited from doing so.

Can anyone in authority come up with a good reason why solicitors are discriminated against in this way and why we are not allowed to compete with licensed conveyancers on equal terms? I thought that, with the advent of the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Law Society would now be able to fight our corner far more effectively. What exactly is it doing to end this discrimination?

John Godwin, Partner, Brown & Corbishley, Newcastle-under-Lyme