Paper shredded in e-conveyancingCONSULTATION PAPER: delays in transactions cut by five days and costs per deal by 15 under proposed legislationConveyancing will become a simple paperless process cutting delays in transactions by five days and costs per transaction by 15 under proposed government legislation released...Conveyancing will become a simple paperless process cutting delays in transactions by five days and costs per transaction by 15 under proposed government legislation released last week.

The Lord Chancellors Department published a consultation paper called Electronic Conveyancing, proposing amendments to the Electronic Communications Act 2000, which will legalise paperless document transfers, contracts, mortgages and leases.

The consultation paper includes projected cost savings resulting from the development once it is in place.These estimate that 15 would be saved per conveyancing transaction on the basis that an e-signature will cost about 5.

The government estimates that, extrapolating from this statistic, 45 billion would be saved each year on the costs of conveyancing solicitors in England and Wales, once all of their transactions are done electronically.The minister at the Lord Chancellors Department, David Lock, said that although a paperless system is not completely safe, the present system is not 100% safe either.The move comes in conjunction with others to provide paperless searches through the National Land Information Service (NLIS), and sellers packs (see [2000] Gazette,1 December, 12).Law Society President Michael Napier welcomed the move to speed up homebuying through e-conveyancing.

He said: The Society will continue to take a leading role in the development ofe-conveyancing to ensure solicitors can provide a modern efficientservice for homebuyers.

For example, through our work on the NLIS, which will be the countrys first ever on-line conveyancing service.

Responses to the consultation are sought by 25 June 2001.

Meanwhile, the government has awarded channel licences for NLIS to three consortia: Searchflow, Teramedia and MacDonald Dettwiler & Associates.

They will compete to provide search packages to lawyers.LINKS: www.open.gov.uk/lcd for a copy of the consultation paper, go to the Whats New? sectionJeremy Fleming