COLP Help - Outsourced Compliance Tasks

The SRA will not allow you to outsource the responsibility and accountability of the COLP and COFA, nor will they let you appoint an external Compliance Officer. However, it makes perfect sense for you to outsource the majority of the compliance tasks, leaving you free to run your business effectively without having to recruit a deputy COLP and COFA. Many firms outsource HR, IT, accounts, drafting and other legal processes…why not compliance?

What does the service include?

COLP-help is designed to give your COLP and COFA oversight and control of all compliance and risk issues, without having to treat it as a full time job. We simply take care of the vast majority of the time-consuming work. Here is what a typical package would include:

Initial set up

• Analysing the business and its key risks
• Auditing current systems and practices
• Identifying compliance gaps
• Recommending new systems and practices, if required
• Updating or re-drafting the Office Manual
• Setting up recording and evidence-capture systems
• Preparing a Compliance Plan

Ongoing work

• Monthly compliance and risk management meetings
• Quarterly compliance reporting
• On-call for compliance questions
• Assistance with reporting breaches
• Maintaining and updating systems and records
• Ensuring that policies and procedures are working effectively
• Assistance with the annual information report
• Assistance with PII renewal (compliance aspects)

How much does it cost?

This is an intensive and bespoke service, and the work involved will differ from firm to firm. For smaller firms the service is likely to cost less than 5 hours of your COLP’s charge out rate. Please contact us for a quote. Please note that availability of COLP-help is strictly limited.

The business case

We think it makes good commercial sense to invest in compliance. If you aren’t tied up in systems and procedures, then you are free to generate more fees, deliver excellent service and run your business effectively. At the other end of the spectrum, those firms who have found themselves on the SRA’s radar will recognise the financial and reputational damage that can be caused by regulatory investigations. Compliance will continue to be an ongoing cost of doing business in the profession, whether that comes in the form of lost fee-earning time, recruiting compliance specialists or getting external help and support. Get in touch to see how we can help.