Law firms face an abundance of challenges maintaining financial stability and client service in a virus-ridden world—not just coronavirus, but the electronic sort too. There are also many detailed Brexit-related changes affecting even domestic firms. Here are a few areas to address.
Cyber—with a sting in the tail
A cyber incident may cause reputational damage which imperils a law firm’s existence. This is not just an issue for large firms—hackers released personal injury client documents held by a US law firm.
According to the SRA Risk Outlook 2020/2021, in the first half of 2020 law firms reported losses of nearly £2.5m, and that there was a 337% rise in phishing scams in the first two months of the first national lockdown. The SRA published a thematic review in September 2020.
At present, client money—but not the firm’s own—is broadly protected against cyber risks due to the extensive cover afforded under the SRA Minimum
