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16 June 2011 / Phillip Oldcorn
Issue: 7470 / Categories: Features , Property
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A risky business?

Phillip Oldcorn explains how innovation can help reduce risk

Here’s a suggestion for an interesting game for the conveyancer’s office. Ask your next few clients how they think risk is managed in their conveyancing transaction.

Agree among the staff a selection of possible answers; the Land Registry, the conveyancer is responsible for all conveyancing risk, the Law Society will protect me etc.  Do a sweepstake for the answers among the staff. Sit back and enjoy the game!

The correct answer is that there are several factors which mitigate most but not all conveyancing risks. Think of the following: good quality conveyancing practice, a (limited) Land Registry guarantee, PI insurance.  But how often do we stop and consider the uninsured risks that the best conveyance cannot prevent?  How can we cater for a dishonest seller? Why doesn’t anyone measure and/or GPS the boundaries of a property?  How can we protect those most vulnerable to mortgage or identity fraud?

Blind spots

There is a real consumer blind spot and lack of curiosity about the subject. This

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NEWS
Contract damages are usually assessed at the date of breach—but not always. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Gascoigne, knowledge lawyer at LexisNexis, examines the growing body of cases where courts have allowed later events to reshape compensation
The Supreme Court has restored ‘doctrinal coherence’ to unfair prejudice litigation, writes Natalie Quinlivan, partner at Fieldfisher LLP, in this week' NLJ
The High Court’s refusal to recognise a prolific sperm donor as a child’s legal parent has highlighted the risks of informal conception arrangements, according to Liam Hurren, associate at Kingsley Napley, in NLJ this week
The Court of Appeal’s decision in Mazur may have settled questions around litigation supervision, but the profession should not simply ‘move on’, argues Jennifer Coupland, CEO of CILEX, in this week's NLJ
A simple phrase like ‘subject to references’ may not protect employers as much as they think. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, analyses recent employment cases showing how conditional job offers can still create binding contracts
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