Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Solicitors Regulation Authority definition

What does Solicitors Regulation Authority mean? The Solicitors Regulation Authority is the independent regulator of solicitors and law firms in England and Wales. In practice, it authorises individuals and firms, issues practising certificates, sets and enforces the SRA Standards and Regulations (including the Codes of Conduct and SRA Accounts Rules on client money), supervises anti-money laundering compliance, and takes enforcement action to protect clients and the public interest. Enforcement includes investigations, fines and rebukes, conditions on practice, interventions into firms, and prosecution before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal; it also administers the SRA Compensation Fund. Although “SRA” is not a statutory term, its regulatory remit and powers flow...

SRA Standards and Regulations for Family Lawyers: Key Concepts, Principles, Codes, Accounts Rules and Guidance (England and Wales)

Published by a LexisNexis Family expert

Practice notes

This Practice Note outlines the principal features of the solicitors regulation authority (SRA) regulatory framework.

Within the SRA Standards and Regulations sit, among other things, the SRA Principles, the SRA code of conduct for Solicitors, registered European lawyers (RELs), registered foreign lawyers (RFLs) and registered Swiss lawyers (RSLs), the SRA Code of Conduct for Firms, and the SRA Accounts Rules.

It provides signposts to the relevant elements of the SRA scheme and clarifies the central concepts. Links to relevant sections appear.

The SRA Standards and Regulations took effect on 25 November 2019, supplanting the sra handbook and the 2011 Code of Conduct.

Family practitioners must understand their professional duties under the SRA Principles, the SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs, RFLs and RSLs, and the Code of Conduct for Firms within the Standards and Regulations.

As well as directing readers to the pertinent parts of the SRA framework, this Practice Note sets out the regime’s core ideas.

For practical help in areas where the SRA regime is especially relevant, see the following Practice Notes:

Client care—family law
Taking initial instructions from family clients
Conflicts of interest—family law
Funding—charging for family law services

SRA 2011 regulatory regime

The SRA is...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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