Andrew & Co receives conveyancing excellence accreditation24th October 2012

Law firm Andrew & Co LLP, based in Lincoln and Newark, has recently been accredited by the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) – a mark of excellence for conveyancing firms.

Not all conveyancers provide the same level of service and the purpose of this scheme is to identify those firms which operate to a demanding level of service. All accredited CQS firms go through rigorous examination and testing to demonstrate that they have a high level of knowledge, skills and experience.

• Julie Bailey, Managing Partner and now the Senior Reporting Officer for CQS said: “Andrew & Co has always provided the highest quality conveyancing services to its clients and always aimed for the highest standards. We are thrilled that the Law Society has awarded us with this accreditation in recognition of those high standards.”

In 2011-12 the CQS was officially recognised by several important institutions such as the Legal Ombudsman, Association of British Insurers (ABI), Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and the Building Societies Association (BSA).

In addition many lenders including HSBC, Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank have recognised that CQS members provide a high quality service, and have made it a requirement that a law firm must be a member of the CQS in order to act for them in residential conveyancing.

When applying to join the CQS Andrew & Co had to satisfy the Law Society on a wide range of matters including:

• The type of conveyancing work it does
• The adequacy of supervision
• The level of any complaints and claims
• The level of qualification and practical experience of partners and staff

The Law Society said The Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) provides a recognised quality standard for residential conveyancing practices. Membership achievement establishes a level of credibility for member firms with stakeholders (regulators, lenders, insurers and consumers) based upon:

• the integrity of the Senior Responsible Officer and other key conveyancing staff
• the firm's adherence to good practice management standards
• adherence to prudent and efficient conveyancing procedures through the scheme protocol

"This scheme creates a trusted community, which will deter fraud - year on year we will drive up standards.”

Further information on the Law Society’s CQS can be found at www.lawsociety.org.uk/cqs