Acting for yourself, friends and family


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Practice Compliance expert
Practice notes

Acting for yourself, friends and family


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Practice Compliance expert

Practice notes
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This Practice Note covers considerations where a law firm wishes to act for one of its own partners or employees, where an individual lawyer wishes to represent or act for themselves, and for your lawyers representing or advising others in a personal capacity.

Regulatory considerations

There is no specific reference in the SRA Standards and Regulations to acting for friends and family.

SRA Principles

The SRA Principles require you to act:

  1. •

    in a way that upholds the constitutional principle of the rule of law, and the proper administration of justice—Principle 1

  2. •

    in a way that upholds public trust and confidence in the solicitors’ profession and in legal services provided by authorised persons—Principle 2

  3. •

    with independence—Principle 3

  4. •

    with honesty—Principle 4

  5. •

    with integrity—Principle 5

  6. •

    in the best interests of each client—Principle 7

Conflicts of interest

The SRA Codes of Conduct impose an absolute prohibition on acting in an own interest conflict situation.

You must not act for a client if there is an own interest conflict or a significant risk of an own interest conflict. An

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Key definition:
Employee definition
What does Employee mean?

Persons satisfying case law tests for employee status qualify for the broadest scope of employment protections. Statutory definitions of employee vary. The Employment Rights Act 1996 defines employee as an individual who has entered into or works under (or, where the employment has ceased, worked under) a contract of employment.

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