We have revised the engagement letter schedule for accredited legal services firms to support enhanced price and service transparency and prepare firms for the upcoming changes to the ICAEW Legal Services Regulations in relation to dealing with client complaints. These updates are designed to strengthen client communication, ensure regulatory compliance, and encourage consistent good practice across the sector.
Another new feature within the updated template is an invitation to your clients to take part in ICAEW’s anonymous consumer survey. This is designed to help us better understand consumer experiences in finding a provider in the legal services market.
The changes reflect:
- Forthcoming proposed changes to complaint handling, and
- ICAEW’s wider price and service transparency and consumer empowerment goals.
The revised engagement letter schedule for reserved legal services is available in Schedule Q and is structured to help ensure your are clear and comprehensive. Remember that you should always tailor your letters to each client.
Key changes
The updated schedule now includes a revised structure, additional guidance options, and prompts to help your firm meet requirements in the Legal Services Regulations and to be transparent and consumer focused.
This includes:
1. Roles, Responsibilities and Scope of Services (Paragraph 1.1.1 - 1.4.2)
- New introductory section that confirms the terms of engagement and who is responsible for the work
- Tailored options about roles and the level of service to be expected, for example when acting as a professional executor or for a lay executor.
- Guideline text to identify who will be handling the matter on a day-to-day basis (if applicable and their role. (paragraph 1.15)
- Prompts to include hourly rates and supervisory arrangements (if applicable).
- Prompts outlining what services are and are not included in the fee
- Prompt to provide key stages of the work. (paragraph 1.2.1)
- Options for flexible service provision, including where the client wishes to carry out some aspects of the work themselves (unbundled services).
- Guidance on who should receive information when delivering probate services
2. Fees and Timescales (Paragraphs 2.1.1 to 2.1.4)
- A new defined section 2 for information about fees and timescales
- New prompts to ensure you include the total fee, the basis of fees and a breakdown of disbursements and VAT to manage client expectations
- More fee options including estimates and agreed fixed fees
- Guideline text to explain how estimates are calculated and reasons this may change
- Guideline text to provide timescales and updates on progress
- Guideline text to provide timely updates if costs change during the engagement.
3. Complaints Procedure (Paragraph 6.1.1 to 6.1.6)
- A clear complaints-handling section, including:
- Prompts to include your complaints procedure with your engagement letter
- Prompts to enable beneficiaries to raise concerns.
- Guideline wording that supports vulnerable clients
- Wording that confirms complaints are handled free of charge (paragraph 6.1.3)
- Clear timeframes for response and resolution
- Prompts to keep complainants informed of progress and update them if the firm cannot meet the eight-week time frame
- Right to escalate unresolved issues to the Legal Ombudsman
- A new paragraph outlining the circumstances when a complaint should be referred to ICAEW (Paragraph 6.1.6)
4. Complaints Procedure (Paragraph 6.1.1 to 6.1.6)
- A new section 7 with guideline wording to invite feedback at the conclusion of the engagement or at any stage of the process.
- A link and suggested wording to introduce ICAEW’s consumer survey.
Why is an ICAEW consumer survey included?
The survey has been designed to help us gather insights into how easily consumers access the legal services market and how well informed they feel in choosing a provider. This supports ICAEW’s regulatory goals to improve consumer empowerment. More information on the survey, including guidance on when and how to share it with clients, can be found in our FAQs.
What you need to do now
Please update your firm engagement letter according to the new schedule and include our consumer survey link. Please also be aware that the engagement letter as a whole is currently under review and a full update will be published in due course.
It is recommended that accredited firms providing reserved legal services should take the following steps:
- Review and implement the updated schedule Q in the Engagement letters and privacy notices
- Tailor the engagement letter to your firm’s structure, services, and client base
- Ensure it includes a link to complete ICAEW’s consumer survey.
By updating your engagement letter in line with these changes, you are helping to build trust with your clients, comply with upcoming regulatory requirements, and support greater market transparency in legal services.
