Might you have ever been confused about who should you lay your trust in conveyancing transactions – a lawyer or a licensed conveyancer, this article hopefully can do a big help. We highly recommend that you equip yourselves with essential information of these two types of conveyancer to assist you in making a proper choice.
Scope of Work
Licensed conveyancers are non-lawyers who have been licensed to perform conveyancing work which is part of the legal issue associated with a property transaction as defined in the Conveyancers Act 2006. As a result, a licensed conveyancer is given no rights to offer other legal services, except “conveyancing work”.
On the other hand, lawyer conveyancers are lawyers whose main but not limited area of practice is conveyancing. While licensed conveyancers are restricted to performing only “conveyancing work”, lawyer conveyancers are able to perform ALL legal work associated with a property transaction. For example, a licensed conveyancer cannot provide clients with legal advices about the conduct of an estate agent (e.g. fraud, misrepresentation or criminal deceptions associated with underquoting or overquoting, dummy bidding etc.), and must refer the client to a qualified lawyer.
Conveyancing Fees
As a matter of fact, conveyancing fee for a conveyancing lawyer’s services is often set a little bit higher than that of a licensed conveyancer considering the range of services offered. That is why a lot of client is enticed and attracted to a licensed conveyancer. However, it is recommended that you should make your own anticipation about the complexity of your case to decide from whom you need help. Complementary services and the extensive knowledge of conveyancing lawyers might help to save time, costs and limit risks from potential issues.
Professional Indemnity (PI) Insurance
Professional indemnity insurance or Errors and Omissions delivers protections for businesses that provide legal advice or services in case of unexpected carelessness or negligence upon the performance of professional tasks.
While a lawyer conveyancer gets PI Insurance covering everything that he performs on behalf of the client, a licensed conveyancer is covered only for “conveyancing services” – which is respective to their scope of work.
Doconade Lawyers are a full service law firm and provide both professional conveyancing and legal services, we can act for purchasers and vendors in all kinds of transactions from individual property to large development projects. Have a look at our conveyancing services here or contact us. We would offer you 30 minutes free consultation for conveyancing service.
