Electronic conveyancing - UK

The UK Government’s electronic conveyancing initiative could, in the words of one prominent lawyer, make property as tradeable as stocks and shares. But up to the time of writing, e-conveyancing has been something of a damp squib for entrepreneurial law firms that thought they could steal a march on the market by tooling up and embracing online property information services, XML data standards and other aspects of e-conveyancing.

However, when e-conveyancing really does kick off — which is now likely to be sooner rather than later — there will be a scramble to exploit its potential. Law firms and IT developers that know their way around the PISCES standard and the National Land Information Service will be best placed to take advantage. The move to full e-conveyancing in England and Wales will undoubtedly increase the suitability of case management systems for this type of legal work.

Currently, the best source of information on the Government’s strategy for e-conveyancing and its vision of a ‘chain matrix’ is to be found on the website of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister ( see www.odpm.gov.uk)

Kieran Flatt Legal Week

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