The Legal Profession
Solicitors
HSC has, for many years, specialised in providing services to the legal profession.
Our success lies in the partnership that we develop with our clients. Our approach has always been to consider ourselves as ‘an active partner in your business', and nowhere is this more important than in the association between lawyer and accountant.
Clients from the legal profession continue to increase in number because of the specialist services we are able to offer. These are outlined below, and for further information about one or all of the services, simply click on to the enquiry form.
Mergers and Acquisitions
There is considerable pressure on the sole practitioner and smaller partnership. This can only increase with the new solicitors accounting rules and increased professional indemnity premiums.
At the same time, there are many firms seeking to grow via merger and acquisition or, in some cases, the purchase of blocks of fees.
Through the practical experience we have gained, we are confident that we will be able to assist with ‘matchmaking', valuation of the practice, and work in progress. We can help at the negotiation stage to achieve the best deal via a clear and unbiased definition of the merger objective and, of particular importance, review the potential costs and partnership/personal tax implications.
As improved profit must be the major objective, we can also provide a marketing audit, a three year audit of performance, a review of staff overlap and ability mix, and, in some cases, a brokerage service.
Taxation
Our Tax department works with solicitors in three areas:
Partnership
- We can give you peace of mind by dealing efficiently with all compliance work.
- Additionally, through careful tax planning we can advise you where minimisation of tax liabilities is possible.
- No less than 70,000 partnerships (of one kind or another) failed to meet the first self-assessment deadline. We pride ourselves on ensuring that all deadlines are met.
Partners
We deal with all aspects of partners' personal tax including preparation of tax returns and prompt advice regarding tax liabilities.
Partnerships' Clients
In liaison with our Trust Department we handle all aspects of personal tax work including on-going tax returns, returns to date of death and administration of estates.
Trust Work
The involvement of an accountant with Trust work, on the basis of an informal multi-disciplinary practice, is now increasingly prevalent in the legal profession. Our work with solicitors includes income tax returns, capital gains tax computations and inheritance tax returns for all types of UK Trusts. We keep accounting and investment records, and produce accounts annually or periodically, and at winding up through death or majority.
We prepare interim/final estate accounts from legal files (with tax returns and suggestions for corrective accounts) as well as receivership accounts for the Court of Protection or any accounts required in enduring power of attorney cases.
Computers and Computing
Please view our IT Consultancy section.
Forensic Accounting
Please view our Litigation Support section.
Accounts and Audit
With the continuing changes in the Solicitors' Accounts Rules, and the re-writing by the Law Society of the Accountants' Report Rules, now is definitely the time to be reviewing your accountancy procedures.
As all engagement letters between solicitors and their accountants and auditors will also have to be updated and re-issued, perhaps it is also time to review your current arrangements.
It takes an accountancy firm with considerable experience in the legal profession to understand its special requirements. With our portfolio of solicitor clients, from sole practitioner to multi-partner/office practices, HSC have this experience and will be happy to discuss your needs with you.
