What is the Solicitors Indemnity Fund?

1 October 2023

The firms we regulate carry out a wide range of work that is often of great significance to clients. While solicitors undertake extensive training before they can enter the profession and must keep their skills and knowledge up to date once qualified, mistakes can happen.

To protect clients from financial loss, our rules mean firms must have professional indemnity insurance in place to make good on unforeseen errors or negligence. This insurance is in place while the firm practises and for six years after a firm closes even no other firm takes on its business (known as a successor practice). Most claims made come within this period.

However, a small number are made after this six-year period. Potential cover for clients is then provided by the Solicitors Indemnity Fund (SIF). Those that feel they have a claim for poor service mistakes or negligence against a firm or solicitor regulated by us might be able to bring a claim and obtain compensation for losses from the SIF.

The protection provided by indemnity insurance and the SIF is different to our compensation fund, which provides payments in cases of dishonesty or a failure to account for client money by a solicitor.

Historic liability claims

The SIF also continues to cover historic liability claims, which are those made:

• during the period a law firm was covered by the SIF master policy up until 31 August 2000, and
• after 31 August 2000 by law firms that closed, without a successor practice, which relate to work done while the firm was covered by the SIF master policy.