Simple Guide To Client Onboarding For Law Firms

Smooth onboarding for clients is crucial for any law firm. This is your first real port for establishing client trust and demonstrating care and organisation. This process is also essential for protecting your firm by ensuring all relevant checks are carried out and the right legal agreements have been signed. As a legal VA and often paralegal for Consultant Solicitors and small law firms, this is usually a key part of my role. However, some small firms may either have someone in-house to manage this, or may even be taking care of onboarding themselves. Therefore, I’ve produced this simple guide to client onboarding for law firms:

Establishing Point of Contact

If the person handling onboarding is not you (the lawyer), then you should introduce the client to the relevant member of staff or VA via email. 

This introduction email should include the contact's full name and their role. It's worth briefly explaining why this person is the point of contact, as this reassures the client that they are in capable hands and that their onboarding is being properly managed. From the outset, it's also important to set clear expectations around response times. For example, letting the client know that they can expect a reply within 24 or 48 business hours but also encouraging them to provide information and respond in good time so that their file can be created and case work can begin. This helps prevent unnecessary chasing, supports your assistant/paralegal, and sets a professional tone for the relationship going forward.

Conflict Check

Before sending any contracts or carrying out any work, a conflict check must be completed. This is a requirement under the SRA Code of Conduct and ensures the firm has no existing relationship, duty, or interest that could compromise its ability to act in the new client's best interests. To carry out the check, search your case management system or client database for the client's name, any opposing parties, and any related individuals or companies. If no conflict is found, you can proceed with onboarding. If a conflict is identified, the firm must usually decline to act. If outsourcing this essential step, or the entire onboarding process, ensure you establish a process with your paralegal or VA for immediately flagging up any conflict concerns. Jam Virtual Support use a file opening checklist for some of our lawyers. This can help ensure we have all the information we need to make the file opening process quicker.

Client Care Letter

Having checked there are no conflicts, the first port of call for onboarding is to provide the client with the Client Care Letter, as is a standard requirement for law firms in England and Wales, a regulatory requirement under the SRA Code of Conduct and essential for compliance and a satisfactory risk assessment (covered later in this guide).

Your client care letter should include:

• Firm details (name, address, SRA number and regulatory information)

• Scope of work - description of services the firm has been instructed to carry out

• Key contacts for the client within the firm (may also include third parties handling paperwork)

• Costs - fee structures, billing information and payment terms

• Complaints procedure

• Client rights

• Confidentiality and data protection

Once sent, you will need (or your assistant/paralegal will need) an acknowledgement of receipt and confirmation that the client care letter has been read and understood. We then need a signed copy back. At the same time as sending the client care letter, you may also send the Terms of Business and any other guides you or your firm issues, depending on the matter. For example, you might send a guide to costs in litigation.

Terms of Business

As a lawyer, you know what terms of business should cover and that you will need these agreed to in writing to establish a legally binding agreement that sets expectations and protects both the client and your law firm. Signed copies of these should be obtained, whether through email or via an online document signing system, and secured in the client file. If outsourcing client onboarding, ensure the third party understands the importance of this step and is updating you regularly, since work should not commence until the terms of business are formally agreed to.

ID Documents

Classified as ‘regulated entities’ under the Proceeds of Crimes Act 2002 and the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, law firms are required to verify their client’s identity. Therefore, a crucial part of client onboarding for law firms is collecting ID. Typically, this would include a photo ID and proof of address. For corporate clients, you will also need to check Companies House information, seek proof of the company's registered address, and collect ID for directors and stakeholders. Some solicitors, paralegals or VAs opt to carry this process out themselves. However, some use online ID verification services, which can speed up the process and provide an audit trail.

Opening The Client File

Correctly opening a client file and storing documents in a consistent and compliant way is essential both for regulatory compliance and practicality. VAs and paralegals handling administration should be meticulous in their care of client files, ensuring solicitors can easily locate documents. Case management systems can make creating and managing client files easier, but whether you’re using legal software or your own systems, you should ensure these files are protected in accordance with UK GDPR. A client file will usually include:

• All onboarding documents - signed client care letter, IDs, record of conflict check, signed terms of business, risk assessment

• Billing information, invoices and payment records

Law firms will likely have their own procedures for file opening and, for legal VAs (like us!), it’s important to follow each of these consistently. 

Risk Assessment

Once the file is open, it's time to carry out a risk assessment on the case. It’s important to ensure this assessment is completed before any substantive work is carried out on the matter. This may be something the solicitor takes care of themselves, as some specialist knowledge is required. However, a paralegal or outsourced paralegal service (like us) is able to complete the risk assessment in draft, for the lawyer to then approve. The risk assessment is a key part of AML compliance and is about evaluating how much risk is attached to the client and their case. Key considerations include the nature of the transaction, the source of the funds, the client's background, and any factors that may raise a red flag. Most case management systems or law firms will have a ready-to-use risk rating form to make this straightforward, and the result just needs to be recorded, and oftentimes sent to the compliance team for approval. If something does flag as higher risk, enhanced due diligence will be needed, which might mean asking the client for additional documents. Paralegals should report anything uncovered as higher risk, directly to the solicitor.

Invoicing

Usually, the final stage of onboarding will be invoicing. Getting this right from the start is important for a good client relationship, especially when billing will be ongoing. You will need to confirm the client’s billing address and contact details before raising the invoice. You’ll also need to agree on an invoicing schedule, though this is usually covered within the client care letter and/or terms of business, so ensure you’re following payment terms as laid out in those prior documents. If using a case management system, such as LEAP, you’ll likely invoice the client directly from the system, so you’ll need to get this set up. It may also be worth confirming the client's preferred method of payment and making a note of this on the file. For the solicitor, this stage is also a good opportunity to ensure any money on account has been requested and received before substantive work begins, which is particularly important for smaller firms and consultant solicitors managing their own cash flow.

Outsourcing Client Onboarding For Law Firms

Outsourcing onboarding clients can be highly beneficial for small law firms and consultant solicitors. Being able to provide clients with a point of contact for all administrative matters means your inbox is far more manageable, and you can focus entirely on the case work. However, it is essential, especially if tasking a VA or in-house assistant with this role, that you give them a process to follow which ensures compliance. Uniquely placed to offer both VA and paralegal support, Jam Virtual Support takes care of the onboarding process for many of our clients, as well as many various other tasks and administrative support. We also have an existing process for onboarding that we’re able to implement if you prefer, and this means we can hit the ground running. Find out more about How We Help Lawyers.