Pity the poor conveyancer | Neil Rose | Law | guardian.co.uk

Pity the poor conveyancer | Neil Rose | Law | guardian.co.uk

The legal element of buying a house is regarded as a necessary evil, the part that always slows the transaction down. This isn't necessarily true, of course. But conveyancing is proving to be just as much of a pain to the legal profession as it can be to the public.

Back in the 1960s conveyancing accounted for around half of the profession's income; now it is probably less than 10%, even though most legal practices in England and Wales register at least one dealing at the Land Registry each year. The recession is not the only thing to blame. Lawyers have not been slow to undercut each other and drive down fees, especially with a growing number of volume conveyancing operations that are able to process straightforward transactions in a systemised, low-cost manner.