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Collaborating with Financial Advisors: A Solicitor's Guide to Multi-Disciplinary Estate Planning

· 21 min

Executive Summary

The convergence of inheritance tax reforms demands structured collaboration between solicitors and financial advisers that neither profession can deliver in isolation. Agricultural property relief and business property relief reforms taking effect from April 2026, with a revised combined allowance of 2.5 million pounds following the Government's announcement of 23 December 2025, the prospective inclusion of unused pension funds within estates from April 2027, and nil-rate band freezes extended through 2030-31 create planning complexity that exceeds the competence boundaries of either profession acting alone. The SRA Code of Conduct (effective 11 April 2025) paragraphs 5.1 to 5.3 establish mandatory obligations for referral arrangements, while SRA Principle 7 creates an affirmative duty to act in each client's best interests. This article provides a regulatory-compliant framework for establishing, managing, and auditing multi-disciplinary estate planning relationships, integrating SRA referral obligations with FCA Consumer Duty requirements and the Law Commission's May 2025 Modernising Wills proposals.

1. The Imperative for Multi-Disciplinary Collaboration

1.1 The IHT Reform Convergence

Estate planning has entered a period of unprecedented tax reform complexity. The nil-rate band has been frozen at 325,000 pounds since April 2009 and the residence nil-rate band at 175,000 pounds since April 2020, with both now frozen through 5 April 2031 following successive Finance Act extensions.1 Over nearly 17 years of real-terms erosion since the nil-rate band was frozen, fiscal drag has drawn an increasing proportion of estates into the IHT net, amplifying the consequences of suboptimal planning.

Against this backdrop, the Autumn Budget 2024 introduced the most significant changes to agricultural property relief (APR) and business property relief (BPR) in a generation, capping 100% relief at a combined allowance of 1 million pounds from 6 April 2026. The Autumn Budget 2025 (26 November 2025) made the allowance transferable between spouses and civil partners. The Government then announced on 23 December 2025 a further concession increasing the combined allowance from 1 million to 2.5 million pounds.2 From 6 April 2026, the 100% rate of APR and BPR will continue for assets within this combined allowance, with relief reduced to 50% on qualifying assets exceeding the threshold, producing an effective IHT rate of 20% on the excess.2 AIM-listed shares will receive only 50% relief with no nil-rate allowance. The transferability of the combined allowance enables couples to shelter up to 5 million pounds of qualifying property, but exploiting this transferability requires coordinated legal and financial structuring.2

The Government's stated intention to bring most unused pension funds and death benefits into an individual's estate for IHT purposes from 6 April 2027 compounds the planning challenge.3 Pension drawdown strategies have historically been constructed on the assumption that pension funds remain outside the estate. This change, subject to consultation, fundamentally alters the sequencing of asset drawdown in retirement -- a matter squarely within financial adviser expertise -- with direct consequences for testamentary disposition and trust structures that fall within the solicitor's domain.

1.2 The Competence Boundary: FSMA Part XX and Its Limits

The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, Part XX, provides an exemption for professional firms that are members of a designated professional body -- including the Law Society -- to carry on certain regulated financial services activities without FCA authorisation, provided those activities are incidental to the provision of professional services.4 The SRA Financial Services (Scope) Rules, effective 11 April 2025, further delineate the boundary by prohibiting SRA-authorised firms from undertaking insurance distribution involving investment-based products, operating as investment sponsors, and entering regulated credit agreements as lenders.5

This statutory boundary is not merely a compliance formality. It defines the point at which a solicitor's duty to the client extends beyond what the solicitor can lawfully deliver. When an estate plan requires pension drawdown modelling, life insurance structuring, investment portfolio restructuring for IHT efficiency, or AIM share portfolio management -- all activities that fall outside the Part XX exemption -- the solicitor who fails to identify the need for referral risks both regulatory censure and negligence exposure.

1.3 SRA Principle 7 and the Affirmative Duty to Refer

SRA Principle 7 requires solicitors to act in the best interests of each client.6 This principle creates what is, in practical terms, an affirmative obligation to identify when complementary financial advice is needed and to facilitate appropriate referral. As former SRA Director Crispin Passmore has observed, the question is not whether to refer but how to demonstrate that the referral itself is in the client's best interests -- which presupposes due diligence on the receiving adviser.78

The SRA's December 2024 thematic review of probate and estate administration reinforces this position. The review found that only 15 of 25 firms had written competence policies, and 6 of 10 fee earners were unaware of their continuing competence obligations.9 When applied to the referral context, these findings suggest that many firms lack the documented processes necessary to demonstrate that referral decisions are made competently and in clients' best interests. A firm that cannot evidence how it assesses the suitability of a financial adviser referral is exposed to the same supervision deficit identified in the thematic review.

2. The Regulatory Architecture for Referral Arrangements

2.1 SRA Code of Conduct: Paragraphs 5.1 to 5.3

The SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs, RFLs, and RSLs (effective 11 April 2025) establishes three interlocking obligations governing referral relationships.6

Paragraph 5.1 requires solicitors to ensure clients are informed of any financial or other interest in referring the client to another person, and that any fee-sharing agreement is in writing. Clients referred by an introducer must not have been acquired in a way that would breach SRA regulatory arrangements. This provision applies reciprocally: where a solicitor refers a client to a financial adviser under an arrangement that generates referral payments in either direction, the client must be told.6

Paragraph 5.2 establishes a rebuttable presumption that any payment identified by the SRA will be treated as a referral fee unless the solicitor demonstrates otherwise. This creates a documentation imperative: firms must maintain records sufficient to demonstrate the nature and basis of any payments connected to referral relationships.6

Paragraph 5.3 requires informed client consent before referring, recommending, or introducing a client to a separate business, or dividing a matter between the authorised body and a separate business. Where a solicitor's financial planning panel constitutes a separate business arrangement, this paragraph imposes a prior-consent obligation that must be satisfied before each referral.10

2.2 The LASPO Distinction and Estate Planning Referral Fees

A persistent source of confusion in practice is the interaction between the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) referral fee ban and estate planning referral arrangements. Section 56 of LASPO prohibits referral fee payments in personal injury work. For non-personal injury work, including estate planning, referral payments are not prohibited by LASPO but remain subject to SRA Principles and Code requirements.11 Solicitors must inform clients about any fee-sharing agreements, demonstrate that their independence is not impaired, and account to clients for any financial benefit received. The critical point is that estate planning referral fees are regulated, not banned -- but regulated in a manner that requires transparency, documentation, and demonstrable independence.

2.3 FCA Consumer Duty: Obligations on the Receiving Adviser

The regulatory framework for solicitor-financial adviser collaboration is bilateral. The FCA Consumer Duty, effective since 31 July 2023, requires FCA-authorised financial advisers to act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers across four domains: products and services designed to meet customer needs, fair value, consumer understanding, and consumer support.12 The FCA has identified ongoing advice fees as a particular focus area, including fees charged for deceased customers during estate administration.13

Solicitors establishing referral relationships must understand these obligations not because they bear direct responsibility for the financial adviser's compliance, but because a referral to an adviser who subsequently breaches the Consumer Duty may trigger questions about the adequacy of the solicitor's due diligence. The duty to act in the client's best interests under SRA Principle 7 extends to the quality of the referral itself.

2.4 The Advice Guidance Boundary Review

The FCA's publication of near-final rules in PS25/22 (December 2025) for "targeted support" -- a new regulated activity sitting between guidance and full advice, effective 6 April 2026 -- introduces a further dimension to referral dynamics.14 Targeted support may allow financial advisers to provide more substantive engagement for lower-value estates without the full suitability requirements of regulated advice. Solicitors should monitor how financial adviser panels integrate targeted support into their service propositions, as this may affect the scope and cost of advice available to referred clients, particularly those with estates below the IHT threshold but with pension or protection planning needs.

3. Building a Compliant Referral Framework

3.1 Due Diligence Methodology

The Law Society recommends that solicitors seeking financial adviser referral partners assess candidates against specific accreditation criteria, including Later Life Adviser Accreditation (SOLLA membership basis), the STEP Certificate in Financial Services (Trusts and Estate Planning), Chartered Financial Planner status, and Resolution Specialist Accreditation.15 These accreditations serve as minimum competence indicators, but due diligence must extend further.

A robust due diligence methodology encompasses five elements:

FCA Register verification. Every financial adviser recommended by a solicitor must hold current FCA authorisation. The FCA Financial Services Register provides real-time verification of individual and firm authorisation status, permissions, and any regulatory actions. SRA guidance on regulated financial services activities emphasises that solicitors should avoid being an appointed representative of a financial adviser, as this may suggest a lack of independence.5

Qualifications and specialisation assessment. Beyond FCA authorisation, due diligence should assess whether the adviser holds qualifications relevant to the referral type. The STEP Certificate for Financial Services (Trusts and Estate Planning) provides financial advisers with expertise recognised across the solicitor, accountant, and trust professional communities, offering a common professional vocabulary for multi-disciplinary collaboration.16 For later-life planning, SOLLA accreditation indicates specific competence in equity release, care fee funding, and retirement income strategies. For business succession, Chartered Financial Planner status with business protection experience is relevant.

Professional indemnity and complaints history. Due diligence should verify that the adviser maintains adequate professional indemnity insurance and should enquire about complaints history, regulatory actions, and Financial Ombudsman Service complaint volumes. The FCA's supervisory data indicates that complaints upheld for unsuitable advice fell from 39% in 2022 to 26% in 2024, but this aggregate improvement masks variation between firms.13

Service proposition and fee structure. Understanding the adviser's fee model is essential for client disclosure under paragraph 5.1. Practices should assess whether the adviser charges fixed fees, percentage-based fees, or ongoing service charges, and whether the fee structure represents fair value under the FCA Consumer Duty framework.12

Independence verification. The SRA expects referral relationships to demonstrate independence. Solicitors should verify that they are not the financial adviser's sole or dominant referral source, and that the adviser maintains a client base independent of the solicitor relationship. Referring exclusively to a single financial adviser, absent documented justification, may be difficult to defend as demonstrating independence.11

3.2 Panel Structure and Rotation

The SRA expects law firm managers and compliance officers to introduce firm-wide processes for third-party referral rather than leaving decisions to individual solicitor discretion.17 A structured panel approach addresses this expectation by establishing a pre-approved roster of financial advisers with documented due diligence, clear specialisation mapping, and rotation protocols.

An effective panel structure includes multiple advisers with complementary specialisations: later-life planning (equity release, care fees, pension drawdown), business and agricultural succession (APR/BPR structuring, key person insurance, shareholder protection), and general wealth management (investment strategy, IHT mitigation through lifetime gifting). Panel rotation -- ensuring that referrals are distributed across panel members rather than concentrated with a single adviser -- serves dual purposes: it demonstrates independence and it provides a natural quality benchmark by enabling comparison of client outcomes and feedback across providers.

SIFA Professional, an Affiliate Partner of the Law Society, facilitates solicitor-financial adviser relationships through its directory of vetted independent financial advisers, due diligence documentation, and referral management software (Catalyst).18 While not the only pathway to establishing a compliant referral framework, SIFA's infrastructure illustrates the operational components that any firm-wide approach must replicate: standardised due diligence, documented referral tracking, and ongoing monitoring.

3.3 Documentation and Audit Trail

Compliance with paragraphs 5.1 to 5.3 requires contemporaneous documentation at each stage of the referral process. The minimum documentation set includes:

  • Referral rationale record: a file note explaining why the client's circumstances require financial advice beyond the solicitor's competence or the Part XX exemption, linked to the specific planning need (pension strategy, investment restructuring, insurance placement).
  • Client disclosure statement: written confirmation to the client of the referral, the basis for selecting the particular adviser, any financial interest in the referral, and any fee-sharing arrangement.
  • Informed consent confirmation: documented client consent to the referral, particularly where the referral involves a separate business arrangement under paragraph 5.3.
  • Fee-sharing agreement: where applicable, a written agreement compliant with paragraph 5.1 requirements.
  • Outcome record: documentation of the financial adviser's recommendations and their integration with the legal estate plan, ensuring alignment between testamentary provisions and financial structures.

The Compliance Officer for Legal Practice (COLP) bears particular responsibility for overseeing the firm-wide referral process. The COLP should establish periodic audit procedures to verify that referral documentation is complete, that panel due diligence remains current, and that client feedback is monitored for service quality indicators.17

3.4 Conflict Management

The SRA's conflicts of interest guidance identifies own-interest conflicts as arising where a solicitor has a financial interest that might impair the ability to advise independently.19 Referral relationships inherently carry own-interest conflict potential, particularly where referral fees are received or where the solicitor has a personal or business relationship with the financial adviser. The thematic review finding that only 12 of 23 firms acting as executors had conflict-of-interest controls underscores the practical frequency of this gap.9

Conflict management in the referral context requires: identification of all financial interests connected to each panel adviser; disclosure of those interests to clients at the point of referral; periodic review of whether the volume or value of referral payments has reached a level that could impair independence; and separation of the referral decision from any individual who has a personal financial interest in the outcome. The SRA would expect that not every referral from a firm goes to the same partner or practice -- diversity in referral patterns evidences independence.17

4. Collaboration in Practice: Planning Scenarios

4.1 APR/BPR Estate Restructuring

With APR and BPR reforms taking effect from April 2026, estates with qualifying agricultural or business property exceeding 2.5 million pounds face an effective 20% IHT charge on the excess.2 The planning response requires coordinated professional input: the solicitor structures trust instruments, partnership agreements, or share transfer mechanisms to optimise the allocation of the combined allowance, while the financial adviser models the tax-efficient asset allocation, insurance requirements to fund residual IHT liabilities, and the sequencing of lifetime gift strategies against the 14-year cumulation rules. Neither professional can deliver an effective solution in isolation -- the legal structure must be informed by financial modelling, and the financial strategy must operate within legally effective vehicles.

4.2 Pension Drawdown Resequencing

The prospective inclusion of pension funds within estates from April 2027, subject to consultation, inverts established drawdown strategy.3 Financial advisers must remodel drawdown sequencing to account for the loss of the pension fund's IHT-exempt status, potentially accelerating pension drawdown and prioritising the preservation of ISA and investment portfolios that may attract relief or exemptions. The solicitor must update will and trust provisions to reflect the changed estate composition, ensuring that testamentary gifts remain aligned with the client's intentions once pension funds form part of the taxable estate. Coordination is essential to avoid a situation where the financial strategy and the legal instruments operate at cross-purposes.

4.3 Later-Life Care Planning

Where a client requires lasting power of attorney preparation alongside care fee funding analysis, the solicitor-financial adviser collaboration extends into health and welfare territory. The solicitor prepares property and financial affairs and health and welfare LPAs, while the financial adviser evaluates equity release options, care fee annuities, immediate needs annuities, and the interaction between means-tested local authority funding and self-funding strategies. The later-life planning space is one where the SOLLA accreditation provides particular reassurance of adviser competence, given the vulnerability of the client cohort and the irreversibility of many care funding decisions.

4.4 Business Succession

Business succession planning illustrates the multi-dimensional nature of effective collaboration. The solicitor structures the corporate vehicle (share transfers, partnership variations, articles of association amendments) while the financial adviser addresses key person insurance, shareholder protection policies, cross-option agreements funded by life cover, and the CGT and IHT implications of different transfer timings. The financial adviser's modelling of the tax cost of alternative succession structures directly informs the solicitor's choice of legal vehicle.

5. Future-Proofing: The Draft Wills Bill and Evolving Collaboration Models

5.1 Law Commission Modernising Wills Report

The Law Commission published its Modernising Wills final report and draft Bill on 16 May 2025, recommending, among other proposals, the introduction of electronic wills executed through a reliable system with provision for remote witnessing.20 The Government welcomed the recommendations but, as of January 2026, no legislative timetable has been confirmed. If enacted, electronic wills would introduce new document management, verification, and storage requirements that may benefit from integrated technology platforms capable of coordinating between legal and financial advisory teams.

The report also proposes expanded rectification provisions, empowering courts to rectify wills where a drafter's lack of understanding caused the language not to reflect the testator's intentions.20 This recommendation reinforces the importance of solicitors understanding the financial planning context when drafting will provisions. A solicitor who drafts trust provisions without understanding the financial adviser's intended investment strategy, or who creates a will structure that conflicts with pension nomination arrangements, may face increased exposure under expanded rectification powers. Multi-disciplinary collaboration at the drafting stage, not merely at the planning stage, offers a defence against this risk.

The Law Commission further recommended replacing the common law test for testamentary capacity established in Banks v Goodfellow (1870) with the statutory test under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.20 If enacted, this change would require solicitors to document capacity assessments in collaborative estate planning engagements with reference to the MCA 2005 framework, reinforcing the importance of structured processes across all professionals involved in the planning exercise.

5.2 Targeted Support and Referral Dynamics

The FCA's targeted support regime, effective from April 2026, may alter the economics and accessibility of financial advice for lower-value estate planning referrals.14 Where a full advice engagement is disproportionate to the estate value, targeted support could enable financial advisers to provide pension guidance or protection recommendations without a full suitability assessment. Solicitors building referral panels should consider whether panel advisers intend to offer targeted support services and how these services integrate with the firm's referral process. The distinction between targeted support and full advice also affects the documentation and disclosure requirements on both sides of the referral.

5.3 Building Adaptable Frameworks

The pace of regulatory and legislative change -- the SRA Standards and Regulations effective April 2025, the APR/BPR reforms from April 2026, the FCA targeted support regime from April 2026, the prospective pension/IHT inclusion from April 2027, and the potential Wills Act reforms -- argues for collaboration frameworks built on structural principles rather than compliance with any single regulatory snapshot. Practices that embed referral due diligence, panel management, documentation, and conflict monitoring as standing operational processes will adapt more readily to legislative change than those that treat referral relationships as informal, individual arrangements.

Conclusion

Multi-disciplinary estate planning collaboration between solicitors and financial advisers has transitioned from a discretionary enhancement to a regulatory and practical imperative. The convergence of IHT reforms -- APR and BPR restructuring, frozen nil-rate bands, and prospective pension inclusion -- creates planning demands that exceed the competence boundaries of either profession acting alone. The SRA Code of Conduct's referral provisions, Principle 7's best-interests obligation, and the FCA Consumer Duty's outcomes framework collectively establish the regulatory architecture within which collaboration must operate.

Practices that establish structured, firm-wide referral frameworks -- with documented due diligence, panel diversity, transparent fee arrangements, and COLP oversight -- will achieve three outcomes: regulatory compliance with SRA expectations articulated through the Code and thematic review findings; improved client outcomes through coordinated planning that addresses both legal and financial dimensions; and resilience against legislative change, including the Law Commission's draft Wills Bill and evolving FCA advice boundary rules.

The choice facing private client practices is not whether to collaborate but how to do so in a manner that is compliant, effective, and sustainable.


CPD Declaration

Estimated Reading Time: 20 minutes Technical Level: Advanced Practice Areas: Private Client, Estate Planning, Regulatory Compliance, Professional Ethics

Learning Objectives

Upon completing this article, practitioners will be able to:

  1. Identify the SRA Code of Conduct provisions (paragraphs 5.1 to 5.3) governing referral arrangements with financial advisers and distinguish between the LASPO referral fee ban (personal injury only) and the SRA-regulated regime applicable to estate planning referrals
  2. Evaluate the FSMA Part XX exempt professional firm boundary and determine when a client's estate planning needs exceed the scope of activities a solicitor firm may lawfully undertake
  3. Design a firm-wide due diligence methodology for establishing a compliant financial adviser referral panel, incorporating FCA Register verification, qualification assessment, and ongoing monitoring protocols
  4. Analyse the post-Budget IHT reform landscape (APR/BPR changes, pension inclusion, frozen thresholds) to identify specific planning scenarios requiring coordinated solicitor-financial adviser input

SRA Competency Mapping

  • SRA Competence Statement A2: Maintain the level of competence and legal knowledge needed to practise effectively, taking into account changes in their role, practice context and developments in the law
  • SRA Competence Statement B6: Identify and apply ethical principles relevant to a client's circumstances and the nature of the transaction
  • SRA Competence Statement C2: Identify and manage potential risks, understanding how they arise and the potential for harm to clients

Reflective Questions

  1. How would the referral framework described in this article need to be adapted for the specific specialisations and client demographics within a given private client practice?
  2. What additional due diligence steps should be implemented when referring clients whose estate planning needs span multiple jurisdictions or involve cross-border pension arrangements?
  3. How might the prospective inclusion of pension funds within estates for IHT purposes from April 2027 alter the sequencing and content of initial client instructions in a private client practice?

Professional Disclaimer

The information presented reflects the regulatory and legislative position as of 2026-01-27. Regulations, tax rules, and professional guidance are subject to change. Readers should independently verify all information before acting and seek advice from appropriately qualified solicitors, financial advisors, or other professionals for their specific circumstances.

Neither WUHLD nor the author accepts liability for any actions taken or decisions made based on the content of this article. Professional readers are reminded of their own regulatory obligations and duty of care to their clients.



Footnotes

Footnotes

  1. GOV.UK -- Inheritance Tax Thresholds (Updated 2025). https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/inheritance-tax-thresholds/inheritance-tax-thresholds

  2. House of Commons Library -- Inheritance Tax: Agricultural and Business Property Relief (Research Briefing CBP-10181, updated December 2025). https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-10181/ 2 3 4

  3. GOV.UK -- Inheritance Tax Thresholds: Pensions and IHT from April 2027 (Autumn Budget 2024 announcement). https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/inheritance-tax-thresholds/inheritance-tax-thresholds 2

  4. Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, Part XX -- Provision of Financial Services by Members of the Professions. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/8/part/XX

  5. SRA Financial Services (Scope) Rules (Effective 11 April 2025). https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/standards-regulations/financial-services-scope-rules/ 2

  6. SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs, RFLs and RSLs (Effective 11 April 2025). https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/standards-regulations/code-conduct-solicitors/ 2 3 4

  7. SRA Principles (Effective 11 April 2025) -- Principle 7: Act in the Best Interests of Each Client. https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/standards-regulations/principles/

  8. Legal Futures -- The SRA's Principles and How They Might Impact Third-Party Referral (Crispin Passmore). https://www.legalfutures.co.uk/blog/the-sras-principles-and-how-they-might-impact-third-party-referral

  9. SRA Thematic Review of Probate and Estate Administration (Published 13 December 2024). https://www.sra.org.uk/sra/research-publications/probate-administration-thematic-review/ 2

  10. SRA Separate Business Guidance. https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/guidance/separate-business-guidance/

  11. SRA Referral Fees, LASPO and SRA Principles Warning Notice. https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/guidance/referral-fees-laspo-sra-principles/ 2

  12. FCA Consumer Duty (Effective 31 July 2023). https://www.fca.org.uk/firms/consumer-duty 2

  13. FCA -- Its Good to be Different: New FCA Supervisory Strategy for Financial Advice Sector (Speech, 2025). https://www.fca.org.uk/news/speeches/its-good-be-different-new-fca-supervisory-strategy-financial-advice-sector 2

  14. FCA Advice Guidance Boundary Review -- PS25/22, Near-Final Rules for Targeted Support (December 2025). https://www.fca.org.uk/firms/advice-guidance-boundary-review 2

  15. Law Society -- Choosing the Right Financial Planning Referee. https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/en/topics/small-firms/choosing-the-right-financial-planning-referee

  16. STEP Certificate for Financial Services (Trusts and Estate Planning). https://www.step.org/certificates/step-certificate-financial-services-trusts-and-estate-planning

  17. SRA Code of Conduct for Firms (Effective 11 April 2025) -- Firm-Wide Referral Process Requirements. https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/standards-regulations/code-conduct-firms/ 2 3

  18. SIFA Professional -- Services for Solicitors. https://www.sifaprofessional.co.uk/our-services/

  19. SRA Conflicts of Interest Guidance. https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/guidance/conflicts-interest/

  20. Law Commission -- Modernising Wills Final Report and Draft Bill (Published 16 May 2025, HC 861). https://lawcom.gov.uk/project/wills/ 2 3