This blog will briefly address whether a solicitor can act for multiple parties within a conveyancing transaction. This question commonly arises as parties are tempted to save costs by sharing a solicitor rather than each instructing a separate solicitor. 

However, even with the consent of both the buyer and seller, the same solicitor cannot act for both parties. Solicitors have a duty to avoid conflicts of interests and acting for both parties would give rise to this conflict. 

The rule is that solicitors must act in the best interests of each client, and acting for both parties in a transaction could compromise this rule. Residential property solicitors also owe a duty of confidentially to clients and acting for both a buyer and seller would cause issues with negotiations. 

Therefore, each party must be separately represented. 

However, it is possible for the same solicitor to act for both a purchase and a lender (as long as there is no conflict between their interests). The solicitor must stop acting immediately if a conflict arises and usually would need to stop acting for both parties.  

If you would like any further information or advice in relation to buying or selling a property, please contact us on 01384 410 410 or send an email to residentialconveyancing@georgegreen.co.uk. You can also get a free quote by using our conveyancing quote tool on our website.