Charter mark for Scottish property deals

A SCHEME to boost the quality of conveyancing in Scotland could see the creation of officially approved "chartered conveyancers".

The Law Society of Scotland has embarked on a project to devise a conveyancing quality standard for firms to use as a marketing tool.

The aim is to encourage firms to provide an expert service in return for a commercially useful charter mark.

One suggestion is that solicitors who conform to the standards should be entitled to adopt a special title such as "chartered conveyancer".

Once the system is devised, the society will start a comprehensive consultation exercise to seek members' approval.

Kenneth Pritchard, secretary of the society, said members had already expressed support for a charter mark but there was opposition to the added bureaucracy which would be needed to police such a scheme. But he added: "My guess is that members will approve the scheme."