The rules that govern taking on a client — when a solicitor may decline instructions, when refusal is mandatory, and how a retainer is properly ended.
Every retainer can go wrong at the very start: acting for the wrong person, on instructions the client never truly gave, or in a matter the law forbids. This chapter begins with the freedom to accept or decline instructions and the limits on it, then the grounds on which refusal is mandatory, such as facilitating crime or breaching a court order. It moves on to identifying who the client actually is and who has authority to instruct, verifying that instructions are genuine and that the client has capacity, and the customer due diligence demanded by anti-money laundering law. Finally it covers the client-care information and conflict checks required at the outset, the restrictions on gifts and discrimination, and the rules on when and how a solicitor may cease to act.
