The first meeting with a client sets the foundation for the whole transaction. Before any substantive work begins, a solicitor must know who they are acting for, whether that person can lawfully buy or sell, and how the buyers want to own the property. Getting this stage right protects the client, satisfies your regulatory duties, and prevents disputes that can surface years later — especially on a co-owner's death or a relationship breakdown.
This lesson walks you through the opening stage in the order you would handle it in practice:
- Taking Instructions, Identity and Authority — verifying who the client is, their capacity and authority, and meeting anti-money laundering obligations.
- Legal and Beneficial Ownership — the difference between holding the title and being entitled to the economic benefit, and the limits on legal co-ownership.
- Joint Tenancy, Tenancy in Common and Severance — how co-owners hold the beneficial interest, the right of survivorship, and how a joint tenancy can be severed.
- Advising Co-Purchasers and the Form A Restriction — the questions to ask buyers, declarations of trust, and protecting a beneficial share on the register.
- Caveat Emptor, Surveys and Intended Use — why the buyer carries the risk, the role of surveys, and investigating an intended commercial use.
- Energy Performance Certificates — the seller's duty to provide an EPC and the minimum standards for letting.