Term and Conditions Lawyers and Law Firms

Effective Date: June 2026 | Next Review: December 2026

About These Terms

These Terms and Conditions govern your use of the LawNeeds website at lawneeds.co.uk (“the Website”) as a solicitor, immigration adviser, barrister, Chartered Legal Executive (“CILEX lawyer”), or law firm (“you”, “your”). They form a legally binding agreement between you and LawNeeds Ltd, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 15610058), with registered address at 71–75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9JQ (“LawNeeds”, “we”, “us”, “our”).

By accessing and using the Website you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Website.

These Terms govern your use of the Website as a technology product. The commercial relationship between you and LawNeeds, including commission structure, pricing, service delivery obligations, non-circumvention, and cancellation consequences, is governed by your LawNeeds Partner Agreement (“Partner Agreement”), which is a separate document executed between you and LawNeeds. In the event of any conflict between these Terms and the Partner Agreement, the Partner Agreement shall prevail for commercial matters. These Terms shall prevail for all matters relating to the use of the Website as a technology platform.

These Terms should be read alongside our Privacy Policy (Website), our Cookie Policy, and your Partner Agreement. Together these documents constitute the full framework governing your use of the Website. The LawNeeds mobile application is governed by separate Terms and Conditions (Mobile Application – Lawyers/Law Firms), which govern the substantive professional activities available through the App including consultations, plans, casework, and LawNeeds Pro features.

The following groups are subject to separate Terms and Conditions:

• Users of the Website who are accessing LawNeeds for personal legal guidance
• Access to Justice (A2J) partners
• SME in-house professional users

1. Eligibility and Professional Registration

1.1 You may only register and use the Website as a legal professional if you are one of the following:

• A solicitor holding a valid practising certificate issued by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
• An immigration adviser registered with the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) at an active registration level
• A barrister holding a valid practising certificate issued by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) and authorised to accept public access instructions
• An accredited CILEX lawyer holding a valid certificate granting immigration practice rights issued by CILEX Regulation

1.2 You warrant that at the point of registration and throughout the duration of your use of the Website:

• All information provided during registration is accurate, current, and complete
• You hold the regulatory authorisation stated in your registration profile
• You are not subject to any suspension, conditions, or investigation by your regulatory body that would affect your ability to practise or to participate on the platform
• You will notify LawNeeds promptly at support@lawneeds.co.uk if any of the foregoing warranties ceases to be accurate

1.3 LawNeeds reserves the right to verify your regulatory credentials at any time, including by checking the SRA, BSB, or IAA public registers. LawNeeds may decline, suspend, or terminate your registration where it cannot verify your credentials or where your regulatory status changes.

1.4 You may only hold one account. Firms wishing to register multiple practitioners should contact support@lawneeds.co.uk for firm account arrangements. Where a firm registers on behalf of multiple practitioners, the firm and each individual practitioner registered under the firm account are jointly bound by these Terms. The firm is responsible for ensuring that all practitioners using the platform under the firm account comply with these Terms and with the Partner Agreement.

1.5 You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account login credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. You must notify us immediately at support@lawneeds.co.uk if you become aware of any unauthorised access to or use of your account.

2. Partner Agreement

2.1 Your commercial relationship with LawNeeds, including the terms on which you accept user instructions, the commission payable to LawNeeds, the pricing structure for consultations, plans, and casework, your service delivery obligations, and the non-circumvention provisions, is governed by your Partner Agreement, not by these Terms.

2.2 You must have executed a Partner Agreement with LawNeeds before you may accept any paid instruction from a user through the platform. LawNeeds may restrict your access to relevant platform features until a Partner Agreement is in place.

2.3 Where these Terms refer to obligations that are also addressed in the Partner Agreement, the Partner Agreement provision governs. These Terms address your use of the Website as a technology product and do not modify or supplement the commercial terms in your Partner Agreement.

3. Use of the Website

3.1 You agree to use the Website only for lawful purposes, in accordance with these Terms, your Partner Agreement, and your regulatory obligations.

3.2 You agree not to:

• Use the Website to carry out or facilitate any unlawful, malicious, or unethical activity including fraud, money laundering, or any activity that would constitute a breach of your regulatory obligations
• Interfere with or attempt to disrupt the Website or any servers or networks connected to it
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to any part of the Website or its underlying systems
• Copy or reproduce any part of the Website for commercial purposes or in a manner that competes with LawNeeds, without our prior written consent
• Use automated tools, bots, or scripts to access or interact with the Website without our prior written consent
• Misrepresent your identity, regulatory status, or professional credentials
• Bypass, circumvent, or manipulate any feature, safety guardrail, or restriction of the Website
• Use the Website or any data obtained through it to compete with LawNeeds or to develop a competing product or service

3.3 LawNeeds may be subject to limitations, delays, and other issues inherent in the use of internet and electronic communications. LawNeeds is not responsible for delays or delivery failures arising from such issues.

3.4 LawNeeds is a member of the Legal Software Suppliers Association (LSSA). LawNeeds is bound by the LSSA Code of Conduct which ensures members maintain high service quality, data security, and ethical standards.

3.5 The Website may contain links to or integrations with third-party services that are not owned or controlled by LawNeeds. LawNeeds has no control over and assumes no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of those services. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal or client data.

4. Professional Obligations and Conduct

4.1 You are solely responsible for ensuring that all interactions with users through the Website comply with your regulatory obligations, including but not limited to:

• SRA Standards and Regulations and the SRA Codes of Conduct (for solicitors)
• IAA Code of Standards 2024 (for immigration advisers)
• BSB Handbook (for barristers)
• CILEX Code of Conduct (for CILEX lawyers)

4.2 LawNeeds does not supervise, direct, or control your legal work and assumes no liability for the advice you provide to users. You retain full and independent professional responsibility for all advice and services delivered through or arranged via the Website.

4.3 You are responsible for ensuring that all interactions with users meet your client care, confidentiality, conflict of interest, and complaints handling obligations. Where your regulatory body requires you to provide a client care letter or written terms of business, you must do so at the outset of any ongoing engagement regardless of how the instruction was received.

4.4 You must not use the Website to engage in any form of unsolicited marketing, cold calling, or touting of potential clients, whether on or off the platform, in a manner that would breach your regulatory obligations. LawNeeds operates on the basis of users approaching the platform voluntarily.

5. Website Features and Paid Services

5.1 Website scope

The Website provides information about LawNeeds and its services, an AI Support Assistant for general legal information, and account management functionality. Substantive paid professional activities, including accepting consultations, plans, and casework from users, and accessing LawNeeds Pro features, are available through the LawNeeds mobile application and are governed by the Mobile Application Terms and Conditions (Lawyers/Law Firms).

5.2 Profile and account management

Where the Website provides access to your professional profile, availability settings, and account preferences, you are responsible for ensuring that all information displayed on your profile is accurate, current, and consistent with your regulatory authorisation. Profile management through the Website is subject to the same professional obligations set out in Clause 4.

5.3 Subscriptions

Where LawNeeds offers the ability to purchase or manage professional subscriptions through the Website, subscription pricing and features are displayed at the point of purchase. As a professional subscriber contracting in a business capacity, you are not a consumer for the purposes of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 and the 14-day statutory right to cancel does not apply to your subscription. Subscription cancellation and refund rights for professional subscriptions are set out in the Cancellation Policy.

5.4 Fees and payments

5.4.1 Where subscription payments are processed through the Website, fees are payable in advance at the rates displayed at the point of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically at the end of each billing period unless cancelled in accordance with the Cancellation Policy.

5.4.2 All payments processed through the Website are handled via the platform’s appointed payment service provider (currently Stripe). LawNeeds does not hold client money.

5.4.3 Late or failed payments may result in restricted access to the relevant platform features. LawNeeds will notify you of a payment failure and provide a reasonable opportunity to remedy it before restricting access. Where a payment failure is not remedied within 14 days of notification, LawNeeds may suspend your access to the affected features without further notice.

5.4.4 The commission structure applicable to consultations, plans, and casework accepted through the mobile application is governed exclusively by your Partner Agreement and is not reproduced in these Terms.

6. AI Support Assistant

6.1 The Website provides an AI Support Assistant offering general legal information. You acknowledge that:

• AI-generated outputs are automated informational tools and do not constitute legal advice
• AI outputs may contain errors, omissions, or outdated information
• Legal developments are subject to frequent change and AI tools may not reflect the most recent changes in law or practice
• You must independently review, verify, and apply your own professional judgment to any AI generated output before relying on it or communicating it to a client
• Using the AI Support Assistant does not discharge your professional duty of competence

6.2 Where you use the AI Support Assistant in the course of providing services to clients:

• You remain solely and fully responsible for the accuracy, quality, and legal sufficiency of any advice produced with AI assistance, in accordance with your regulatory obligations
• You must ensure that client data is not inputted into the AI Support Assistant in a manner that would breach UK GDPR, legal professional privilege, or your duty of confidentiality
• You must comply with your regulatory body’s guidance regarding the use of AI

6.3 LawNeeds maintains governance and review processes for its AI systems but cannot guarantee the accuracy of all AI outputs. LawNeeds accepts no responsibility for any interpretation, reliance, or use of AI-generated outputs by you or any client.

6.4 Use of the AI Support Assistant on the Website does not create any advisory relationship between you and LawNeeds. LawNeeds is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice through its AI systems.

7. Non-Circumvention

7.1 The non-circumvention obligations governing your relationship with users introduced through the LawNeeds platform are set out in your Partner Agreement. By registering and using the Website you confirm that you are bound by those obligations and that a breach of the non-circumvention provisions in your Partner Agreement shall also constitute a breach of these Terms.

7.2 Where LawNeeds has reasonable grounds to believe you have breached this Clause or the non circumvention provisions of your Partner Agreement, LawNeeds may suspend or remove your profile and visibility on the platform with immediate effect pending investigation and may terminate your account and Partner Agreement in accordance with the termination provisions of the Partner Agreement.

8. Cookies

The Website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies in accordance with our Cookie Policy. Non-essential cookies are only activated after you give consent via the cookie banner on your first visit. You can manage your cookie preferences at any time through the Cookie Settings link in the website footer.

9. Intellectual Property

9.1 The Website and all its content, features, and functionality are and shall remain the exclusive property of LawNeeds Ltd and its licensors, protected by copyright, trademark, registered design rights, database rights, and other laws of the United Kingdom.

9.2 You are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to access and use the Website for the purposes of managing your professional account and profile and accessing the information services available on the Website, in accordance with these Terms and your Partner Agreement. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works from any part of the Website without our prior written consent.

9.3 You retain ownership of any content you submit through the Website, including profile information and case materials. By submitting content you grant LawNeeds a limited licence to process that content for the purposes of delivering the services you and your clients have requested, in accordance with our Privacy Policy. LawNeeds may use anonymised and aggregated data derived from your platform activity for the purpose of improving its services, from which no individual or specific legal matter could reasonably be identified.

10. Anti-Money Laundering

10.1 Your AML obligations are set out in detail in your Partner Agreement. This Clause summarises the key points and should be read alongside the Partner Agreement.

10.2 You acknowledge that:

• You are the regulated person for AML purposes in respect of any client introduced through the platform
• LawNeeds is not a regulated person under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 in respect of the services it provides through the Website
• LawNeeds does not conduct client due diligence on users and makes no representation that users have been verified or screened against sanctions lists

10.3 LawNeeds may suspend your account without notice where there is reasonable suspicion of unlawful activity including money laundering, fraud, or terrorist financing.

11. Confidentiality and Data Protection

11.1 You are responsible for handling all client and user data obtained through the Website in compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018, and the confidentiality obligations imposed by your regulatory body.

11.2 You and LawNeeds are independent data controllers in respect of the personal data processed through the Website for your respective purposes, as set out in the Privacy Policy (Website). Where you submit client data through the Website, you act as an independent data controller for that client data and remain responsible for obtaining your clients’ consent and for complying with your regulatory obligations.

11.3 You must not misuse, disclose, or distribute any data shared with you through the platform. Client data must be retained and deleted in accordance with your regulatory body’s record-keeping requirements and applicable data protection law.

11.4 You must notify LawNeeds promptly at support@lawneeds.co.uk if you become aware of any data breach involving user data received through the platform that is likely to result in a risk to the rights and freedoms of those individuals.

11.5 Your personal data as a registered professional is processed in accordance with our Privacy Policy (Website), which is available at lawneeds.co.uk.

12. Professional Indemnity Insurance

12.1 You represent and warrant that you hold valid and adequate Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII) meeting the minimum requirements of your regulatory body, including the SRA minimum terms and conditions for solicitors, IAA requirements for immigration advisers, BSB requirements for barristers, and CILEX requirements for CILEX lawyers, throughout the duration of your use of the Website.

12.2 LawNeeds does not provide professional indemnity cover for practitioners using the platform.

12.3 You must notify LawNeeds promptly if your PII lapses, is cancelled, or becomes insufficient. Lapse of PII is a ground for suspension of your account under these Terms and may constitute grounds for termination of your Partner Agreement in accordance with its terms.

13. Limitation of Liability

13.1 To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, LawNeeds shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from or in connection with your use of the Website, including loss of profits, revenue, data, goodwill, or business opportunity.

13.2 LawNeeds shall not be liable for:

• The accuracy, completeness, or legal sufficiency of any AI-generated output produced through the Website
• Any professional liability arising from advice or services you provide to users through or arranged via the Website
• Any regulatory sanction imposed on you by your regulatory body
• Any loss arising from your use of or reliance on AI tools in the course of providing services to clients
• Any loss arising from technical failures or service interruptions affecting the Website

13.3 LawNeeds’ total liability to you under these Terms shall not exceed the total fees received from you (including subscription fees paid) in the three months preceding the relevant event. This cap does not apply to liability for death or personal injury caused by LawNeeds’ negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be limited.

13.4 Force majeure: LawNeeds shall not be liable for any failure or delay in making the Website available where such failure or delay results from circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to:

• Acts of God, natural disasters, flood, fire, earthquake, or extreme weather events
• Epidemic, pandemic, or public health emergency
• Cyberattack, distributed denial of service attack, or other malicious interference with LawNeeds’ systems or infrastructure
• Failure or unavailability of third-party services or infrastructure on which the Website depends, including cloud hosting or AI model providers
• Action or inaction by any government, regulator, or public authority, including changes in law or regulation
• Industrial action, whether involving LawNeeds’ own staff or third parties
• Prolonged power failure or failure of telecommunications networks

13.4.1 Where a force majeure event occurs, LawNeeds will notify you as soon as reasonably practicable and will use reasonable endeavours to restore normal access as quickly as possible.

14. Termination

14.1 You may close your account at any time. Closing your account does not affect any rights or obligations already accrued. Termination of your account does not terminate your Partner Agreement, which must be separately terminated in accordance with its own provisions. You are directed to review your Partner Agreement before closing your account.

14.2 LawNeeds may suspend or terminate your access to the Website immediately without prior notice (or subject to a cure period where applicable) where you have:

• Breached these Terms in a material way
• Had your regulatory authorisation suspended, revoked, or made subject to conditions that prevent participation on the platform
• Engaged in conduct that, in LawNeeds’ reasonable opinion, constitutes or is likely to constitute professional misconduct or a serious breach of your regulatory body’s standards
• Allowed your PII to lapse and failed to provide evidence of renewed coverage within 7 days of LawNeeds’ written request
• Breached the non-circumvention provisions of your Partner Agreement
• Created a risk of regulatory or reputational harm to LawNeeds in LawNeeds’ reasonable opinion

14.3 LawNeeds may close your account with 30 days written notice in all other circumstances.

14.4 On termination of your account, your right to use the Website ceases. Your obligations in respect of client confidentiality, data protection, ongoing client matters, and the non-circumvention period in your Partner Agreement survive termination.

14.5 Where your account is terminated, you retain an obligation to complete any ongoing client matters in accordance with your regulatory obligations. Data retention following account closure is governed by our Privacy Policy (Website) and by the applicable record-keeping requirements of your regulatory body.

15. Changes to These Terms

15.1 We may update these Terms from time to time. Where a change is material we will give you at least 30 days notice by email or by displaying a prominent notice on the Website before the change takes effect.

15.2 By continuing to use the Website after any revised Terms take effect, you agree to be bound by them. If you do not agree to the revised Terms you may close your account in accordance with Clause 14.

16. Governing Law and Disputes

16.1 These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Both parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

16.2 If you have a complaint about the Website or our services, please contact us first at support@lawneeds.co.uk. We aim to resolve complaints within 30 days. If your complaint relates to data protection, our Privacy Policy sets out the escalation route to the ICO. LawNeeds’ ICO registration number is ZC027272.

16.3 Before commencing legal proceedings under these Terms, the parties should first attempt to resolve the dispute as set out in the Partner Agreement.

17. Contact

General enquiries: info@lawneeds.co.uk

Support and complaints: support@lawneeds.co.uk

Post: LawNeeds Ltd, 71–75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9JQ

18. General

18.1 No failure or delay by LawNeeds in exercising any right under these Terms shall constitute a waiver of that right.

18.2 If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect.

18.3 Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, joint venture, agency, employment, or franchise relationship between the parties. You act at all times as an independent regulated professional.

18.4 These Terms, together with the Partner Agreement, the Privacy Policy (Website), the Cookie Policy, and the Cancellation Policy, constitute the entire agreement between the parties in respect of your use of the Website and supersede all prior representations, discussions, and agreements relating to the same subject matter.

18.5 Any notice required under these Terms shall be given in writing by email to the address notified by each party, or by recorded delivery to the registered address of the relevant party. Notices sent by email shall be deemed received on the next business day following transmission unless a delivery failure notification is received.