Criminals use law firms because of your reputation. Your compliance program needs to protect it.
The UK National Risk Assessment flagged the legal sector as high-risk, citing criminals' attraction to "the veneer of legitimacy legal professionals can offer." Law firms are not incidental targets they are sought out specifically because of their credibility. One in three UK law firms inspected by the SRA in 2024–25 was found non-compliant. Sanction Scanner gives law firms and legal professionals the client screening, risk assessment, and ongoing monitoring tools to protect the reputation it has taken years to build.
TRUSTED BY OVER 800+ CLIENTS
Legal professionals are targeted because they are trusted. That trust is also your liability.
The regulatory expectation is clear: law firms are responsible for knowing who their clients are before they accept the engagement, not after.
One in three UK law firms inspected by the SRA was found non-compliant.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority completed 935 proactive AML engagements in 2024–25, nearly double the previous year. Of the 833 firms that received a formal inspection or desk-based review, 270 were found non-compliant. The SRA is not slowing down it has committed to sustained regulatory attention and its enforcement record, including nearly £1 million in fines in the past year, shows what non-compliance costs.
The UK government has confirmed plans to consolidate AML supervision of the legal sector under the FCA, ending the current system of professional body supervision and introducing direct regulatory oversight. Australia has finalised legislation bringing lawyers under mandatory AML obligations from 2026. The global direction is clear: legal professionals are being brought under the same supervisory standards as banks and financial institutions. Firms that have relied on lighter-touch supervision are running out of time.
The UK National Risk Assessment 2025 identified the legal sector as high-risk for money laundering. Not marginally elevated high-risk. Law firms are used to create corporate structures, hold client funds, facilitate property transactions, and advise on complex financial arrangements. Every one of those activities is a potential money laundering entry point.
A client you cannot say no to could become a client you cannot explain.
The tension at the heart of legal AML compliance is real: Professional privilege, client confidentiality, and the duty to report are not always easy to reconcile. But regulators do not accept that tension as a reason for compliance failure. Law firms are responsible for knowing who their clients are, where their money comes from, and whether the matters they are instructed on present money laundering risk before they accept the engagement, not after.
Compliance built for the client relationships legal work demands.
Every module connects to your practice management system via API at the points that matter.
Screen every client before you accept the engagement
Sanction Scanner screens prospective clients against 3,000+ global sanctions lists, PEP databases, and adverse media sources across 220+ countries at the point of instruction before any engagement letter is signed. Data updated every 15 minutes means you are always working with current intelligence, not information that was accurate at the last periodic review.
AML Screening →Verify the structures and beneficial owners behind corporate clients
Law firms regularly act for companies, trusts, and other legal entities. KYB verifies business structures, identifies Ultimate Beneficial Owners, and surfaces hidden ownership risks so a sanctioned individual behind a complex corporate structure does not become your firm's liability.
KYB →Risk-score every client based on their profile and the matter
Not every client carries the same AML risk. Customer Risk Assessment assigns dynamic scores based on client type, jurisdiction, matter type, fund source, and relationship history so enhanced due diligence is applied proportionately to the clients and matters that genuinely warrant it.
Customer Risk Assessment →Screen for adverse media and reputational risk
Sanctions and PEP lists do not capture everything. Adverse Media Screening monitors global news sources, regulatory databases, and enforcement records for negative coverage linked to your clients surfacing reputational and financial crime risks that standard screening misses.
Adverse Media →Re-screen your client base automatically, as relationships evolve
An existing client can appear on a sanctions list or become the subject of adverse media at any point during a long-running matter. Ongoing Monitoring re-screens your entire client portfolio daily and alerts your team the moment a risk status changes without manual triggers or a periodic review cycle that may be months away.
Ongoing Monitoring →Law firms run on practice management systems, client relationship tools, and matter management platforms. Sanction Scanner integrates via a RESTful API with webhook support, designed to embed into the workflows where client acceptance decisions are actually made at matter opening, at periodic review, and at significant transaction points. Our integration specialists work directly with your technical team to connect the right touchpoints. No API integration fees. No server costs. No separate data subscription. Everything is included.
API Integration →Built for the AML frameworks that govern legal professionals
From SRA supervision to the Australian Tranche 2 obligations Sanction Scanner maps to every major framework that applies to law firms.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority supervises most UK law firms for AML compliance under the Money Laundering Regulations. Sanction Scanner's client screening, risk scoring, and audit trail capabilities are designed to meet SRA supervisory expectations and support firms in their annual AML reporting.
Law firms operating in or serving EU clients are subject to the EU AML Directives. AMLA is now operational and is coordinating supervision across all 27 Member States. Sanction Scanner supports compliance across the EU for legal professionals with cross-border practices.
FATF designates law firms as Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions under its AML framework. Sanction Scanner's tools satisfy the customer due diligence, beneficial ownership verification, and suspicious activity reporting requirements that FATF sets out for legal professionals.
Australian legislation finalised in 2025 brings lawyers under mandatory AML and CTF obligations from 2026. Sanction Scanner's global coverage and API-first architecture supports Australian legal practices preparing for these new requirements.
Protect your firm's reputation before it becomes a compliance failure.
Book a demo with our team. We will show you how Sanction Scanner maps to your client acceptance process, your risk assessment framework, and the regulatory requirements that apply to your practice.
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