Risk Management
Managing risk and limiting liability are at the heart of the effective running of your firm. Risk management is vital, not only to prevent claims and manage professional indemnity insurance costs but also to avoid the significant amounts of time, effort and stress involved in dealing with such matters. Failure to manage risk adequately can lead to significant losses.
The scope for inadvertently assuming risks is wide. Some of the common ways in which this can occur are as follows:
taking on the wrong client or the wrong assignment;
responding inappropriately to requests for information from third parties;
creating or retaining material that is unnecessary or unhelpful; and
failing to observe basic principles of independence or confidentiality.
Failing to manage risk could lead to the following outcomes:
not being paid for work done;
losing clients and/or goodwill;
suffering claims from clients and third parties; and
being subject to investigations and disciplinary proceedings.
It can be alarmingly easy to incur substantial losses through a lack of comprehension of the potential dangers present in what is seemingly routine work.
Good risk management is founded on the principles of managing risk before accepting the client or assignment, getting the engagement documentation right, carrying the work out to the necessary standard, making sure that the file is in good order at the end of the work, and knowing what to do if things go wrong (or look as if they are about to.
We can assist you in getting the necessary procedures in place, training you and your team, and providing a source of consultation when queries or difficult situations arise.