The best phone system for a busy conveyancing practice is a cloud-based (VoIP) system. It lets fee earners take and make calls from the office or home on the same number, records calls for compliance and training, integrates with LEAP and Microsoft 365, and keeps working even if the office connection fails. A VoIP system is usually a modest per-user cost alongside managed IT, which itself runs about £45 to £100 per user per month.
Conveyancing is phone-heavy, clients, the other side, agents and lenders all call, often at pressured moments. An old on-premises phone box tied to the building cannot keep up with hybrid working. Here is why VoIP fits a Harlow practice and what to look for.
Work from anywhere on one number
With VoIP, your number lives in the cloud, not in a box in the office. Fee earners can answer and make calls from a desk phone, a laptop or a mobile app, using the same business number wherever they are. That keeps the practice reachable whether people are in the office, working from home, or moving between sites.
Call recording and compliance
Recording calls helps with file notes, training and resolving any dispute about what was agreed, which matters when money and deadlines are involved. A good VoIP system makes recording, storage and retrieval straightforward and in line with your obligations, rather than something bolted on.
Integration with your case management
The real productivity gain comes from integration. Calls that link to LEAP and Microsoft 365 mean click-to-dial, screen pops showing who is calling and the matter, and notes saved to the right file. That saves time on every call and keeps your records complete without extra effort.
Resilience when it matters
Because the system is in the cloud, a problem at the office does not silence your phones. Calls can reroute automatically to mobiles or another site, so clients still get through on a bad day. For a deadline-driven practice, that resilience is worth a great deal.
Cost and scaling
VoIP is typically cheaper to run than traditional lines, with predictable per-user pricing and no costly hardware to maintain. Adding a new starter or a new office is quick, so the system scales with the practice rather than holding it back.
What to ask a provider
A specialist for conveyancing solicitors should be able to answer:
- Does the system integrate with LEAP and Microsoft 365?
- How does call recording, storage and retrieval work?
- Can staff use the same number from home, mobile and the office?
- What happens to calls if the office connection fails?
- Is pricing clear and per user, and who supports it day to day?
A real example: staying reachable
We help conveyancing practices move from tied-down phone systems to cloud telephony that follows the team wherever they work, so clients reach the right person quickly and nothing is missed because someone is out of the office or working from home.
What a good phone setup looks like
With a good cloud phone setup, the technology gets out of the way. A client rings the main number and reaches the right person whether that person is at their desk, working from home or between offices; the call is logged against the matter, recorded for the file, and answered with a screen pop showing who is calling. If someone is unavailable the call flows to a colleague or to voicemail that lands in their inbox, so nothing is missed and no client is left feeling ignored at a stressful point in their transaction.
It also means you stop worrying about the phones as a separate problem. There is no ageing box in a cupboard to maintain, no engineer visit to add a new starter, and no risk of the whole system going dark if the office loses power or its line. You add and remove users in minutes, costs are predictable per user, and the same friendly IT partner who looks after your computers looks after your calls, which keeps everything joined up and simple to run.
Why conveyancing solicitors choose First Stop IT
First Stop IT has supported businesses since 2002, including conveyancing solicitors and high-street practices, and we know the software you run every day: LEAP, Oyez forms, eSigner, BigHand, Sage Payroll, PTP and Xero, alongside Microsoft 365. We support conveyancing solicitors in Harlow, Bishop’s Stortford, Sawbridgeworth, London and across Essex and Hertfordshire. Our credentials include:
- Cyber Essentials Certified
- IASME Cyber Assurance (Gold)
- NCSC Assured Service Provider (Cyber Advisor for Cyber Essentials)
- Microsoft Partner
- Crown Commercial Service Supplier (G-Cloud)
- Quality Principles Certified
We look after more than 2,000 endpoints across 50 companies, we have been named a Top 50 UK MSP for three years running, and we support organisations with 10 to 100 employees across Essex, Hertfordshire and London, including Harlow and Bishop’s Stortford.
Book a free IT and cyber security review
Want this set up properly for your practice? Book a free IT and cyber security review with First Stop IT.