AML Firm-Wide Risk Assessments for Law Firms
Does your AML firm-wide risk assessment reflect your clients, services, transactions and delivery channels? Explore practical guidance on preparing, reviewing and updating a FWRA, connecting identified risks with effective controls and avoiding generic assessments. Visit Lexsure’s FWRA support page to explore the requirements and discuss your firm’s assessment.
Does your FWRA describe your firm or a generic practice?
Your AML firm-wide risk assessment should explain the risks arising from the work you actually undertake and inform the controls your staff apply.
A template is a starting point. Your assessment needs to reflect your firm’s size, clients, services, transactions, geographical exposure and delivery channels.
- Identify and assess the risks relevant to your practice.
- Explain the reasoning behind your conclusions.
- Connect identified risks with appropriate controls.
- Revisit the assessment when your work or exposure changes.
- Keep a clear record of review and management approval.
Explore Lexsure’s FWRA guidance and support, and discuss whether your existing assessment needs reviewing or developing.
Explore Lexsure’s FWRA support →
Support with your assessment does not transfer responsibility for AML compliance away from your firm.
-
SRA AML Policies Review: Will It Reflect Lexsure’s Audit Findings?
The SRA will host a webinar on 19 October 2026 to discuss its findings on AML policies and procedures, highlighting good and poor practices. Firms will be encouraged to compare their own measures and may relate these findings to recent independent audits, emphasizing the necessity for practical compliance beyond documentation.
-
Firmwide risk assessments: turn the SRA framework into a document that reflects your firm
A firmwide risk assessment (FWRA) should explain how your firm could be exposed to money laundering and terrorist financing, and what you do about those risks. It is not a generic AML statement or a form to complete once and file away. It is the firm-level foundation for your policies, controls and procedures, and it…