When a Law Firm Closes: Is Your File the Same One?

October 23, 2026

On 20 October 2026, Rahman Ravelli Solicitors Ltd, a well-known white-collar crime and fraud law firm, went into administration. Its public notice to clients is calm and practical. It says clients are free to instruct any solicitor they choose, and that live files, along with any valuable documents and client money held for them, will be transferred to the firm each client picks. It says closed and archived files are being stored securely online by the joint administrators, and can be retrieved on request. It also says client money held in a regulated client account is not affected by the administration.

That is how an orderly handover should look. But it raises a question that applies to any firm that closes, merges or hands over its work: when a client file arrives at a new solicitor, how does anyone know it is the same file the old firm held?

A lot of paper moving at once

A law firm's files are rarely one tidy folder. A single matter can hold letters, emails, witness statements, expert reports, attendance notes, contracts and years of drafts. When a firm closes, every live matter moves at roughly the same time, often to many different firms, while the archive goes into storage. Each file is copied, exported or boxed up, and every step is a chance for something to go missing or end up in the wrong version.

None of this means anyone has done anything wrong. It is simply what happens when large amounts of material move quickly. The time to check is when the file arrives, not two years later when a document is suddenly needed.

Practical steps for clients and new solicitors

If you are a client, or a solicitor taking on a matter, a few plain habits help:

• Ask for an index. Request a list of everything in the file: document names, dates and page counts. It is much easier to spot a gap against a list than in a pile.
• Compare against your own copies. Most clients hold some of their own papers, such as signed documents, emails and letters they were sent. Check that these appear in the transferred file and match what you have.
• Keep a record of what you sent and received. Note what you gave the old firm and when, and what the new firm received and when. A short dated note now can save a long argument later.
• Raise gaps early. If something seems to be missing, ask while the people handling the transfer are still in place and the trail is fresh.
• Keep the originals as they were. If a document needs correcting or annotating, save that as a new version and leave the received copy untouched.

For archived files, the same applies. If you ask for an old file back, check it against any index or copies you already hold.

Where Partisan fits

I work on business development and communications for Partisan. Partisan records a file's fingerprint without seeing or keeping the document, gives a dated receipt, and shows a file is unchanged since it was recorded.

For a client file, that means documents could be recorded when they are created or handed over, and later shown to be the same files when they arrive somewhere new. It is worth being clear about the limits. A receipt does not show that a document is true or accurate, or when it was first written. It only shows the file has not changed since it was recorded.

Working with me

If you are a firm, client or adviser going through a difficult change and need to explain it clearly to clients, partners or the media, I can help with PR and communications. Have a look at how I work and get in touch. To find out more about Partisan, contact me and I will put you in touch.