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SRA response

Response to Department for Business and Trade - Make work pay: Non-disclosure agreements - Consultation on regulations to prevent the misuse of NDAs in cases of workplace harassment or discrimination

Published on 23 July 2026

Introduction

  1. The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is the largest regulator of legal services in England and Wales, covering around 90% of the regulated market. We oversee more than 200,000 solicitors and around 9,000 law firms. Our purpose is to drive confidence and trust in legal services and support a strong, diverse and effective legal profession. We work to protect members of the public and support the rule of law and the administration of justice, in line with our regulatory objectives under the Legal Services Act 2007.
  2. We welcome the opportunity to respond to the Department for Business and Trade's (DBT's) consultation on regulations to prevent the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in cases of workplace harassment and discrimination. We appreciated earlier discussions with the Department and would like to discuss monitoring or reporting obligations for listed organisations further as the proposals progress. This response is provided in relation to the elements of the consultation that are relevant to our statutory role.

Summary of response

  1. The SRA supports measures to ensure the responsible use of NDAs and to curtail their use in situations which may seek to prevent the disclosure of instances of harassment or discrimination. We support the prevention of harassment and discrimination both as a regulator and as an employer. As a regulator, we support and encourage individuals to blow the whistle on wrongdoing or speak up where needed. The proposals in this consultation would strengthen our ability to act on these commitments.
  2. We welcome the DBT's proposal, at Part 3 of the consultation, that the SRA be included in the list of organisations and individuals to whom protected disclosures may be made. This inclusion would be in line with the SRA's current designations under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 and the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024.

SRA guidance on non-disclosure agreements

  1. In August 2024, the SRA issued an updated warning notice on the Use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). This notice, to which we have regard when exercising our regulatory functions, sets out the professional obligations to which solicitors must adhere when negotiating, drafting, advising on, enforcing or being party to an NDA. We issued this warning notice in light of concerns that NDAs were being used to prevent reporting to us, other regulators or law enforcement agencies, or to prevent disclosures that are protected by law. We confirmed our position that the use of NDAs to prevent such reports or disclosures constitutes an improper use of NDAs, and that a solicitor's involvement in 'dealing with' such an agreement may breach their professional obligations, particularly the duty not to take unfair advantage of an opposing party.
  2. This 2024 warning notice built on the findings of our 2023 thematic review into The use of Non-Disclosure Agreements in workplace complaints. The review found that most NDAs complied with our requirements and found no direct evidence of solicitors drafting NDAs with the deliberate intention of preventing the reporting of inappropriate behaviour. However, we were concerned that low levels of knowledge amongst a majority of fee-earners, and little specific training within firms visited, may inadvertently contribute to unintended outcomes.

Existing designations

  1. The SRA is already designated as a body to which disclosures can be made under two other pieces of legislation: the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (“PIDA”) and the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024.
  2. Inclusion as a listed organisation in future regulations made under the Employment Rights Act 2025 would be in line with these designations and would support the SRA's position as an organisation individuals can trust with sensitive disclosures.

Part 2 – Conditions for an excepted agreement

  1. Where it may be in the interests of one or both parties to enter into an 'excepted agreement', the SRA supports the requirement for an individual to receive independent, written advice on the terms and legal effects of the agreement under consideration. We would wish to ensure that all such advice is sufficiently clear that the individual has a comprehensive understanding of the effects of the agreement.

Part 3 – Permitted disclosures

  1. The SRA supports the position that individuals who have entered into excepted agreements may make permitted disclosures to regulators. This allows these individuals to share information about relevant harassment or discrimination for the purpose of making a disclosure or co-operating with the regulators when they are investigating or advising on the relevant harassment or discrimination.

Implementation and next steps

  1. Should these proposals be implemented, the SRA would need sufficient time to ensure we are ready to undertake our new responsibilities as a listed organisation, including relevant communications to the profession. We look forward to future discussions with the DBT as these proposals progress.
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