# Conflict checks and AML as pipeline stages, so nothing moves too fast

URL: https://up2.digital/solutions/losing-leads/professional-services/conflict-checks-aml-pipeline-stages

> A side checklist gets forgotten in a busy week. A pipeline stage a lead can't skip past doesn't.

## The short answer

Conflict checks and anti-money laundering checks get skipped, or rushed, almost always for the same reason: a busy week where chasing a proposal feels more urgent than a compliance step with no immediate deadline. A side checklist sitting next to the real pipeline is exactly what gets forgotten under that pressure. Building the check in as a pipeline stage a lead genuinely can't move past, rather than a box to tick on a separate sheet, is a far more reliable fix. This page covers the pipeline design only. The actual AML paperwork, the identity checks, the record-keeping, the retention period, is covered properly on [AML client due diligence for a small practice](/solutions/drowning-in-admin/professional-services/aml-client-due-diligence), and a solicitor's conflict check has its own professional requirements worth confirming with the Solicitors Regulation Authority or Law Society directly.

## Why checks get skipped in a busy week

Nobody skips a conflict check or an AML step on purpose. It happens because the pipeline itself doesn't force the issue: a proposal goes out, the prospect replies with enthusiasm, and the natural next step feels like moving the engagement forward, not pausing to complete a check that has no visible deadline pressing on it. In a quiet week, that check happens properly. In a busy one, where five other things also feel urgent, it's the step with no immediate consequence that gets deferred, and deferred checks have a way of staying deferred until something forces the issue, often a client asking why work hasn't started.

## Gates, not side checklists

The fix isn't reminding people harder to use the checklist, it's removing the choice. A pipeline stage that a lead genuinely cannot move past until it's marked complete does the job a sticky note or a separate spreadsheet never reliably will, because the next action in the pipeline is blocked rather than merely flagged. This is a design choice as much as a technical one: the stage needs an owner, a clear definition of what "complete" actually means, and no quiet way to skip it when someone's in a hurry to get a proposal moving.

## An example pipeline: enquiry → conflict check → AML → proposal → won

A workable version for a firm with both obligations looks roughly like this:

| Stage | What has to happen before moving on |
|---|---|
| Enquiry | First contact logged, lead source recorded |
| Conflict check | Checked and cleared against existing and former clients |
| AML / CDD | Identity and source of funds checked, where applicable |
| Proposal sent | Scope and fee agreed and sent to the client |
| Followed up | On the agreed cadence, not left to memory |
| Won or lost | Outcome recorded, with a reason if lost |

Not every firm needs every stage. A consultancy with no regulatory conflict obligation can drop that stage entirely. A firm with only light AML exposure might combine two stages into one. The point isn't copying this exact table, it's making sure whichever gates genuinely apply to your work are visible stages a lead passes through, not steps living in someone's head or a separate document nobody opens under pressure. Naming the owner of each gate matters too: if it's unclear whose job it is to clear a conflict check, it tends to sit untouched until the proposal stage forces the question anyway.

## Keeping SRA price information visible before enquiry

For a solicitor, the Solicitors Regulation Authority's transparency rules require certain services to have clear pricing information available to a prospective client before they commit, which affects what your website shows and what an initial proposal can say. This sits slightly upstream of the pipeline itself, since it's about what a prospect sees before they even become a lead, but it's worth checking alongside the pipeline design, because a compliant pipeline doesn't help much if the website stage before it isn't meeting the same transparency rules. Confirm the current detail directly with the SRA rather than relying on a summary, since the specifics of what must be shown can be updated.

## What the pipeline does not replace

A pipeline stage marked "conflict check complete" is a record that the check happened, not the check itself. It doesn't perform the search, assess the risk, or make the judgement call on whether a potential conflict is actually a problem. The actual compliance work, searching your client list, assessing identity documents, deciding on risk, still needs a qualified person doing it properly. What the pipeline adds is making sure that work happens before the lead moves on to a proposal, rather than discovering weeks later that it never happened at all.

## When to get help, and what we'd do

[A CRM or enquiry pipeline built around your actual stages](/services/crm), including whichever compliance gates genuinely apply to your firm, is a guide price from £400 for a lighter pipeline, or from £900 for a fuller CRM setup, typically taking one to two weeks. We'd design the gates with you first, what "complete" means for each one and who owns it, before building them into the software, since a gate nobody understands gets worked around just as easily as a checklist does. For the fuller system this sits inside, see our pillar page on [why proposals and enquiries go cold](/solutions/losing-leads/professional-services), and for the paperwork behind the AML gate specifically, see [AML client due diligence for a small practice](/solutions/drowning-in-admin/professional-services/aml-client-due-diligence).



## Frequently asked questions

### Can a CRM actually perform a conflict check or an AML check for us?

No. It can hold the record of whether the check happened and block the next step until it's marked complete, but the check itself, searching your client history, assessing identity and risk, still needs a qualified person carrying it out.

### Is a dedicated conflict check or AML tool better than building it into our pipeline?

They're not mutually exclusive. A dedicated tool can perform the check itself, while the pipeline stage records that it happened and stops the lead moving on without it, whichever tool you use to do the actual work.

### What happens if someone tries to skip the compliance stage?

With the stage built in properly, they can't move the lead to the next step without it being marked complete, which is the entire point. If it's easy to skip, the stage isn't doing its job and is worth rebuilding.

### Does every professional services firm need a conflict check stage?

No. It applies mainly to solicitors and some regulated advisers. A consultancy with no such obligation can leave that stage out entirely and focus the pipeline on whichever gates genuinely apply to its own work.