Business Continuity Statement

Charles Russell Speechlys maintains a comprehensive Business Continuity Program to protect the Firm and its clients against disruptions that may affect business operations either in the UK or at its international offices.

The Program is comprised of three areas: Incident Management, Business Continuity, and IT Service Continuity.

1. Incident Management: a three-tier structure has been adopted based on the severity of the incident.

• Bronze level: Local/low-level impacts, which are disruptive but not serious for the location. Managed by staff at the affected location.
• Silver level: Serious impact, with significant consequences either locally or across the Firm. Managed by an Incident Management Team (IMT) based in London, in conjunction with local staff.
• Gold level: Severe impact, with potential staff safety/well-being issues; financial loss or reputational damage. Managed by the senior management team based in London.

2. Business Continuity

• Business Impact and Business Continuity documentation has been created for the Business Services departments based in London:
  
  • Communications;
  • Facilities;
  • Finance;
  • Human Resources;
  • Information Technology.

• Business Impact and Incident Response documentation has been created for the legal teams based in London.

• Business Impact and Incident Response documentation has been created for all other UK offices and international offices.

• Periodic training and awareness sessions, along with exercises are held for Bronze, Silver and Gold level members.

• General staff awareness training is provided, including fire drills, as appropriate.

3. IT Service Continuity

• Implementation of resilient technology platforms and infrastructure to ensure continuity of service.

• Advanced cyber monitoring to ensure data integrity and confidentiality.

• Annual recovery exercise for core IT components.

Priorities during an incident

Following an incident, the top priority for Charles Russell Speechlys is the safety and well-being of our staff and visitors, who may have been impacted by the event. Charles Russell Speechlys undertakes to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of any disruptive event in order to continue business operations and services for our clients. Full operations will be restored at the earliest suitable opportunity.

During an incident Charles Russell Speechlys will endeavour to communicate with impacted clients within a reasonable time period, indicating the nature of the incident, its status (i.e. under investigation; under resolution; resolved) and its impacts. Should a disruptive event occur, we will promptly inform you about any potential impacts on our services and the steps we are taking to minimise disruption. You can expect ongoing updates as we navigate the situation.

Our staff regularly participate in training exercises to stay prepared for a variety of scenarios. This ensures that all team members are equipped to execute our Business Continuity Plan effectively. 

Thank you for your continued trust in us.