Furley Page celebrates as Finance Manager qualifies as Chartered Accountant

Lorraine Bunting

Finance & Payroll Manager

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March 3, 2020

When joining law firm Furley Page in 1997 as a trainee legal cashier, with the intention of taking a year out before university to pursue a teaching career, Lorraine Bunting could not have foreseen that over 20 years later she would be celebrating with her team after achieving Chartered status as a Global Management Accountant (CGMA). Lorraine has completed the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants’ training course, which is equivalent to a Master’s postgraduate degree.

After years of training and having studied with the Institute of Legal Finance & Management (ILFM) to gain fellowship status in 2005, Lorraine was promoted to Finance Manager at Furley Page in 2007 and now heads up the firm’s six-strong finance team. As the business moved forward and both technology and the legal world advanced, Lorraine felt she could be better equipped to deal with the challenges and changes of the modern business Furley Page had become.

Lorraine said: “I embarked upon the training because I wanted to ensure that I had the knowledge and professional skills to help as the business moves forward. As an Investors in People accredited employer, Furley Page has been very supportive throughout and has fully funded all of my training, including the CGMA qualification.

“Attaining Chartered status certainly required commitment, not least because I have two young sons, so fitting in time to study while juggling my work and other responsibilities was challenging at times but I have enjoyed the challenge! I was also fortunate to have had lots of support around me, both at home and from within my team, which made the whole process more manageable.

“Now I have completed the course I have a far better understanding of financial strategy, risk management and strategic management, and I feel better equipped to deliver the work and support that is required.”

Lorraine’s team of legal cashiers have specialised roles which cover all aspects of legal finance, including processing clients’ receipts and payments, daily bank reconciliations, billing, checking financial statements processing the financial side of clients’ property completions and generally oversee all aspects of financial transactions within strict regulatory compliance.

Furley Page’s accounts specialists follow a specific route of ‘Legal Finance’ in order to meet the professional standards dictated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Members of the team study with the Institute of Legal Finance & Management (ILFM) to gain qualifications in legal finance or practice management to further their career.

Malcolm Twyman, Director of Finance and Risk at Furley Page, said: “Legal cashiers are vital to the smooth and efficient functioning of a law firm and to the satisfaction of its clients. Lorraine’s fantastic achievement is a testament to her incredible work ethic and dedication to her profession.

“Attaining Chartered status demonstrates her proficiency in finance, operations, strategy and management. This is a highly regulated industry so good business practice and high standards must always be adhered to.”

For more information about careers at Furley Page visit  www.furleypage.co.uk/careers or call 01227 763939. You can also follow us on Twitter @furleypage and on LinkedIn.