ILFM Conferences 2026

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Conference Speakers so far:

Chris Handford, Director of Regulatory Policy &

Mike Shields, Head of FI & Intelligence

Ian Johnson Partner at Hazlewoods LLP,
ILFM Council Member & Past Chair

“Compliance and the Legal Financial Landscape”

Join Ian as he leads an insightful session on navigating financial compliance in today’s legal landscape. Drawing on his experience as a Partner and Reporting Accountant at Hazlewoods and his long-standing involvement with the ILFM Council, including serving as its past Chair, Ian brings a uniquely practical and strategic perspective to the regulatory challenges faced by law firms.

With a proven track record supporting COFAs, managing partners, and finance leaders, Ian will share his practical and pragmatic view on how firms should be navigating the ever changing world of legal finance compliance.

Emma Dimbylow COO, Teal Compliance

"Economic Crime Update"

The AML Supervision changes, FCA v SRA, and what it means in practice.
Client money and client account consultation - what are the proposals.
Managing sanctions expectations - what firms need to do to ensure compliance.
A reminder of the new Failure to Prevent Fraud Offence.

Emma qualified as a solicitor in 2001, initially specialising in Commercial Litigation before moving into risk and compliance in 2007. Since then, she has worked as a COLP and MLRO and led risk & compliance teams for a number of national law firms, most recently as a Director/Head of Legal Practice for a large Alternative Business Structure. Emma joined Teal in 2021.

Emma is passionate about helping lawyers achieve a culture of compliance through a commercially focussed and pragmatic approach which aligns with business objectives. She has gained wide experience in establishing and managing risk, compliance and quality frameworks within the legal services sector, with a particular interest in financial crime.

Kirsty Pappin - Aries Legal Practice Management

“Shaking and Making Projects with the Three Cs”

Making any operational or business change in a law firm will always come with challenges. In SME firms, it is usually the practice manager or similar, who must ride the roller coaster of project management through to the end. With this mind, this is going to be an energy driven session, bringing you some key pointers to break and shake project operations with ‘Communication, Change and Courage’.

Kirsty Pappin is a powerhouse in legal business operations and practice management, and a passionate champion for the people who keep law firms running. As founder and director of Aries Legal Practice Management, she works with law firms across the UK and internationally to transform operations, strengthen leadership and build businesses that work better for both clients and the teams behind them. With more than two decades of experience in the legal sector, Kirsty is known for combining strategic insight with straight-talking, practical advice.

Her relentless pursuit of organisational and administrative excellence was recognised in 2020 when she was awarded winner of the LPM Excellence Awards 2020 - 'Practice Manager of the Year', powered by Thomson Reuters and in association with the ILFM. In 2025, Aries Legal Practice Management was shortlisted for Modern Law Awards: Supporting the Legal Industry (1-25 Employees).

Kirsty is also the driving force behind The Legal Heart, a platform dedicated to celebrating and supporting the often-unsung heroes in micro -small and smaller SME law firms, and co-founder of The Lawyers Retreat, a unique space where legal professionals can step away from the pressures of practice to reconnect, learn and lead with intention.

Hannah Beko - Authentically Speaking

"Staying Authentic and Human"

Authentic leadership and psychological safety for sustainable, high-performing legal practices.
Happiness impacts upon productivity by more than 12%. That’s reason enough to invest in an authentic and powerful system for the improvement of mental health and wellbeing of everyone in the business.
It takes a combined effort from both firms and individuals taking control of their own lives, to make a difference to the health and happiness of our profession.

Gabriel Santos - Chief Revenue Officer at Efimis

"From Back Office to Boardroom"

Finance teams sit at the centre of a firm’s financial truth – but aren’t always positioned to act on it. Too often, they’re asked to validate, report, and react, working around fragmented systems while the rest of the firm moves ahead.

In this session, Gab explores why finance is still treated as an afterthought, what’s driving change, and how better visibility and connected data can help finance step forward – from back-office support to a more influential role at the centre of the business.

Gabriel Santos is Chief Revenue Officer at Efimis and a senior commercial leader with over 20 years’ experience in the legal technology sector. He has built and led high-performing sales teams across international markets, working closely with law firms to drive adoption of software that improves efficiency, compliance, and client service.

Throughout his career, Gabriel has specialised in SaaS solutions for the legal industry, combining deep sector knowledge with a strong track record in revenue growth, go-to-market strategy, and scaling global sales functions. His experience spans both hands-on business development and executive leadership, giving him a practical perspective on how technology can transform legal operations.

Keynote: Simon Paisley Day — VAT of Stagnant Emotion

This year’s ILFM Annual Conference welcomes actor and accidental accountant Simon Paisley Day, who brings his brilliantly titled keynote VAT of Stagnant Emotion to the stage. A self‑confessed ostrich banker, hopeless with money and entirely devoid of pension planning, Simon has spent thirty‑five years navigating the gloriously unpredictable world of stage and screen. Retirement, he insists, is optional — “just keep acting till you drop”.

For most of his career, the letters V, A and T referred only to his own psychological state: “a vat of stagnant emotion”. As a jobbing actor with no fixed trajectory, he never earned enough to trouble HMRC. Then came an unexpected bumper year, a sudden leap over the VAT threshold, and the bewildering arrival of accounting software, quarterly submissions and the cold reality of self‑employment. How had it come to this? Why couldn’t he stay PAYE forever? And shouldn’t the son of a government auditor be better at this sort of thing?

With trademark wit and candour, Simon reflects on a life spent chasing non‑financial rewards, embracing insecurity and persisting in a profession that is, by his own admission, “a ludicrous way to spend your life”. Yet despite the chaos — financial and otherwise — would he choose the same path again? Abso‑bloomin‑lutely.

Known for roles in Born a King, Brexit: The Uncivil War, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, This England (as Dominic Cummings) and even Doctor Who, Simon brings a unique blend of humour, honesty and hard‑won perspective to this year’s keynote.