How To Choose The Right Solicitor

Neil8419

I am about to instruct a legal solicitor on behalf of my son.

I have never dealt with a solicitor in the past so it is something new. The prices all seem excessive but I am keen to know if anybody has any advice?

My understanding is that two regulatory bodies exist, SRA and CILEX is this correct and what are the differences?

Also solicitors seem to cover a variety of law areas and tend not to specialise in specific areas of law, am I correct with this assumption?

Any help is greatly appreciated

tacpot12

The SRA regulates solicitors, CILEX regulates Legal Executives. Legal Executives are solicitors that have  narrower specialisation than ordinary solicitors. However, this narrower specialisation really applies to their training. In practice, even ordinary solicitors have a specialiastion tht they work in. It might be criminal law, civil litigation, property, Wills/Trusts/Probate, Employment, Immigration, etc. 

The Legal Ombudsman is available for complaints against solicitors that meet certain criteria. (A complaint against a solicitor might be heard by the SRA or the Legal Ombudsman depending on the type of complaint)

You need a solicitor who specilises in the sort of law that your son needs help with. 

As with engaging any services, the best way to find good service provider is by personl recommendation. If you don't know anyone who has engaged the type of solicitor you need, you could look on Internet forums for recommendations. This might also allow you to check the going rate for legal work of the type you need. 

You should check to see if Legal Aid is available to your son.

It's also worth appreciating that solicitors charge a lot if you want then to do everything necessary to run the case. If you are prepared to do much of the leg work yourself, you can save yourself a lot of money. 

It might help others advice you if you can tell us something about the problem your son is having so we can see the sort of legal advice they need. 

Free legal advice might be available if you have a university local to you. The Law departments at Universities oftern run legal clinics during term-time.   

LightFlare

Neil8419 said:

I am about to instruct a legal solicitor on behalf of my son.

I have never dealt with a solicitor in the past so it is something new. The prices all seem excessive but I am keen to know if anybody has any advice?

My understanding is that two regulatory bodies exist, SRA and CILEX is this correct and what are the differences?

Also solicitors seem to cover a variety of law areas and tend not to specialise in specific areas of law, am I correct with this assumption?

Any help is greatly appreciated

my understanding is that depending on the type of case - it is vital you get a specialist .
You may pay more for a specialist but it would likely cost you less in the long run

user1977

Neil8419 said:

Also solicitors seem to cover a variety of law areas and tend not to specialise in specific areas of law, am I correct with this assumption?

No, all individual solicitors specialise to some extent. A firm (particularly the larger ones) may however be capable of covering a wide range of advice.

Okell

@Neil8419

Try the following:

1.  Find a Solicitor - The Law Society

2.  SRA | Choosing a solicitor | Solicitors Regulation Authority

3.  Ask Citizens Advice  (in fact I'd ask them for advice about your son's situation before trying to instruct a solicitor - might save you a lot of money.  And I assume your son is a minor?)

tacpot12 said:

The SRA regulates solicitors, CILEX regulates Legal Executives. Legal Executives are solicitors that have  narrower specialisation than ordinary solicitors. However, this narrower specialisation really applies to their training. In practice, even ordinary solicitors have a specialiastion tht they work in. It might be criminal law, civil litigation, property, Wills/Trusts/Probate, Employment, Immigration, etc...   

Legal Executives are not solicitors...

tacpot12

Okell said:

@Neil8419

Try the following:

1.  Find a Solicitor - The Law Society

2.  SRA | Choosing a solicitor | Solicitors Regulation Authority

3.  Ask Citizens Advice  (in fact I'd ask them for advice about your son's situation before trying to instruct a solicitor - might save you a lot of money.  And I assume your son is a minor?)

tacpot12 said:

The SRA regulates solicitors, CILEX regulates Legal Executives. Legal Executives are solicitors that have  narrower specialisation than ordinary solicitors. However, this narrower specialisation really applies to their training. In practice, even ordinary solicitors have a specialiastion tht they work in. It might be criminal law, civil litigation, property, Wills/Trusts/Probate, Employment, Immigration, etc...   

Legal Executives are not solicitors...

If you ask a solicitor, they will say they are not, and if you ask a Legal Executive, they will say they are 'laywers'. If you ask the SRA they will say they are not, as we don't regulate them, so I guess not, but the distinction is in the training not in their practice. A good Legal Executive should be just as capable as a Solicitor in their own field of expertise. However, once you go outside of the field, a Solicitor might be a safer bet because of their wider training.   

DullGreyGuy

Neil8419 said:

I am about to instruct a legal solicitor on behalf of my son.

I have never dealt with a solicitor in the past so it is something new. The prices all seem excessive but I am keen to know if anybody has any advice?

My understanding is that two regulatory bodies exist, SRA and CILEX is this correct and what are the differences?

Also solicitors seem to cover a variety of law areas and tend not to specialise in specific areas of law, am I correct with this assumption?

Any help is greatly appreciated

There are several types of qualified legal professionals hence we have the catch all term of "lawyer" and tends to be favoured by those working in corporate settings even though they are qualified solicitors. The below diagram shows the various branches, their regulator and their standards overseer:



Fees for lawyers on paper look high, typically £120/hr for a paralegal up to £1,750/hr for a senior partner + VAT. Most will charge per 5 or 15 minute block. Generally they are fairly efficient but it's always worth considering costs before calling them for a chat or sending long rambling emails. Remember a while back where someone was sending emails to their lawyer chatting about their plans over Xmas and were then shocked when they received a bill for 5 minutes per email they sent to the solicitor and 5 minutes for each reply. 

You are correct that there are generalist and highly specialist solicitors, your classic family solicitor will touch on a fairly broad range of topics from family law, conveyancing, consumer etc but are far from jack of all trades as they are unlikely to deal with criminal law or trademarks etc. You then get highly specialised lawyers which may focus on bodily injury, corporate law in the banking sector etc. 


You dont say what the cause is resulting in needing to instruct a lawyer so it's hard to give any particular advice. 

Neil8419

Its very difficult for someone with no experience. 

I have read and reviewed numerous blogs such as the below, unfortunately we don't qualify for legal aid

I don't really want to go into the allegations against my son. 

So based on the above commentary I may be better placed going with a solicitor that is CILEX registered? 

user1977

Neil8419 said:

I don't really want to go into the allegations against my son. 

So based on the above commentary I may be better placed going with a solicitor that is CILEX registered? 

CILEX is for legal executives i.e. para-legals, not solicitors. That could be entirely wrong depending on what specialism your son requires, and the only clue you've now given is that it involves "allegations". That suggests to me he wants a solicitor of some sort.

Undervalued

tacpot12 said:

Okell said:

@Neil8419

Try the following:

1.  Find a Solicitor - The Law Society

2.  SRA | Choosing a solicitor | Solicitors Regulation Authority

3.  Ask Citizens Advice  (in fact I'd ask them for advice about your son's situation before trying to instruct a solicitor - might save you a lot of money.  And I assume your son is a minor?)

tacpot12 said:

The SRA regulates solicitors, CILEX regulates Legal Executives. Legal Executives are solicitors that have  narrower specialisation than ordinary solicitors. However, this narrower specialisation really applies to their training. In practice, even ordinary solicitors have a specialiastion tht they work in. It might be criminal law, civil litigation, property, Wills/Trusts/Probate, Employment, Immigration, etc...   

Legal Executives are not solicitors...

If you ask a solicitor, they will say they are not, and if you ask a Legal Executive, they will say they are 'laywers'. If you ask the SRA they will say they are not, as we don't regulate them, so I guess not, but the distinction is in the training not in their practice. A good Legal Executive should be just as capable as a Solicitor in their own field of expertise. However, once you go outside of the field, a Solicitor might be a safer bet because of their wider training.   

I am not in any way denigrating Legal Executives but anybody can call themselves a "lawyer" it is not a legally protected title.

Solicitor and Barrister ARE legally protected titles and it is a criminal offence to describe oneself as such unless you are qualified and registered with the appropriate professional body.

Legal Executive may also be a protected title, I am not sure. However Okell is correct, they are not solicitors.

DullGreyGuy

Neil8419 said:

I don't really want to go into the allegations against my son. 

So based on the above commentary I may be better placed going with a solicitor that is CILEX registered? 

Ok, so its defence work... criminal, civil, employment?

A solicitor won't be CILEX registered, they'll be SRA registered as all solicitors practicing in the UK have to be. CILEX oversees Chartered Legal Executives as they are the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives. This is an alternative pathway to become a lawyer and typically is more focused and more practical whereas a solicitors training starts very broad and academic before narrowing and becoming more practical