Solicitors

The Law Society represents solicitors in England and Wales. From negotiating with and lobbying the profession's regulators, government and others, to offering training and advice, we're here to help, protect and promote solicitors across England and Wales.

A set of guidelines produced by the Solicitors Regulation Authority which governs the way that solictors should conduct themselves when dealing with your case.

The Legal Complaints Service (LCS) investigates complaints about solicitors. We handle over 300 calls a day on a range of legal complaints. We have a dedicated staff of 390 helping you to resolve your complaint.

The Legal Services Ombudsman oversees the handling of complaints about solicitors, barristers, licensed conveyancers and legal executives by the four professional bodies responsible for setting and maintaining standards of conduct and service within the legal profession.

Collaborative Family law (also called collaborative practice and collaborative law) originally started off as a divorce procedure in which two parties in a dispute agreed that they would not go to court, or threaten to do so.

This protocol governs the way a solictor should handle Ancillary Relief cases - particularly the way they should act in the early stages of a case. For example it states that solicitors have a duty to make sure that the costs of your case are not disproportionate to the financial value of the subject matter of the dispute.

The Central London Collaborative Forum is a group of solicitors who are dedicated to the principles and practice of Collaborative Family Law. All our members are partners or consultants of Central London law firms and Fellows of the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers who have completed training in the collaborative law model. Our goal is for the collaborative process to become the preferred method of resolving cases, including those involving families where assets are substantial or where there is an international dimension.

A Wikivorce member posted in the forum that solicitors have a lot of power.  I wrote a response and another member told me that she thought it should be added to the library.  This is it, albeit slightly edited.

This section compares the difference between solicitors, barristers and legal executives. It details what a solicitor does on your behalf during divorce proceedings, and also covers how some solicitors act as mediators or as collaborative lawyers.

This article provides some basic advice on how to go about choosing a solicitor, including how to prepare for an initial meeting with a solicitor to decide whether they are suitable.

When you instruct a solicitor to act for you, you will be entering into a contract with the solicitor's firm. The firm will send you a letter (usually called a 'client care letter') in duplicate, setting out the terms of the contract (or 'Terms of Business', as they are usually known), or enclosing two copies of the Terms. You should read through this letter or Terms carefully.

If you are happy with the terms then you should sign one copy and return it to the solicitor. If there is anything in the terms that you are not happy about, or do not understand, then you should raise this with your solicitor before signing the letter/Terms. Depending upon the point that you have raised, the solicitor may be prepared to alter the terms, although this is unusual.

This ariticle provides advice on how to work effectively with your solicitor in order to process your divorce whilst maintaining some control over the level of legal costs.

A complaint relates to poor service by your solicitor, for example not doing what you instructed them to do, unreasonable delays, failure to keep you informed, or excessive bills etc. Complaints do not cover negligent advice from your solicitor - if you think your solicitor has given you negligent advice, you should consult another solicitor about the possibility of making a claim for compensation - all firms of solicitors must have insurance to cover compensation claims.

Mr Pilbrow asked for a solicitor the representation provided was a legal executive unbeknown to Mr Pilbrow after receiving poor service and advice and upon the realisation that he did not get what he asked for he refused to pay the bill the practice sued Mr Pilbrow and lost.

This is good-practice guidance prepared by Resolution for the use of solicitors dealing with self-reppers and gives an idea of what one should expect from the average lawyer.  Unfortunately it is neither Law nor enforceable.