FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Do you offer free consultations?
Yes. We offer free telephone advice on all legal questions within our expertise. If there is no one available to deal with your enquiry immediately an appointment can be made at a mutually convenient time.
Will I be able to speak to my solicitor in person via email or over the telephone?
Yes. We regard it as important that you can speak directly to the solicitor handling your case. Our solicitors are able to retrieve your text messages and emails directly from their smart phones wherever they may be. Of course, he or she will not always be immediately available to respond if for example they are at court, but other staff in the office will be able to get in touch with you on their behalf if the matter is urgent. Only exceptionally would a solicitor not be able to return your call on the same day.
Can I change my solicitor or lawyer?
Sometimes legal claims do not go smoothly. If the solicitor is indeed failing to conduct the case effectively enough, then the request to change solicitors is perfectly reasonable. We always have to check everything carefully, before finally agreeing to accept the transfer of your case.
Steps to transfer your case.
If it is genuinely appropriate to change your solicitor, then the following steps are required:
- We will send you an authority to sign, for your file of papers to be transferred
- We then send a letter to the existing solicitors, enclosing the authority and requesting the file
- Before the existing solicitors will transfer the file, we have to give them an undertaking to preserve their costs. This means they will get paid fairly for the work they have done so far
- When the file of papers arrives, we will read everything thoroughly and then report back to you.
Will my case be dealt with by a fully qualified solicitor?
Yes. All legal work is carried out by our qualified solicitors with whom you will have direct contact at all times. Our solicitors hold a Practising Certificate issued by the Solicitors Regulation Authority which enables them to provide regulated legal services to members of the public.
Do you deal with Legal Aid?
No. We do not deal with Legal Aid but we do offer fixed costs on most cases as well as flexible payment schemes. In this way you can have the peace of mind of knowing from the outset exactly what it will cost you to instruct us on your case.
Do you do no win no fee?
Yes. Conditional Fee Agreements, or ‘No Win No Fee’ Agreements as they are known, are available for certain types of work. They are available for personal injury work and employment cases and in some other areas giving rise to legal problems. It is important to check with the solicitor about the details of the terms in which you are instructing them on a ‘No Win No Fee’ basis. Since we are a traditional firm we charge fair and reasonable fees for the work we do. Subject to many exceptions, if you are involved in a successful claim against a third party you can expect to recover most of your costs. Of course, there can be no guarantee but we would not take on a case that we do not consider has good prospects of success.
We can also enter into Contingency Fee Agreements, also known as ‘damages-based agreements’ or ‘no win no fee agreements’. If we agree to represent you under a contingency fee agreement — which should not be confused with a ‘conditional fee agreement’ — we will be able to claim a percentage of any monetary awards we win on your behalf plus litigation expenses. But if you lose the case you won’t have to pay us a penny.
How do I prepare for my initial meeting?
If we have not acted for you before, or even if we have but do not yet have identification evidence for you, you will need to bring to your first interview (1) your passport or driving licence photocard with counterpart (2) a domestic utility account or bank statement showing your current address. We have to have this to comply with very strict anti-money laundering regulations.
How quickly will I be able to have an appointment?
We use our best endeavors to meet you within any time limit you may have. According to the urgency of your legal business, we can arrange same day appointments in some cases, normally you can expect to have an appointment within 24 Hours. Naturally, in urgent cases our solicitors will be able to see you out of normal office hours.
How much will it cost?
Charges vary quite substantially between different firms of solicitors for different types of work. Experience and expertise of the solicitor and the complication of the work are crucial factors. By special arrangement we would not charge for the first, short, interview when we would weigh up what is involved in your case. At this stage neither you nor our firm would be under any obligation. It is very important however at that stage that both you and we know of the kind of cost your case might involve. You can expect us to provide information about this but, in any event, you should ask. Terms of business including about the cost will be confirmed in writing.
Do you offer fixed fees?
Yes. We offer fixed legal fees for most Family, Immigration, Landlord & Tenant and Will writing services, meaning you’ll know exactly how much you’ll need to pay for our legal services from the start. Once a fixed fee has been agreed with you we will not increase our fee irrespective of the complexity of the work.
Can I set my own Costs?
Yes. We are happy to agree a limit on costs and will not exceed that limit without obtaining your consent first.
Why shouldn’t I go for the cheapest Solicitor in the town, isn’t it all the same work?
An inexperienced or non-qualified solicitor or one that is not competent, whilst they may charge less, may take longer to take your instructions, draft a document or send unnecessary letters and so will cost you more than ourselves in the end. We do not believe in sending letters just for the sake of it to increase your costs.
Do you communicate by email?
Yes. We find that email is the most efficient form of communication and we are happy to correspond with clients via email if that is your preference.
I live some distance from your office can you help me?
We represent clients nationwide and in the days of modern communication including email, Skype and Apple’s FaceTime it is easy to have an effective client conference without you having to set foot in our office. This means you can have a detailed face-to-face meeting with one of our experienced solicitors from the comfort of your own home or office if you would prefer.
What about confidentiality?
Rest assured everything we do is with complete confidentiality. We are bound by the Solicitors Code of Conduct to ensure that we uphold client confidentiality in all of our dealings with clients.
Will I be kept updated on developments?
Yes – we’ll keep you updated via letters, email, texts, etc. depending on which form of communication you prefer to receive.
We’re based in Bolton (Greater Manchester), but help clients in the North West and throughout the UK.
Bolton (Head Office)
Hamill House
112-116 Chorley New Road
Bolton
BL1 4DH
Burnley Office
Northbridge House
Elm Street Business Park
Elm Street
Burnley, BB10 1PD
Call us today on
01204 565 234
Call us today on
01282 575 234
How can we help?
For expert advice, complete the form below and we will get in touch with you.