Cost Effective Legal Advice for Families

Whether you are dealing with the breakdown of a relationship and would like to make sure that your children and yourself are well provided for in the future or you would like to make a cohabitation agreement with your partner to ensure that shared property does not become an issue in the future, there are solicitors around the country that can help to resolve your legal problems. However, not all of them charge the same or provide the same level of service when it comes to family law so it is a good idea to take your time and to shop around before hiring a solicitor to represent your interests. 

The following points may help you to get the most for your money when hiring a legal professional who specialises in the law as it pertains to families.

• Insist on an initial consultation, either by phone or in person, before making any financial commitment to the process. Any solicitor that is worth doing business with will be more than happy to offer basic advice on your case before they start charging for their time. If you come across a firm that is not willing to do so, simply move on to the next one in your shortlist. The world of legal advice is a competitive one and there is no point in wasting time on companies that are unwilling to recognise this fact and adjust their business model accordingly.
• Only deal with solicitors and legal firms that are members of Resolution. Resolution is an organisation of 6,500 family legal professionals and their membership is committed to helping clients resolve family legal disputes in a non-confrontational manner. This makes member firms and individuals a good choice for people who wish to keep their legal costs to a minimum as they can rely on these legal professionals to help them avoid costly court appearances whenever possible.
• Pick a firm that offers a comprehensive range of services. If you deal with a company that can handle all of your legal problems, it will make it much easier to keep a close eye on your overall costs and ensure that they do not start to get out of control. Firms such as GT Stewart Solicitors, which deal with divorce, domestic abuse, child custody and many other aspects of family law, are able to look after all the needs of people who wish to extricate themselves from a failing relationship and can provide a single point of contact that makes life simpler for those who already have plenty to deal with on a daily basis.
• Choose an organisation that is happy to accept publicly funded clients. If a firm of solicitors does not declare its willingness to deal with people in receipt of legal aid and its commitment to providing them with the same levels of service as privately funded clients, they may not be your best choice. Some firms are keener than others to help people that need their assistance but cannot pay for it themselves and in my experience, the ones that really want to will advertise this fact on their website and in their promotional literature.
• Following on from the above point, always take the time to find out what, if any, legal aid you are entitled to before you hire a solicitor. There are plenty of advice bureaus across the country staffed by volunteers who can help you to discover exactly what you are entitled to so it will not cost any money to establish your position. To check if you can get legal aid, you can complete an online questionnaire that will give you a good idea of your chances of receiving financial help. Any help that you can get will of course reduce your costs so be sure to investigate your options fully before you start any legal proceedings.

Conclusion
The reasons that people need to consult with lawyers who specialise in family law are not usually happy ones but it would be foolish to make a bad situation worse by failing to exercise due diligence when choosing a legal representative. Make sure that you get value for money by being selective about the types of firms and individual solicitors that you are prepared to hire.

About the Author:

GT Stewart in London is a law firm that provides legal advice and representation for various cases. Know how to arrange for GT Stewart solicitors by visiting gtstewart.co.uk.

Getting Funds for Hiring a Lawyer

If you require legal assistance urgently, with filing a compensation claim for instance, you’ll either need to source a law firm that provides conditional feel agreements, essentially a ‘no win no fee’ arrangement, look at your options concerning legal aid, or raise the funds to hire a solicitor. Moreover, although you might think to yourself ‘Do I really need a solicitor?’ – don’t think that you can represent yourself alone. 

Before you start raising funds...

If you’re looking at filing a compensation claim – before you start selling your possessions – give some thought to your options regarding legal representation and the compensation claim you’re thinking about filing. Firstly, do you even have a claim? This is something to discuss with not one, but at least two, solicitors before you start getting your hopes up and begin raising the funds required to access legal representation, which if you pay for out of your own pocket could be extremely expensive, and due to the nature of filing such claims, somewhat risky.

Once you’ve discussed your case with at least two legal professionals and have established that you indeed have a claim, then start to look at your least expensive (free) options, and here in the UK that’s legal aid. This however, is no longer an option for most claimants because starting on 1st April 2013, legal aid is now only available in clinical negligence cases pertaining to childbirth, for example, where a child suffers a neurological injury that results in severe disabilities during pregnancy, during birth or during the postnatal period.

Raising the funds for legal representation

If you’ve no options remaining then you’ll need to raise the funds you require by other means, and you’ve actually got a few that are worth exploring further, and no, taking your valuables to the local pawnbroker’s isn’t one of these – there are much better ways to raise the funds you require for legal representation than losing your valuables. If you don’t think that the funds required for legal representation will exceed the limit on a credit card then this is an option – provided you’re still working and have a regular income coming in. If you’re paying for a solicitor’s services on an hourly basis then this is a realistic option, plus you won’t need to max out your credit card in most cases, you can simply put the bill on your card and pay it off each week or month, whatever’s more convenient for you.

A personal loan is also an option, provided that you won’t give in to temptation and spend it on something far more enjoyable – perhaps apply for a separate savings account to bank the funds in so as to keep it just for legal representation, like Mintons clinical negligence compensation claim assistance, charged on an hourly basis at competitive rates. Payday loans and similar products are also accessible and would serve the same purpose, though if at all possible apply for a personal loan with a competitive interest rate through a reputable lender, you’ll find that you repay a lot less in interest, plus their repayment frequency and term length options are also more competitive.

You’ll find that many law firms offer payment plans to make their legal services easier to afford to those who’d like to budget and pay back an agreed upon amount on a regular basis. If you can find a law firm that offers this arrangement and their services are reputable, then this might be the best option available to you, one that can help you avoid incurring debt to pay for legal representation, which is always advantageous.

About the Author:

Started in 1998, Mintons Solicitors is a law firm operating across the UK. To know more about Mintons clinical negligence claim services, you may visit their offices in Leeds.