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 How To Choose a Solicitor
It is often said that your case is as good as the lawyer you hire. Although
this axiom is not entirely accurate it is very close to the mark. A bad
lawyer in all probability will lose a good case which is why it is essential
you have the right advocate on your side when you have to engage in a legal
battle or even a skirmish. Here are some tips or criteria for assessment to
ensure that you choose a good solicitor. If it is worth going to one in the
first place, then it must be worth making sure that you have instructed a
good one. Do remember that in the legal profession as with other
professions, businesses and trade we have "the good, the bad and the ugly."
REPUTATION
When I am in Nigeria and hunting for a good tailor to sew my traditional
skirt and blouse or iro and buba, I do not just take my fabric to any shop
with a tailor's sign board. I usually ask friends and family in the
particular city for recommendations, which they usually give in varying
degrees. For example the qualified recommendation would perhaps be something
along the lines of "she sews well but you cannot rely on her timing so if
she tells you two weeks expect her to finish in six weeks." Another example
is, "well, she is very good and if she tells you to come today you can be
sure your outfit will be ready but she is expensive." Rarely do you get an
unqualified endorsement as there is usually something that could be improved
upon as with all things human. Just as you would seek advice to pick a
tailor, where to shop for groceries and the best places to eat if you are
new in town, you should also seek advice when picking your solicitor.
Indeed in the legal profession, I think it would be fair to say that
reputation matters even more than usual because as you build a reputation as
an expert in a certain area of law, you can generally justify higher fees
which reflect the amount of hard work that has gone into building that
reputation. So when deciding on a solicitor, ask family and friends. Ask
anyone whose opinion you have found valuable and who you feel can be trusted
to be unbiased. It is also advisable if at all possible to seek an opinion
from another lawyer who might be familiar with your prospective legal
adviser's work and general standard of conduct.
INITIAL INSTRUCTIONS
Once you have scaled the first hurdle and made a decision or drawn up a
shortlist, request an initial meeting with the lawyer and use this as your
equivalent of a job interview. Remember that you are paying and are
therefore entitled to a good service. Did the lawyer take time to listen to
you? Did the lawyer then explain the issues to you from the legal
perspective? A good lawyer should take the factual information, process it
into legal issues and then explain to you what those legal issues are in
plain English. I strongly believe that any Solicitor who cannot communicate
legal issues to a client in clear simple English is likely to be
incompetent. He probably does not understand the issues and hides behind big
words to muddy the waters and impress the unwary. If the Solicitor uses a
Latin phrase or terminology ask for a translation to plain English! Make it
clear you are not impressed and that should soon put a stop to the jargon!
Ensure that you are given an estimate of costs at the very beginning and if
possible at that initial meeting. Any experienced Solicitor should be in a
position to estimate costs quite easily once the facts of the case are
known. It is of course only an estimate as other unexpected twists might
develop as the case progresses making it more complex than originally
anticipated. When you take your fabric to the tailor, you will ask how much
it will cost to sew. Ensure you ask the same question when you go to your
lawyer. Also ask how long the matter will take. If it is litigation, it is
generally a long haul so you have to be prepared. It also helps you to
assess at the very beginning before you have committed resources whether it
is worth pursuing the matter at all.
If you apply these guidelines, they should safeguard you against "the bad
and the ugly" and hopefully ensure that you get only "the good" subject only
to how much you are willing to pay at the end of the day. Do bear in mind
the other adage that says if you pay peanuts you will get monkeys when
considering this aspect. There is a large measure of truth in this saying in
my "considered opinion" so do not expect to get a good lawyer on the cheap.
Boma Ozobia is the immediate past Chairman of the Association of Women
Solicitors England and Wales. She is also the managing partner of Sterling
Partnership Solicitors LLP a London based firm of Solicitors with associate
offices in Accra and Lagos.
Email: boma.ozobia@sterlingpartnership.com
Web address: www.sterlingpartnership.com
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