7 Reasons to not use Family Law Assistance
- Introduction
- We’re not the cheapest
- We charge upfront
- We charge a flat fee for hearings
- We can’t speak for you in court
- We are not regulated
- We don’t have to be legally qualifed
- We don’t have to be insured.
- Conclusion
Introduction
Eh? You’re reading a blog post on the Family Law Assistance website, written by one of the founders of Family Law Assistance and you’re being told `You shouldn’t use Family Law Assistance’???
We’ve been assisting people for a decade and a half now and while we’ve helped thousands of men and women deal with divorce, child and finance issues in courts around the country we’ve also told a huge number of people that we’re not the best fit for them.
There are several good reasons why this is the case.
We’ve got a good track record, it’s true. But there are a large number of factors that are going to come into it when someone going through the family courts is making a decision about who is helping them getting the right result. It would be a mistake to see us as `cut price’ solicitors.
We’re not. There are some similarities, but there are some very important differences you need to understand when you choose whether you need assistance from organisations like ours or the more traditional path of using a solicitor.
So this blog post is a deep dive into those reasons to help you work out what is really important to you.
We’re not the cheapest
Cost is a huge consideration for many people (but probably not as many as you may think). In the legal industry, there is a huge variation in the fees charged by professionals.
At one end of the scale there are people out there who assist for free or just for expenses. Often they’re part of a charity or doing it purely for altruistic reasons – they want to help litigants going through the family court to ensure they get the `right’ result for their children or their finances. It’s important to understand that the services people like these offer are strictly limited: They have bills to pay like everyone else and they’re fitting in helping people in family law matters around a day job or family commitments.
The other end of the scale?
Think expensive solicitors who charge hundreds of pounds an hour. This is the `traditional’ route of going through the family court and one many people consider doing it `properly’. The charging model for this option usually consists of a free consultation followed by litigants being asked to put money `on account’ (i.e. £500+VAT as an initial fee) and then topped up to bring it back to that amount. It often involves paying additional fees if there is a long hearing and/or a lot of work to be done any particular month. Solicitors using this model are legally entitled to refuse to hand over court paperwork to litigants who owe money.
In terms of cost we fit somewhere in the middle of these (and we charge up front meaning you never `owe’ us anything). A quick look around the internet will find you assistance for far less than we charge.
So if cost is the most important factor to you, we may not be the ones to help you.
We charge up front
We work on a `pay as you go’ system, asking our fees be paid ahead of any work we do – be that help with paperwork, meetings or assistance at hearings.
Some people are uncomfortable about this, feeling they should only pay once the work is done. If you’re in this camp, there’s good news – there are large numbers of people and organisations who will happily invoice you after they’ve finished.
Our way of doing things means we can keep our administration costs down, we don’t chase people for unpaid invoices and people know exactly what they’re paying for beforehand so they can say `no thank you’ rather than being shocked by a large invoice they are expected to pay after the work has been done.
We charge a flat fee for hearings
A court hearing seldom runs to schedule. We’d estimate that 9 out of 10 times they overrun.
For in person hearings (i.e. the ones where you actually go to court) it’s common practice for a court to tell everyone to arrive at 9am for a 10 am hearing and then deal with them individually – meaning your 1 hour hearing could see you leaving the building at 5pm.
To take this into account, we charge a flat fee for a hearing. We don’t have an hourly rate – so it means you’re not looking at your watch mentally increasing the value of the invoice you will be paying us.
The downside of this? The fee you have paid doesn’t change if you are fortunate enough to be the first hearing of the day (meaning you leave at 10am as opposed to 5pm) or if your 3-day trial only takes 2.
If you feel you only want to pay for what you get – you may not like our charging model.
We can’t speak for you in court
If you want someone to speak for you in court. you need a solictor or barrister.
They’re the only people who have `automatic rights of audience’ meaning they can address the court directly. If you take anyone else at all, you need to expect you are the ones doing the talking.
You also need to assume that anyone else else helping you in court will remain silent, other than to give you quiet advice which you can do at any time during a hearing (other than when you’re on oath answering questions which is the same for someone who has a solicitor or barrister). That said, we do sometimes get rights of audience – it is possible to ask the court (but you’re unlikely to get it unless you have a very good reason) and on some occasions the court will specifically ask us to do so.
But you need to work on the principle you are the one speaking.
That said? We’ve helped thousands of people over the years and have worked with them to ensure they are confident, effective and focused litigants who have presented their case extremely well. We prepare our clients, make sure they’re clear about what points they want to raise and are by their side if they need help at all times.
But if the thought of speaking in court still terrifies you – get a solicitor or barrister!
We can’t act as your agent
This means we can’t act on your behalf. A solictor or barrister can. They can speak to your ex’s solicitor/barrister directly or your ex (if they aren’t represented) and agree to things for you (so long as they have been instructed by you to do so). They can make applications to court with your agreement, pay court fees for you and more.
The traditional model means you don’t need to speak to anyone in a court case other than your solicitor/barrister (or your ex’s one if you’re being cross examined). If you find the process intimidating a good/solicitor can take a lot of the fear out of it all by doing this.
We can help you do all of the above and more though. We can help you prepare forms, paperwork and applications – helping you to complete forms, assist in drafting paperwork, explaining the process and discussing your options. Again – a good decade and a half of doing and experience in the family law system has left us with a pretty comprehensive system of effectively helping people represent themselves.
If you want someone to do it all for you though – we’re not the ones for you!
We are not regulated
It’s an accusation levelled by us by some solicitors and barristers and they’re right: Organisations like ours are not regulated. Nor do we need to be legally qualified or insured.
Solicitors and barristers have to be all three.
Solicitors are regulated by the SRA, barristers by the Bar Standards Board. If you have a complaint those are the organisations to speak to. They’re long established and deal specifically with these issues. Be aware however that many people are often unhappy with the response they get when complaining, feeling that this regulation is a fig leaf.
In contrast, family law specialists and McKenzie Friends are not regulated. There are various organisations out there who give the impression they are regulatory bodies but the truth is they have no authority and no statutory powers – instead they are companies who charge other companies to use a logo and claim affliation.
For better or worse, only solicitors and barristers are regulated.
We don’t have to be legally qualifed
Solicitors and barristers have to be legally qualified. There are various paths they can follow to achieve this. The path is long and extensive, with ongoing training, mentoring and tutoring even when the qualifications needed have been achieved.
Anyone falsely claiming to be one faces heavily penalties – impersonating an officer of the court is an extremely serious charge that risks imprisonment.
Family law specialists and McKenzie Friends do not need to be. Anyone can call themselves one – be it someone who has never had any involvement with the court all the way through to ex solicitors.
We have legally qualified members of our team, but not all are.
If you want a guarantee that the person helping you is qualified however – a solicitor or barrister is the right choice.
We don’t have to be insured
Another requirement for solicitor and barristers is insurance – insurance in the event of their own clients or a third party suing them.
You can do so if you demonstrate you have suffered more than just bad service. It needs to be something like:
- Missing deadlines.
- Poorly drafting certain documents.
- Providing incorrect advice.
The insurance they have is to protect them for a claim you (or someone else) will make. And to do that you will likely employ another solicitor to assist you (there are `no win, no fee’ solicitors out there to help you do that – but they will only take on cases they are sure they can win and may require you pay for another insurance policy in the event of that not happening to cover their own fees).
When it comes to organisations such as ours though…this is a legal `grey area’ and the above doesn’t apply. You represent yourself. The documents we assist you with are your responsibility.
But if insurance is important to you, get a solicitor or barrister!
Conclusion
The way we work is a result of assisting thousands of people over the last decade and a half. We have learned what has worked for our clients and what hasn’t. We’ve learned what we need to do to build a sustainable business to continue to assist litigants in person around the country.
Everyone is different. Huge numbers of people have entrusted us to assist them in their family law matter. We have also been contacted by those who – for whatever reason – have decided we aren’t the `right fit’ for them. That’s understandable.
We’re not for everyone. But we hope this blog post has given you some useful information!
