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06 August 2009 / Tony Williams
Issue: 7381 / Categories: Features , Legal services , Profession
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The changing client

Lawyers & law firms need to adapt to meet the needs of a more demanding client base, says Tony Williams

Law firms have had to anticipate and respond to the needs of their clients in order to stay in business.

This is as true in the high street as in the major city firms. It is even more the case today when, for the first time in a generation, we face an oversupply of lawyers.

This change is going to force law firms to understand how they are perceived by their clients, why their clients choose to use them and what causes a client to move to another law firm.
 

At a retail level, we live in a consumer society. We are used to being able to shop around, to compare products, have clear pricing and recourse to effective customer service teams to deal with any problems that arise. The interests of the consumer are key to the Legal Services Act, which is built on the principle of putting the consumer first.

Moving

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

NLJ Career Profile: Maryam Syed KC, Church Court Chambers

NLJ Career Profile: Maryam Syed KC, Church Court Chambers

From childhood dreams of the Bar to some of the country's most challenging cases, Maryam Syed KC explains why she has never stopped standing up for others

DAC Beachcroft—Richard Breavington, Rachel Ford & Daniel Guilfoyle

DAC Beachcroft—Richard Breavington, Rachel Ford & Daniel Guilfoyle

DAC Beachcroft significantly expands Cyber team, hiring three Cyber partners

Browne Jacobson—Professor Clive Kay

Browne Jacobson—Professor Clive Kay

Browne Jacobson appoints senior healthcare leader Professor Clive Kay as strategic adviser

NEWS
As family justice moves further away from the courtroom, collaborative law is emerging as an increasingly important route to resolving separation disputes
A busy period for employment law is producing important lessons for employers, employees and tribunals alike
From forgotten interest claims to case-management appeals, a string of procedural developments offers useful—and occasionally cautionary—lessons for practitioners

Jonathan Fisher KC highlights that it now accounts for around 40% of criminal offences, with roughly 70% involving technology, and argues that the UK cannot simply prosecute its way out of the problem. Detection, investigation and prosecution all require improvement, while different fraud types demand tailored responses.

How forcefully can a litigant criticise a public authority before robust advocacy crosses the line into unreasonable conduct? 
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