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March of the big brand

13 May 2011 / Jon Robins
Issue: 7465 / Categories: Opinion , Legal services , Profession
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Part 2: Jon Robins continues his predictions on how deregulation will affect the legal services market

The purpose of the reform agenda of the Legal Services Act 2007 is to unleash the powers of competition thus enabling consumers to have greater choice and access to improved services. However, if the only criterion for exercising choice is price, as distinct from judgments made on an understanding as to quality, then there’s a problem.

“Quality” in legal services is a slippery and elusive concept, as was made clear from the three comments below taken from a recent report by the Legal Services Consumer Panel (Quality in Legal Services, November 2010).
 

  • Consumer A: “You only buy or sell a house once or twice in your lifetime…you’ve no yardstick to measure them by.”
  • Consumer B: “They’re all solicitors and qualified to a similar level, and so it doesn’t matter whether they’re charging you £200 or £800.”
  • Consumer C: “We put ourselves in their hands and because they’re qualified and they’re professionals, we just hope and
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MOVERS & SHAKERS

DWF—19 appointments

DWF—19 appointments

Belfast team bolstered by three senior hires and 16 further appointments

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Firm strengthens leveraged finance team with London partner hire

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Double hire marks launch of family team in Leeds

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Artificial intelligence may be revolutionising the law, but its misuse could wreck cases and careers, warns Clare Arthurs of Penningtons Manches Cooper in this week's NLJ
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