poppet2 Posted March 13, 2013 Share Posted March 13, 2013 The lawyer is sending the letter, so they are responsible for the content. Precisely. I used to draught letters for my solicitor to save time and money. However, you have to understand that solicitors deal with certain legal jargon. In addition, there are certain things which you may request, which they cannot be required to put their name to. This could be as a result of the demands you make and the lack of evidence provided. You also have to remember that in all circumstances, a certain professional decorum is expected when corresponding, regardless of your personal feelings towards the other party. ---------- Post added 13-03-2013 at 12:55 ---------- Why bother with a lawyer then? If his letters are so much better just send them himself. A dangerous move. OP could be depriving a solicitor, who after years' of study, and experience, and with a family to support, find himself destitute. This could indeed be the consequence, if everybody took this course of action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L00b Posted March 13, 2013 Share Posted March 13, 2013 Typical example in my line of practice: client: they are infringing my trade mark, I want you to sue them now-right-now. answer: could do that, but first need to check (i) if they are actually infringing and (ii) better send a letter before action first, just in case court (and expense) can be avoided in the 1st place and for other reasons under the CPR. client: don't care for no letters, not paying for no letter, start proceedings. answer (mutterred): m'kay, your instructions, your funeral. real answer: fine, done court win: trade mark is infringed, here's your injuctive relief cost award: ah, sorry Mr<client>, your proceedings were without notice and no pre-action protocol was followed. You don't get your costs (£50k-75k, prob much more in HC). For the sake of sending at least one letter first. Ouch. Another (I'm feeling facetious and ranty ): client: they are infringing my patent, I want you to send a letter to them and all their customers telling I am going to sue them. answer: might be able to do that, but first need to check (i) if they are actually infringing and (ii) what are they actually doing. Then (iii) send a letter before action first, just in case court (and expense) can be avoided in the 1st place and for other reasons under the CPR. Forget about warning the customers altogether. client: don't care what you say, send the letter to all of them like I told you. answer: no, get lost. client sends his own threatening letter (and complains on SF that his solicitor won't send the letter he wants ) <...> Weeks later, client gets taken to the cleaners for unjustified threats of infringement by both the infringer (who was only selling and, on the facts, not infringing) and his customers. Again, when (even without checking facts) sending at least a first letter might have avoided all of it. Ouch. All that to say, OP, that often as not, there are very good, legal reasons why, at times, a legal professional will not send/do exactly what is being asked of him/her, or 'obey your wishes' as you put it. I.e. refuse to do exactly what is being asked, but only in and for the client's best interest. Food for some thought, I hope, as I am reasonably sure that family law practice will be just as full of real serious traps (the kind you can't get out of) for the unwary. A dangerous move. OP could be depriving a solicitor, who after years' of study, and experience, and with a family to support, find himself destitute. This could indeed be the consequence, if everybody took this course of action.Nice troll, there, poppet2. FWIW, the "years of study and experience" prepare the legal professional for spotting such instances of "very good, legal reasons why, at times, a legal professional will not send/do exactly what is being asked of him/her" in a case, and do so within an economical timespan (e.g. minutes or hours, rather than days or weeks for the self-learning). But hey-ho. Any person is completely free not to pay, obtain and follow legal advice. You very rarely hear from them, they're quite unlikely to go screaming around on SF, Twitter, FB and wherever else that they got dumped on at Court because they chose not to take/follow the advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey Shaw Posted March 13, 2013 Share Posted March 13, 2013 Precisely. I used to draught** letters for my solicitor to save time and money. However, you have to understand that solicitors deal with certain legal jargon. ** And spell-checking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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