AIBU to wish people wouldn't try to give legal advice

[Singlenotsingle]

It's so irritating when I see people start of a post by saying "I'm not a lawyer but..." and then say something that's obviously incorrect! I know it's done with the best of intentions but so often they say something that's based on morals or opinions, not law. (And yes, I do have a legal background, but I won't comment on something out of my area of law ).

have a chat with hr" is usually pretty terrible advice

I tend to agree ! HR have limited
Powers and sometimes knowledge in this area .

Well, I think the current equivalent of 'speak to HR' is 'report to the ICO' - like GDPR is some silver bullet that solves all manner of ills

YANBU.

I dunno if it's quite the same for everything though. Some areas seem just to attract more bullshitting than others. Medical stuff is another one. And even solely within law, certain topics are more fertile fodder for people actively inventing the law than others. Surname use and changes, for example.

I agree - and some of the erroneous advice is given very forcibly . People seem to be able to form very definate opinions about other people’s relationships , legal, medical and mental health problems based on very flimsy evidence. There is little questioning of the fact that we are only hearing 1 side of a story

The GDPR bullshit makes me want to weep.

There’s a lot of bollocks on a variety of subjects.

Eg- I did x and it was fine. Someone else says but nhs guidelines says y. Lots of non-qualified people then pile on to say the guidelines are rubbish or get defensive.

A lot of times the best advice would be to signpost to official sources rather than state someone’s personal experience as a fact.

I disagree. I think most posters realise this isn't a bona fide legal forum with precise advice

However having asked for legal advice myself, very kindly solicitors have come on and given me very useful thoughts that I have then gone to a paid in rl solicitor with.

Infact a few years ago I came on here with doubts about a solicitor I had. I was given the the knowledge and confidence to be right about my feelings for her. I then again had to that confidence to follow this up with another rl solicitor.

In fact taking to most posters on here.. In among the wrong advice posts has really helped me navigate real life solicitors 😁😁

I have the advantage of not understanding the GDPR, so am unaffected by any nonsense!

I've also had great medical advice on the here and all sorts of advice.

We are all big educated girls and it's an amazing source of knowledge. Has there's lots of crap and rubbish..
But mumsnet has been an amazing resource for me over the the years.

In fact my heart sinks when I ask advice on something and someone comes into say... Don't ask here or something. I've been on mn several years now I know what and when to ask and what to take with pinch of salt 😂😂

I completely agree. I have seen alarming advice given by posters here on the grounds of 'it's only fair' or 'it seems right'. A poster being advised to put her ex boyfriend on her baby's birth certificate on the basis that it seems like the right thing to do, recently. It's reductive and unsound. That poster needed an unemotional and frank - and accurate - view of the risks and/or benefits of doing that so she could make an informed decision. What actually happened was post after post of people advising her to put him on the birth cert because it was only fair.

Yep medical advice of the A&E NOW variety.

Often a visit to a pharmacist would save a lot of time.

IANAP either IAAN

IANAL (I now to need know what IAAN means) but do have to read and understand legal agreements as part of my job. I’m actually an accountant (no, I don’t do tax) and I do understand GDPR.

I worry about a lot of advice given

I am not a lawyer or a doctor (in the medical sense), but for the last two years I am professionally involved in economic modelling of Brexit. And these days my eyes just don't stop bleeding when I open any forum / chatroom / social network, full of solid opinions.