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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to wonder why people think lawyers give up their time free?

60 replies

RaspberryCoulis · 10/03/2021 10:57

See it all the time on threads - go and see a lawyer, you'll get 30 minutes free advice.

Where does this myth come from?

OP posts:
Dannydevitoiloveyourart · 10/03/2021 10:58

Because some do - especially the type that advertise on TV.

Original poster
RaspberryCoulis · 10/03/2021 11:01

Personal injury, no win no fee perhaps.

But in MN land, employment lawyers, divorce lawyers and all other lawyers are dishing out free 30 minute consultations too.

OP posts:
ChampagneCommunist · 10/03/2021 11:07

Occasionally, some family lawyers do offer this, but by no means all.

It's used occasionally to get new work in or for marketing purposes.

Goodness knows why we are the only profession that is supposed to be both Shit Hot and free at the same tine - how does that work exactly?

DifficultPifcultLemonDifficult · 10/03/2021 11:08

If MN is to be believed every lawyers day would be full of free 30 min appointments where you get all the advice you need.

0ntheg0again · 10/03/2021 11:10

Also that most home insurance have all this massive allowance for legal fees really?

Original poster
RaspberryCoulis · 10/03/2021 11:10

@ChampagneCommunist

Occasionally, some family lawyers do offer this, but by no means all.

It's used occasionally to get new work in or for marketing purposes.

Goodness knows why we are the only profession that is supposed to be both Shit Hot and free at the same tine - how does that work exactly?

I have this constant battle with freelance clients - there is a a good, cheap, fast pyramid where you can't have all three.

You can get good, fast work, but it won't be cheap.
You can get cheap, fast work, but it won't be good.
You can get good and cheap work, but it won't be fast.

OP posts:
user1471457751 · 10/03/2021 11:12

I've read this so many times on MN, it's ridiculous. I'm in another profession and there is no way I would give my advice away for free. I don't know why people think lawyers should work for free

SillyLittleBiscuit · 10/03/2021 11:12

I had a free 30 min consultation with a solicitor in London when going through my divorce. She was a super star.

thecatsthecats · 10/03/2021 11:14

@0ntheg0again

Also that most home insurance have all this massive allowance for legal fees really?
To be fair, I tend to pay the lowest price for a piece of paper saying I'm insured, and everything STILL seems to come with legal insurance included.

I've inadvertently got four types of insurance that include generic legal cover provisions.

Blancah · 10/03/2021 11:16

@RaspberryCoulis

See it all the time on threads - go and see a lawyer, you'll get 30 minutes free advice.

Where does this myth come from?

Loads of lawyers offer a free hour consultation.
I know for certain, I've used it and so have friends.
Not all firms offer it but many, many do

Blancah · 10/03/2021 11:17

And I mean family/divorce. I've never used an insurance claim type one for anything.

earlydoors42 · 10/03/2021 11:18

I had a free consultation with a family solicitor about child arrangements. Another one for my divorce. There were plenty of places in our town I could have gone for it.

Aimee1987 · 10/03/2021 11:20

I have googled family law solicitors in my area and the first 3 links all came up to largish firms all said they offer free 30 minute consultations. I was under the assumption it was to determine if a case was worth persuing.
So my partner has utilised this to decide if a custody battle was a worth while option for his son. He spoke to 2 local solicitors who advised him he was unlikely to win. This allowed him to make an informed decision. If the circumstances were different the solicitor would have gotten a client who would have been billed.

Also not the only industry last time my car was acting up I took it to my local garage. He examined it and determined the amount of work that would be needed to be done was worth more then the car. I opted to take it back and sell it on we buy any car. They didnt charge me for what was essentially a consultation.

nimbuscloud · 10/03/2021 11:24

But how much advice can you get in 30 minutes? Surely that would be just about enough to take personal details and the bare bones of the issue?

maxelly · 10/03/2021 11:25

I think the confusion comes from the fact that most of the time when you first make an appointment with a lawyer, you aren't charged for that time. This is NOT the same as '30 mins free advice', it's more for them to review and understand your issue and give you an idea of what kind of advice you actually need (e.g. is it an employment, family, small claims matter, do you need a solicitor, a barrister, a conveyancor etc) and to tell you the likely costs and possibly timescales of that - e.g. I visited a solicitor recently re sorting out a deceased relative's estate, they had a quick look at the documents/figures and gave a view of whether probate would be required and their charges for managing the application if so. They didn't charge for that initial conversation. Is that '30 mins free advice' (actually it was more like 15, wos I robbed? Grin ), I suppose in the broadest sense it is, but to me it's more like when you take your car to a garage and the mechanic sucks his teeth and says 'it's the alternator, it'll cost you £££ to fix' - he doesn't charge you for the time it took him to have looked at the car so technically you've got your 'advice' for free but in order to actually fix the thing you need to pay him (or another mechanic) to do the work?

badpuma · 10/03/2021 11:30

I've seen threads where Ops are confidently being told that they're entitled to 30 minutes of free advice!

Some firms offer it as business development, but it depends on how big they are and how much other work they've got - its certainly not a standard entitlement.

Original poster
RaspberryCoulis · 10/03/2021 11:33

Well indeed - advising whether you actually HAVE a case, or whether you need to see Jill who does divorces or Betty who does powers of attorney isn't really giving advice.

The way it's laid out is that you can breeze into any lawyer's office, with your full formed and documented legal issue, and every one will sit you down for your 30 minutes free advice.

OP posts:
Thisisworsethananticpated · 10/03/2021 11:33

It’s madness
You want good advice , pay for it
Or do your own research

SchrodingersImmigrant · 10/03/2021 11:34

@0ntheg0again

Also that most home insurance have all this massive allowance for legal fees really?
Mine is 50k or 100k I can't remember atm. I think 50k is standard minimum.

Some solicitors do free advice in university's free law clinics with students.

Aimee1987 · 10/03/2021 11:37

Your post is written weirdly why are you assuming that other industries dont need to meet and discuss options with potential clients before taking on a job?
This is quite common in any industry that has clients from a builder doing a quote for extension to an artist discussing a potential pice of work.

SillyLittleBiscuit · 10/03/2021 11:38

My 30 mins involved looking at my divorce petition, completing and sending it off.

Random63638 · 10/03/2021 11:39

Surely the 'advice' is like any profession quoting for the job? You present the problem, they take a look and suggest what it's going to involve/cost. It's sort of advice but the real job is once you accept the quote and proceed? So it is and it isn't advice, and can see why people use the term. It should be fairly obvious it's advice on how to proceed, not resolution?

Carolina24 · 10/03/2021 11:44

The ‘30 minutes of free advice’ is certainly a false trope that’s trotted out often, but most lawyers won’t / can’t charge for an initial meeting. You can’t fee a client until you’ve sent out terms and conditions and a letter of engagement, and to get to that stage you would need to have an initial meeting to find out what they wanted and decide whether to take them on or not. That meeting would be free, but it would be very unlikely to contain advice except perhaps in the most general terms. In any event, it would be stupid to rely on advice given in the space of a half hour anyway! It would hardly be detailed or considered.

Horizons83 · 10/03/2021 11:45

I agree OP.. and in fact solicitors should NOT be giving advice that can be relied upon without having a formal engagement in place.

I will of course have a call with a potential new client to determine what actual help they need, so I can then confirm what the fees would be.

The client will then go away and think about it and then either instruct me or decide they don't need to. But there does seem to be several posts on this site which imply that there's some kind of legal requirement for a solicitor to provide a free consultation.

I've made a judgement call that having a 15 minute phone call and outlining the options is worth it to try and secure the work. Other colleagues don't do that, they simply state 'our consultation fee is this' and won't lift a finger until that has been agreed to. Both are reasonable approaches to take.

Camphillgirl · 10/03/2021 12:12

@0ntheg0again

Also that most home insurance have all this massive allowance for legal fees really?
Read the small print.

Usually only if there is an above fifty percent of winning.