How do I find a Solicitor who knows the area of law I need them for?

[crunchtimes]

Myself and my family have been to 3 solicitors over the same legal issue, but don't really feel that they understand our problem, or have a specialist knowledge that we need.

The problem is relating to my late Grandparents will, and restrictions on a property which was left to my mother. It seems that the restrictions they might last forever, which seem crazy (normal family, richer than most, but still middle-class) which have effected my mother's life enormously as she couldn't sell the house. My mother has now passed away, her decendants have inherited the problem.

I am looking for a solicitor who can look at the Grandparents Will and agreement and decide if there's any way out of the restriction, if not now then maybe in the future for our descendants.

As i've said, 3 different solicitors have been asked, and none of them have come upon with precedent to confirm a position either way.

Where do I go for help? I can google Solicitors/Wills/Disputes but they don't seem to come up with people who I think will know anymore than we've already tried.

Have you tried a property lawyer? Restrictions on properties would usually be dealt with by a residential property solicitor.

You would need a proper solicitor not a conveyancer for this.

Maybe you need an Opinion from a barrister, talk to your current solicitor about it.

To search for specialist solicitors, and assuming your in England, go to the Law Society’s ‘find a solicitor’ and you can search for specialists in your locality.

We ended up with a barrister that specialised in inheritance law. Our family solicitor said that the issue was rare enough and complicated enough to justify it. Cost a bit but was worth it as my late fathers estate was sitting in limbo and at least we knew we had got the best advice.
All worked out well.

Try Abigail (Abbie) Howson or a public access barrister.

What exactly is the restriction? You may actually need a land lawyer rather than a trusts lawyer for example. Or it may be a very niche area of trusts law. Sometimes you may actually be better off getting a research type lawyer. They normal do general litigation but have a PhD, teaching experience, research skills etc. Sometimes they will market themselves as a leagal consultant. The majority of trusts lawyers are in it fit the lifestyle and aren't necessarily any good at complicated trusts work.

Whereabouts in the country are you?

If you go online to www.legal500.com you can search solicitors by geographical area, area of law and they will also say how they are rated eg. top band, middle rating etc.

I'd probably be looking for a specialist in that type of property - it could be residential, commercial or agricultural - in the first instance, rather than a generalist. Unless the restriction is a branch of law in itself that you could reasonably expect someone to specialise in.

If you live near a University that has a law Faculty, see if the students there run anything like an advice clinic (if they don't know the answer, they may ask an academic) Not all Unis do this, though.

I'd say your best bet is to find a firm that has multiple teams so probate, real estate and trusts so that they can work together.