I wanted to observe (and comment upon) a position that I'm seeing more and more frequently - In the hope that you don't 'fall victim' to the same.
Very broadly (and meaning no disrespect), I suggest it is important that all those who approach a Solicitor to help them with legal advice and assistance don’t approach matters akin to what (I understand) is similarly experienced within, and (colloquially) known by the medical profession - as being ‘a patient who has already had a consultation with Doctor Google’!
Within the medical profession, this phrase refers to a patient who initially presents themselves before their Doctor - asking (say) for a prescription for their (self-diagnosed - via a web-search) full-blown (say) acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome (AIDS) - when what is actually required is some cough mixture etc. for their sore, slightly infected throat (!)
I'm not going to lie - I've done it with my GP - to some extent (until I realised how much of a danger it made of me looking ridiculous)!
The internet can be a valuable resource, but I don't need to tell you that it could do with a serious 'edit' to remove out of date, incorrect and plain false information (e.g. 'anti-vaxers' anyone?).
If you approach obtaining legal advice and assistance in a manner (which I see often in selling legal services) where a client has formed an opinion of what they need/want to do – based upon incomplete or misleading information that they have received from reading the internet – which if they took appropriate advice – could likely be achieved better and simpler (and quite often more cost-effectively).
It’s very important that all interested parties should focus upon ensuring that the appropriate documentation is in place - at the appropriate time - to meet the stage of development of the relevant business (and its budget) while satisfying your business aims (which may not be what you are initially asking a Solicitor for help with).
Beware – That if you seek to obtain documentation that you specify in detail (after 'doing some web-research') at the cheapest possible price – there is a huge risk you will actually find someone to provide it for you (but the likelihood might well be that they won’t know what they are doing in so providing you with what you have asked for; and your business may well suffer in the future, as a result!
In my profession, I am often approached by those who have read some information on line (often about another jurisdiction and its tax code) - and they want to model what they have read, even though commercially, legally and taxation-wise etc. it is inappropriate for their circumstances in this jurisdiction.
Law (unlike medicine) is a creation of man and while a sore throat might be treated much the same in the U.S. as it is in the U.K., the same does not apply to much of business inter-reacting with local laws (especially taxation)
The classic example is the early stage business who want ‘a shareholders agreement incorporating a vesting schedule for shares in the business’ (because they have read an internet article authored by a non-legally qualified etc. venture capitalist in Silicon Valley, California) - when what they are likely to need under English law is an ‘appropriate new set of articles incorporating un-vesting provisions’.
The aims and principles are much the same - but the documentation and the detail of effecting the commercial aims is quite different.
Don't be the person who initially contacts me and I then hear nothing further - because ‘I haven’t proposed a budgeted ('low') price and instead I'm emphasising that other alternative ways to achieve what they were asking for are available’; and habitually, I 'sheepishly' next hear from them a few years later – when they have run into huge commercial, legal and taxation problems caused by the low cost (usually non-authorised) but certainly inexpert and inexperienced legal provider who gave them exactly what they wanted without knowing whether or not it was appropriate (so as to make a ‘fast buck’ at the time and not care about the future).
If you are considering a significant legal step in relation to your business, please talk to me early as I may (well) have availability and inclination to initially consider the same and endeavour to help you with materials and guidance you can rely upon as being up-to-date, legally accurate and appropriate.
Please take comfort that any initial/early 'contact(s)' with me / my firm - are on an entirely ‘no obligation’ basis = It's good to talk!
I trust that we will have an opportunity for further contact - Hopefully, In the near future = 'You know where to find me' (and 'let's keep the lines of communication open').
Regards,
Dan.Johnson@EquitableLaw.com
+44 (0) 7788 537 187 = U.K. Cell. / e-Tel.
www.EquitableLaw.com
