How much will it cost for me to change Solicitors? Will it affect your funding arrangements? Will it slow down your case? The general principle is that clients are free to choose their own solicitors. When you are tied into a conditional agreement, this can seem more daunting. However, changing solicitors is your right and when handled properly, should not be problematic. It is actually more difficulty for Personal injury solicitors than for their clients. In a recent case, it was considered a case where a No Win No Fee * agreement was entered into between a client and their Personal injury solicitor not long ago.
The law firm went insolvent, and the client’s personal injury claim was transferred to a new Personal injury solicitors firm on a No Win No Fee * basis. The old firm tried to transfer the No Win No Fee * agreement to the new law firm. The client was told about the assignment, and was told that they could instruct the new law firm. The client’s personal injury claim was settled, after they accepted the offer from their opponent. The defendant refused to pay the costs of the second firm who had acted in the Personal injury case. It was agreed with the defendant; found that the assignment of the No Win No Fee * agreement was a breach of the legal rule against the assigning of personal contracts.
The second firm of No Win No Fee * personal injury solicitors was therefore not able to recover their costs. If you are unhappy with the way your No Win No Fee * agreement is being implemented, you have the right to transfer your case to another firm of solicitors on a No Win No Fee * basis. It is a common misunderstanding that a person cannot change solicitors, or that it will be difficult or that it will incur cost. This is not the case.
Solicitors regularly have cases transferred to them and commonly take over cases started by other law firms. This is not the case No Win No fee * solicitors regularly have cases transferred to them and commonly take over many claims started by other law firms. The most common reasons that people transfer their No Win No Fee * personal injury claims include:
- Concern over their No Win No Fee * solicitor
- Inadequate levels of service and communication
These are all good questions to ask if you are considering changing solicitors, or indeed if you are looking to move on from the services of a paralegal, legal executive, adviser or other party to a properly qualified solicitor. Luckily for you, there are some very simple answers:
- You are under no legal obligation to continue your relationship with your original firm of solicitors and you are within your rights to switch to another firm if relations have terminally broken down.
- It will not cost you a penny to change No Win No Fee * solicitors. Your original No Win No Fee * solicitor will need to be paid for his work to date, but this bill of costs will be sent to us, and will be incorporated into your new No Win No Fee* package.
- While your existing funding arrangement with your Solicitor will come to an end, your newly appointed solicitors will set you up with their own No Win No Fee * agreement, which will cover all costs incurred to date and into the future.
- The only delay to your case will be the short wait while they obtain your Personal injury file and other papers from your original firm of solicitors. It is important to remember that all files and documentation belong to you and the law firm originally dealing with your Personal injury claim can only reasonably hold onto these until the point when their legal costs and fees are paid.
In effect, the only consequence of changing No Win No Fee * solicitor’s midway through a Personal injury claim for compensation is that you will have a new firm of No Win No Fee * solicitors acting on your behalf. If you change solicitors, you will have a new team of specialist personal injury solicitors on your side,experienced in all forms of personal injury, accident and work-related illness claims, and dedicated to achieving the best possible result for you, in the shortest possible time.
Also Read: Can I Change My Personal Injury Solicitor During a Claim?
