The Best Solicitor Money Can Buy...

[ck1]

What is the difference between a very expensive solicitor and a cheaper one, is it just an experience thing? Celebs who get caught speeding for example tend to have very expensive representation, is there anything they can do that the chap in the high street cant?

[Booldawg]

depends on how in-depth they will go to present a plausible argument in your favour; delving into previous cases looking for precedent etc etc. A tenacious solicitor will pull out all the stops, and that costs money.

[woofgang]

My experience of paying a lot for some legal advice is that it can be more reliable, especially if the problem is complex. The local bloke who we had retained was absolutely honest that we had come to the end of his specialist knowledge and rather than him doing days even weeks of research, he suggested that we should pay for an interview with a specialist in the field who would provide a written opinion on our case supported by case law and legal references.In the event it didn't come to court but the document was shared with our opponent's solicitor and i am sure was instrumental in arriving at a settlement.

[jno]

it's usually a question of specialisation. Your average solicitor will know a bit about everything; specialists know more about fewer areas.

Not unlike AB, in fact. Some ABers will give you generalised answers to legal (or other) queries, others know a whole lot more, and if you're lucky one or two will know everything and give you an authoritative answer.

[tonywiltshire]

Most Solicitors specialise in one or more areas of law particularly in the larger firms with many partners or departments. I think it is well known that solicitors do not carry out all of the legal work themselves much of the straight forward work is passed to a suitably qualified person, unless it is complex , and solicitors will take responsibility for the work done by others. If a particular area of law is required you would be wise to investigate which firm or partner you intend to use before giving instructions, unfortunately some solicitors appear to claim to be experts in all areas of the law which may not be correct.
I think celebrity cases, particularly in motoring and assault cases appear to receive a good deal of media exposure particularly when they are found not-guilty and I think this may lead one to imagine they have special treatment but you do not hear of the many cases where people are found guilty. The law is blind and there should not be one law for celebrities and one for non-celebrities and in my experience there is not but good representation is critical if you intend to succeed.

[Peter Pedant]

For chrissakes are you joking ?

the difference is..... the different result of course !

PP

[EDDIE51]

I think there are parallels to selecting a school. Why pay £10,000s per term for a child to go to a top public school when they could go to the local comprehensive for nothing ? Some lawyers have such a reputation for eloquently pleading a case that they can charge whatever they like. Divorce is one area where a top solicitor could get a settlement worth £millions more than a local one. Same in complex fraud cases , a top lawyer could get someone off where a local solicitor would get them convicted. As my lecturer once said '' The Law, like The Ritz Hotel, is open to all''

[ck1]

PP, nope, not joking - I hope this isn't the most amusing post you've come across on AB? Maybe there is a different result but I was interested as to why a more expensive solicitor can get a different result, I think the other answers covered this in simple enough terms for me

[EDDIE51]

Straight fact is that a very skilled experienced top flight lawyer is so good at speaking and pleading a case in a way that will convince a jury that they can and do get people off where 'Mr Average Solicitor ' would lose the case.
With solicitors as with everything you get what you pay for.