Where to Seek Legal Advice

Many of us will need legal aid regarding the law and legal matters at one point in our lives. Everyday there are individuals who are seeking for legal advice regarding their real estate properties, their benefits, or with their last will and testament.

 

You can get legal advice from a variety of sources. It does not mean that when you need help on legal matters, you will automatically go to a solicitor.  There are many places aside from solicitor firms that can give you legal advice, and many of these areas will provide you with legal support or advice far cheaper when compared to the rates of private solicitors.

 

 

 Where you can get legal advice will depend on the nature of the issue that you want to seek help on. There are organizations and centres in the UK that will offer advice on general matters. These organizations include independent advice agencies, law centres, Age UKs, and the Citizens Advice Bureaux. Some of these organizations and agencies will give you initial advice regarding your case while some will go as far as representing your case in court.

Aside from these advice centres, there are also a variety of different places where you can go to ask for free or cheap legal advice.

If you are a member of the trade union, you can ask for legal advice from them. The trade union will give you advice regarding legal matters that are not only about employment issues. Contact the trade union to find out the extent of the legal advice that they offer.

There are also many insurance companies and banks that will offer you with legal advice if you availed their service. Read the terms and conditions of your insurance company or your bank account to see if you would qualify to ask for legal advice from the said institutions.

 

MoJ Wants to Reform the PPI Claims Business

Millions of customers have turned to claims management companies to file PPI claims against banks in the UK. Many of these customers have been happy with the services they have received, but others feel that the companies they worked with have used abusive practices. Some claims management companies have come under scrutiny for their outreach strategies. The Minister of Justice (MoJ) recently announced that it will be going after any claims management firms that use predatory marketing practices.

 

Banks Await Solutions

The country’s banks are some of the least sympathetic companies. Many people were initially ecstatic when they were forced to repay PPI claims. However, many customers were soon plagued by spam text messages and late night phone calls from claims companies promising to help them get their money back. The more unscrupulous claims management firms have since taken a lot of flak for these tactics.

The banks are equally upset with the tactics that some CMCs have used. They have been forced to review thousands of claims that were filed by these firms. Many of the claims were upheld by the Financial Ombudsman Services, but others were found to be bogus. The banks said that financial regulations need to be revised so that these practices do not persist.

Banks Convene With MoJ

Representatives from the British Bankers Association held a meeting with Ministry of Justice officials earlier this week. Anthony Browne, head of the BBA, said that the aggressive marketing practices some firms employ are harmful to both citizens and the banks. Browne said that some CMCs go out of their way to take advantage of poor people. 

He said that these people tend to be more inclined to work with a PPI claims company that promises to help them earn back several thousand pounds or more. Browne said that these people are often exploited by claims firms that charge ridiculous fees for the quality of the services that they offer.

Ideas Proposed

The Ministry of Justice and the BBA have discussed a number of things that will need to be done moving forward. Some of the resolutions they feel are needed include:

• Placing restrictions on texting and phone calls
• Regulating the marketing messages CMCs are allowed to use to avoid misleading customers
• Ensuring CMCs are more transparent with the types of services that they provide

The banks and MOJ both agree that these new policies will help weed out the dishonest claims companies. This will pave the way for more legitimate firms to assist people in the future.

How To Represent Yourself In Court

Recent changes to legal aid mean that certain employment, immigration as well as family law cases will no longer be eligible for legal aid. So how do people, especially those who cannot afford to hire a firm or solicitor, acquire justice? In most cases, many individuals are now settling to represent themselves in court. The Bar Council, in response to the increasing number of people who are representing themselves in a trial, decided to release a guide on how people can defend and represent themselves in court. This includes a note that people should not attempt to copy the way lawyers act in TV because “judges hate it”.

So how can people who have no background on the different laws and legal matters defend themselves in court? The first step that they should do would be to seek for independent advice. These individuals can ask for advice from a non-profit law centre like the Citizens Advice Bureau and Advice UK. These law centres can advice individuals on the different steps that they should take in handling their case, or if the case is worth fighting for in the first place.

Many experts also believe that individuals who want to represent themselves should not disregard completely the option of asking help from a lawyer or solicitor. You can also ask help from a solicitor (most will offer a free initial consultation). Many people are under the false pretense that solicitors will advise clients or people who are asking for help to agree on something that is not originally part of their interest. The right lawyer can actually steer you away from making bad decisions regarding your case. Make sure that you approach a solicitor that will remain neutral with your case and someone that will help you make decisions regarding the process of your case.

Turning our children into small geniuses

Britain is now focusing on its most important resource: human capital. It’s a long term investment with incredible return rates but it requires patience, patience and more patience. The British government has set out to change the curriculum for state schools in order to be in line with the best education systems in the world, namely Finland, Hong Kong or Massachusetts.

 

How and why?

Where did this need of change come from? The main reason seems to be that the current curriculum is out dated and doesn’t produce the same intelligent children as other education systems do. But making a five year old start tackling fractions seems a little bit too much if you ask me; it’s like robbing them of their childhood. I am not saying they won’t manage but I ask myself at what cost? The end result is clear, smarter, more creative and more capable individuals which will shape the England of tomorrow. British PM David Cameron states that the new curriculum is “engaging and tough” and I begin to wonder how many future pupils will live make it out ok through this new system and how many will be “left behind”.

Will it be a better system?

From a theoretical aspect it has all the chances to be better. There are all kinds of new studies and the new curriculum has taken advantage of them in order to be efficient and interactive. But all those studies, all those facts and figures mean nothing when you put them against the unwillingness of a 7 year old boy. Bottom line is that until the new system hits the school we won’t know for sure how the children will react. I imagine a pilot project will be launched before in order to test the waters.

It is true that the old system focused very little on creativity which now has been placed high on a pedestal claiming it plays a significant role in any type of job, not only if you are an artist. Leadership skills, problem solving skills and many other skills are thinks relatively new which the current curriculum overlooked or didn’t pay much attention unlike the multinational work environment where these skills are used on a daily basis. It seems to me that the new curriculum might just be custom tailored to match the needs of the giant corporations and that the education system might become a mass robot factory.

The Crucial Role of Law Parctice in Financial Services

The world of financial service in the UK is a highly regulated one and as such, a lot of legalities have to be assessed and taken into consideration. As such, lawyers are expected to have good credentials in order to be of good demand in this high stress industry. According to some, lawyers can find the financial services market as a great option for a second career as well as other people in the field of law who would like to focus on or change the direction of their careers. 

Law is a constant factor when it comes to providing financial advice and planning especially in aspects such as banking, lending and investing. From taxation laws, estates and government trusts, managing finances and dealing with business finance, there are numerous areas in which a law career can be helpful.

Careers in law are equally expansive, extending to a variety of topics. Therefore, those who want to focus on financial services should definitely direct their studies on taxation, corporate law, financial law and other related areas in which the central factor is providing support or producer services to their clientele. Since a lot of companies are on the rise, it is expected that the demand for these professional legal services will also rise.

In the last few years, the number of services related to claims management has also increased. Therefore, there is solid activity in the legal industry and lawyers continuously grow in the industry.

Every aspect of the financial services industry requires some legal support. This makes the industry more competitive especially for new lawyers. Nevertheless the possibilities for a lucrative career are very much promising. At the end of the day, the goal of legal specialists is to ensure that companies and businesses, even individuals are able to comply with the legal expectations that are set by authorities.