ABS pioneer condemns ‘over-qualification’ in firms
Law firms have for too long relied upon 'closed clubs of equity partners' to keep fees artificially high, a speaker from one of the first wave of alternative business structures told the Legal Education and Training Review (LETR) Symposium in Manchester today.
James Atkin, head of legal risk and compliance at Co-operative Legal Services, said that such partners have long used the status of solicitor in a 'negative way' to further their firm’s interest at the expense of clients. The present education and training system was producing too many over-qualified graduates who were 'unlikely to find an adequately paid position to repay the debts accumulated while becoming overly qualified in the first place,’ he said.
Atkin said: 'And why do solicitors have to sit through hours of continuing professional development which have no relevance to the area in which we work? The legal landscape has changed and, with the advent of alternative business structures, new project management and consumer-focused skills are required. It is irrelevant to the client if a solicitor has 30 years post-qualification experience. One size does not fit all and the client wants a solution to his or her problems.'
ABSs are uniquely suited to providing a complete and ethical service to clients, Atkins said, because as part of a larger organisation, it is likely that they already have equality and diversity policies, case management systems and all the other attributes of 'big business'.
The Legal Education and Training Review is being jointly undertaken by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Bar Standards Board and the Institute of Legal Executives Professional Standards (IPS). It is intended to be the most substantial review of legal education and training since 1971.
Comments
so experience doens't matter?
hmmm. head of co-op says experience is irrelevant to a customer....
Presumably this is the unveiling of their plan to only emply 18-20 year olds on minimum wage who will work to a script.
Experience may not always be relevant to a problem, but it can surely help if it's a bit tricky. As someone who's been in this game for over a decade, I am a much better lawyer now because of my experience.
and a thirty-year pqe solicitor who really knows their stuff is an asset any firm would value.
a qualification is just a bit of paper. real lawyers are grown, not hatched.
is Atkin qualified? if so, presumably he agrees an 18 year old can do his job and get his wages because after all, experience is irrelevant......
the indemnity insurers may not agree Mr Atkin!
Yes Mr Atkin is qualified.
Yes Mr Atkin is qualified. James William Atkin, admitted 17 September 2001 (Law Society database).
Yes Mr Atkin is qualified.
Yes Mr Atkin is qualified. James William Atkin, admitted 17 September 2001 (Law Society database).
Pot, Kettle, Black
James Atkin said "One size does not fit all and the client wants a solution to his or her problems." This is a bit rich from the firm that is trying to make one size fit all. The solution that Co-op offer is all about putting square pegs in round holes. They have the solutions that they want to "sell" to the client, they don't listen to what the client wants and certainly don't give a bespoke solution to that individual problem. They operate on scale and limiting choice of consumers to the products which are profitable for them to sell.
Just look at the recent programme on TV about Co-op Funerals, they were exposed as trying to flog expensive, unnecessary solutions to consumers, when cheaper more appropriate solutions were available. This is what the Co-op is, it is a business... pile it high and sell it cheap, commoditise everything, value nothing.
Correct me if I am wrong, but Co-op is a business just like solicitors firms are. The whole aim of a business is to make money for its owners. Solicitors firms are owned by partners, the Co-op owned by its members, the end game is the same - to make a profit. The consumer pays for what it values; some consumers will value the knowledge and experience of a 30 year qualified solicitor and pay more, whilst other consumers just want cheap and do not care about quality. It is why Waitrose can sell a can of baked beans for 20 pence more a can than the Co-op and retain customers.
Or to translate the thrust of
Or to translate the thrust of the article....ABS results in "dumbing down" on a massive scale.
Are you over-qualified for
Are you over-qualified for your job Mr Atkin?
Oh yes, the client is clearly
Oh yes, the client is clearly going to find an adequate solution to their complex problem from a 21 year old legal advisor with 2 years behind them working for the flipping Coop, aren't they?
You get what you pay for. If you want to pay a few hundred quid to have your claim/advice processed through the Coop system and get given a service that is simply the outcome of a process, fine. It may work for you, but it almost certainly won't if things take an unforseen turn (and that never happens in legal practice, right?). If, however, you want to pay for expert analysis, complete understanding of the law and an agile and bespoke solution to your problem that doesn't come out of a training manual prepared by solicitors that, for some reason, decided to move out of private practice, you will pay more but you will have a massive advantage.
They're not after my clients as I'm for the business side in employment litigation, but it's going to be so much fun with this lot on the other side over the next 10 years. Maybe they'll look at their results after a point and realise that when their legal advisors are up against a 15 year PQE solicitor, they are not exactly great!
pay peanuts get monkeys
Clearly the Co-op want to run a call centre type outfit paying peanuts to people following a set procedure. they will soon realise that case dont follow a set pattern. For the Co-Op ABS clearly stands for Any Bum on Seat.
I can't wait or can I !
As a defendant Insurance lawyer you would think that this would be music to my ears. The thought of having to play my game against a 20 year old is delightful, isn't it?
Joking aside, this is a serious issue for both Claimant and Defendant lawyers. Personally, I much prefer being up against somebody who knows their stuff. It keeps me on my toes and the whole process works much more smoothly. If Mr Atkin and other ABS providers get their way, what I might save in making lower offers I will more than lose in pointless corresondence/conversations against a human computer program. From the Claimant's point of view surely this will result in delays, unnecessary proceedings or settling claims at an undervalue!
I am always shocked that people continually trot out the same lines which effectively say that the more professional a system is, the worse it is. Perhaps, if the apparently naive Mr Atkin was a 30 year qualified solicitor he would understand this.
Co-op 'ethics.'
Mr Atkin accuses solicitors of furthering their firm’s interest at the expense of clients. But isn't this exactly what the Co-op are doing? Are people contacting Co-op legal services even told that that their legal problems aren't going to be dealt with by a solicitor, but by someone unqualified? How many clients are duped into paying fees that are equivalent to or even higher than those charged by many solicitors when the person actually dealing with the matter may have had little or no legal training, and whose knowledge of the law comes from a Co-op crib sheet? The Co-op isn't piling it high and selling it cheap. Like Co-op funerals, or their stores, they are piling it high and selling it dearer than anyone else!