Which? ups the legal services ante

November 21, 2008

briefcases-running.jpg

The Law Society Gazette reports today on plans for expansion of Which?’s legal services arm, saying that it will “aggressively target customers through pricing and brand awareness as it drives to increase its membership by a quarter over the next year.”

Steve Coyle, Which’s? head of legal services, said that the group has no plans to set up or take over a law firm and create a full service practice when alternative business structures get the green light in 2011-2012. However, somewhat bucking the trend in contemporary legal practice of universal gloom accompanied by default retrenchment, Coyle also said “There is a massive amount of opportunity. I am looking at this from a commercial point of view. I want to press the accelerator down. We are looking at 50,000 members by the end of 2009.”

The Which? offering of unlimited legal advice – though admittedly on a limited number of areas – for £25 for six months is laudable. So, too, the bold statements of its legal supremo.

Image of busy briefcases courtesy of Jon Block on Flickr.

 

Comments

Please submit comments to Swordplay below.

Supreme Court on Twitter

February 6, 2012

Something remarkable happened today. Yes, the Supreme Court launched its Twitter feed. It even has a Twitter policy, one of caveats, disclaimers and little by way of illumination but regardless: who would have thought that the successor body to the House of Lords would stoop to engage with the world of tweets, hashtags and retweets?

We look forward to the day when court business will be conducted via Twitter. Meantime, check out this link for an excellent blog on the Supreme Court.

Not so right said Fred

February 2, 2012
fred hat

So Farewell, then, Sir Fred Goodwin.

Now you are just Fred.

Not Right Said Fred, but plain Fred.

The Forfeiture Committee did for you.

No one had heard of it before,

But Dave said it had to act, and it did.

Trouble is that no one knows what to think.

Is it ‘Alas, poor Fred‘,

Or ‘Hurray! Sir Fred is dead!’?

We don’t know.

Do you?

By A. Mob, aged 1,378 and a half.

London Goes AWOL

January 31, 2012
CNN

STOP PRESS:

Fed up with being stuck on the Thames in south-east England, London yesterday decided to move. In a dramatic gesture which augurs ill for the Olympics, the city upped sticks and relocated to East Anglia.

Lawyers were not consulted about the move, and the city’s precise motivation remains unclear. However, financiers fear that London’s decision is a sign that it wishes to downsize. Moreover, a source from London said: “We no longer want to be Britain’s seat of power. If the Scots can deregulate, why can’t we? East Anglia is a nice place where nothing happens. It’s time for a quiet life. Please respect our right to privacy.”

Elsewhere, Birmingham did not do anything, but Manchester was seen to be packing its bags. “There’s an opportunity for us,” said Manchester. “We can become London.”

East Anglia said: “We don’t mind. It’ll be refreshing to be associated with something other than fens and flatness.”

A cartologist at CNN, which broke the extraordinary news, was later fired.