Honours even but the Accountants retain the trophy

The annual battle between representatives of Wolverhampton's Solicitors and Accountants was played out at Oswestry Golf Club on Friday 16th September. The players took to the first tee underneath a dark and brooding sky but things brightened up as the Solicitors got off to a flying start. Pairings Guy Birkett and Matthew Weaver and Phil Cowell and Adrian Hull both won their matches and it looked as though the Solicitors would avenge the drubbing they were given by the Accountants at last year’s event. Unfortunately, no sooner were they raised than hopes were dashed as the following three matches were lost to the Accountants. The vanquished included the pairing of Frank Calleia and Jonathan Taylor. Frank had done particularly well last year but on this occasion no longer trusting to his eyesight had invested in a cunning laser range finder which turned out to be somewhat myopic. James Sage battled nobly on on his own following some confusion on the part of his intended playing partner as to the date of the golf match (you know who you are Mark Hodgson!). With a squared match coming in, thereafter, the score stood at 3 1/2, 2 1/2 to the Accountants. Alasdair Hobbs then produced a victory for the Solicitors in the final match to square the contest. So honours even to the respective professions but the “Ryder Cup” format meant that the Accountants as holders retained the trophy for another year. All concerned commented that it had been a fun day and with the exception of James Sage's match all of the pairings produced evenly matched contests which, in many cases, went down to the final hole. If there are any golfing Solicitors out there who would like to participate in next year's event they should not hesitate to make contact with the Society’s Vice President and Golf Captain Guy Birkett at FBC Manby Bowdler LLP.

Wolverhampton Law Society Annual Dinner 2011

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ABS, and the demise of the High Street Firm? – exploding the myth

The legal press often seems to be obsessed with the advent of ABS and portents of doom about the “High Street” (a phrase which seems to have acquired pejorative status in some quarters). Given their legal background it is surprising, therefore, that in the treatment of this topic they consistently fail to define their terms (for example, what exactly does the term “High Street” mean?) and they often show a lack of editorial rigour in checking out and drawing attention to the background of their sources many of whom have a vested interest in pushing scare stories about the impact ABS will have. For example, take what appears to be a prescient article on the topic of a Research Note released this August by the Legal Services Board. This focuses on the likely impact of ABS upon existing suppliers of legal services. Written by one Peter Clements and published by Lexis Nexis the article includes the following opinion:- “The High Street firm will be most at threat, but many will survive by dint of their “local” nature and their client bases. But this is unlikely to be a sustainable position in the medium to long term.” So there you have it – it appears that the LSB is plotting the demise of the “High Street”. But wait a minute what does the LSB paper actually say? Here’s a flavour:- “ [the advent of ABS] may carry particular risks to some small firms who do not adapt to the changing market place. It should not, however, be assumed that large scale exit will occur, as Australian experience suggests that the number of small firms has actually increased in the period following liberalisation.” (Page 2) “ILPs (the Australian equivalent of ABS) in the Australian market are generally not retailers providing legal services….In general the Australian market has not shown an immediate tendency for large scale consolidation or the emergence of national retailers offering legal services.” (Page 18) “Retail or “High Street” firms “High street firms are the main point of contact for people seeking “routine” legal services (e.g. wills, conveyancing, divorce etc) The large number of such firms makes it difficult to draw conclusions about their characteristics and shared factors. It is likely that those firms who are using technology for product delivery and lower unit costs will enable them to better embrace changed market conditions. High street firms are well placed to exploit niche market opportunities and to focus on traditional strengths such as face-to-face service delivery and perceived higher quality of service” (page 37).” Hardly a vision of Armageddon is it? Declaration of interest – This piece was written by the Society’s Press Officer and endorsed by the Council of the Wolverhampton Law Society. The Society’s members work in an incredibly diverse mix of so-called “High Street” practices within and around Wolverhampton. Peter Clements works for an organisation called Global BPO which specialises in providing “Business Processing Outsourcing” to law firms and others. The Legal Services Board is the oversight regulator of the legal services marketing England and Wales.

Junior Lawyers Wolverhampton - Calender of Events

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