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Selling out?

18 September 2014 / Dr Jon Robins
Issue: 7622 / Categories: Opinion , Legal services , Profession
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Jon Robins raises a question over the Law Society’s latest advertising campaign

“Use a Professional. Use a Solicitor”. As far as campaign slogans, it is unlikely to inspire great passion within the hearts of the great British public. It is a sensible message, certainly not as tacky as Chancery Lane’s 2013 ad campaign (“Don’t get mugged by an insurer—use a solicitor”, attacked by the Association of British Insurers, with reason, as a “gross error of judgment”) or as plain bonkers as the “My Hero, My Solicitor” billboard campaign launched 10 years ago.

Reassurance?

The point of the latest advertising campaign might well be as much to reassure a jaded and sceptical constituency of the profession, High Street solicitors, that their professional body really does care, as opposed to a sincere attempt to shift the public perception of the profession.

At the heart of the campaign is a serious point. It identifies an arguably meaningful difference in the marketplace. “The growth of unregulated and do-it-yourself legal services means consumers are exposed to

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Gibson Dunn—London partner promotions

Gibson Dunn—London partner promotions

Firm grows international bench with expanded UK partner class

Shakespeare Martineau—six appointments

Shakespeare Martineau—six appointments

Firm makes major statement in the capital with strategic growth at The Shard

Myers & Co—Jess Latham

Myers & Co—Jess Latham

Residential conveyancing team expands with solicitor hire

NEWS
One in five in-house lawyers suffer ‘high’ or ‘severe’ work-related stress, according to a report by global legal body, the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC)
The Legal Ombudsman’s (LeO’s) plea for a budget increase has been rejected by the Law Society and accepted only ‘with reluctance’ by conveyancers
Overcrowded prisons, mental health hospitals and immigration centres are failing to meet international and domestic human rights standards, the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) has warned
Two speedier and more streamlined qualification routes have been launched for probate and conveyancing professionals
Workplace stress was a contributing factor in almost one in eight cases before the employment tribunal last year, indicating its endemic grip on the UK workplace
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