On the whole it is accepted that a law firm will deliver professional legal services, simply by virtue of being a law firm. Law firms are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and legally qualified fee earners such as Barristers, Solicitors and Legal Executives must all train to and practise by certain standards.
Some law firms will have specialisms, some will provide a broad range of legal services. There will of course be a variation in the costs charged by firms, but only really according to ranking and geography. For example, “magic circle” firms will largely charge the same as each other, as will firms in one particular provincial town.
Most law firms will say that they offer exceptional client service, that they have a passion for client care, or that their trusted services to clients are second to none. And most of them do. But isn’t that just an entry level requirement? Isn’t that what clients should expect as standard, rather than being a badge for a firm to wear.
All of that means that it’s actually quite hard for a law firm to stand out in a crowd. So why would a new client instruct Cognitive Law instead of any of our just as good & worth competitors? Here’s why:
Niche specialisms
Lucy Tarrant acts for recruitment companies, that’s her thing and that’s pretty much all she does. That makes her an expert on whatever is going on (in legal terms anyway) in the recruitment sector. Mayumi Hawkes is a Japanese born UK qualified solicitor, making her the go to lawyer for Japanese nationals resident or working in the UK. Richard Bates dedicates his private client practice to elder care, meaning there is little he doesn’t know about the legal needs of our later life generation. The list goes on. Every single one of our consultants specialises in one particular area of law making them all individually experts in their field.
One to One service delivery
All our legal & HR services are delivered by exactly the person you instruct to provide them. Although all our fee earners have support around them when they need it, when you instruct a particular team member to act for you, they are the person who will act for you throughout. At Cognitive Law we don’t set out to win lots of clients by wooing them with partners who delegate the actual work to juniors. When you instruct someone at Cognitive Law, that is who you get.
Experience
Cognitive Law is not a traditional law firm with a traditional hierarchical structure. All of our fee earners are self-employed. And in order to practice on a self-employed basis, our fee earners need to have gained many years’ experience, otherwise they just wouldn’t cut it. None of our Consultants have less than 10 whatever years’ practicing experience, so their expertise has been well honed before you instruct them. Couple that with the fact that whomever you instruct will be your dedicated fee earner, that’s a very high service level we’re offering.
Attention
As well as being self-employed, our Consultants choose when, where and how they deliver their services. Some are great in the mornings, some are better in the evenings. Some love to work all weekend. It’s entirely up to them, and it enables them to work around their personal lives and commitments, not the other way round. What this means for our clients is accessibility. Because our Consultants are not tied to traditional office hours, they can be there for you when you need them. That flexibility also means they will see you at your home, in a coffee shop or (during a pandemic) in your back garden.
Accountability
We’re here to provide our clients with a service, and we know that you could instruct any number of other firms instead of Cognitive Law. As well as making sure you have access to whomever you have instructed, our clients also have direct access to the Managing Director, Lucy Tarrant. Lucy’s mobile number is available to everyone, and she doesn’t hesitate to speak to any client of the firm if they wish. We believe in total accountability, from the top down.
Happiness
Because they are self-employed, and able to work in a way that suits their individual lives, our Consultants are happy people. They don’t have to commute to an office, sit in the same chair for 8-10 hours, then commute home again. You may find that you speak to them just after they have walked the dog, had coffee with their mum, or been to the gym. Our Consultants are often told “you’re not like a normal lawyer”, which we take as a compliment. It means we’re 100% human, and able to relate to all our clients on a personal level.
Making life easier
Our ethos is about making life easier. For everyone. We believe that the way in which we work makes life easier for everyone who works for us. We also believe that as your legal team, we are here to make your life easier too. Whether it’s handling a sensitive personal case or negotiating contracts, our philosophy is that we will make it easier for you.
We could go on, listing our differences, but why don’t you try us for yourselves. We think you will be pleasantly surprised.
By Lucy Tarrant