2015 Legal Awards

M&A awards Legal Awards 2015 17 LEGAL awards 174 Law has offered conveyancing services for many years to all parts of the country , but in recent years we have seen a particular growth in business in the London area. We attribute this to the fact that we offer a Part- ner led service but with fees that are competitive (particularly when compared with fees charged by solicitors in the London area). As such we offer a better quality service for a lower price, and as our clients have realised this we have had an influx of work, and our property business in particular has been growing steadily over the past few years. Alongside our domestic growth we have also grown internationally, as have been approached by a number of agents in Hong Kong and China to support them with their investment in UK student accommodation. This work has now become a key aspect of business, and we now represent the Hong Kong based agents of around 2,000 units of student accommodation in the UK. One of the key aspects of our international work is working with buyers overseas, which means visiting the country and satisfying ourselves about the due diligence procedure. Due diligence internationally is one of the challenges we face when working with our international clients, as it harder to identify sources of funding when working in markets we are less familiar with. However we work hard to ensure that due diligence is always observed, as this is paramount to retaining clients. Additionally, we always work hard to ensure clients are aware of the level of risk involved in any transaction. We are fortunate that our international associates have a strong translation team, so language barriers are less of an issue, as communication is another important aspect of our role. It is vital that clients understand the cost implications and to do that we need to have good communication with them. All of these aspects and more have drawn hundreds of clients to seek out our services, and as such we have opened central branch office which we have deemed as a ‘centre for excellence’. We are essentially one headquarters where all 35 staff see each other daily, ensuring that we are all communicating and working effectively. Having a central office also enables me as the Managing Director to ensure that my values and mission for the firm are fully understood and implemented by all of my staff. Some of the larger firms with multiple offices and more staff are unable to do this, and as such I fully believe that our strength is our size. Although our central base enables me to keep my staff updated on the latest thinking within the company, there are constant changes within the legal industry as a whole which need to be addressed as well so that my staff can provide the best possible service to our clients. Training is a crucial element to this, and we engage with other industry leaders across the accountancy and legal markets and buy in good information to ensure our staff are kept fully aware of changes to the law and the legal sector. However instinct is just as valuable for lawyers when looking at the industry trends. Throughout my career as a lawyer I have gained experience which means that there is not much new legislation which comes into effect that I haven’t already anticipated, through reflected by moods and nuances in the market. As such instinct will lead you to stay ahead of the trends, and is the best vehicle to help our firm remain at the cutting edge of industry. Our clients, particularly investor clients, look to us to ensure that they understand factors, such as govern- ment budgets, that will have an impact on them. Our work revolves heavily around our clients, and therefore we benchmark our company against the testimonials and feedback we receive, whether it be on LinkedIn, Facebook or through our website. We also receive cards, boxes of chocolates and even bottles of wine in appreciation from our clients, which our dedication to providing quality client service. Looking to the future we have a number of exciting developments ahead. A significant number of new clients have been referred to us by those we have worked with in the past and we are looking forward to delivering to those clients expectations in 2016 and beyond. Company: 174 Law Solicitors Phone: 0151 647 7372 Website: http://174law.co.uk/