Bennett Griffin Blog

New Appointments at Bennett Griffin Solicitors!

We are pleased to announce the following recent appointments.

Ian Macara has become an Equity Partner of Bennett Griffin LLP.  Ian joined Bennett Griffin and Partners in 1994 as a trainee and qualified in 1996.  He has been a salaried partner for a number of years and has now agreed to become one of the equity owners alongside me, Peter and Toby.  Well done Ian and many congratulations. We look forward to many many years of your inspirational leadership.

Rob Fawcett has accepted the invitation to become a Salaried Partner.  Rob having qualified in 2004 joined Bennett Griffin in February 2006, became an Associate last year, and has done an outstanding job leading the Commercial Property Department following Terry’s departure and made sure all the important clients have stayed with us, as well as developing his own high quality client base. Congratulations Rob, we look forward to working with you in the boardroom.

After agreement by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, Chris Kemp becomes a Salaried Partner. Chris is a qualified accountant and so needed permission of the SRA to be a partner.  He Joined Bennett Griffin in 1993 left in 1998 and came back again in 2000!!  Chris has had a major contribution to steering the firm to its current successful position and having always been on the board and given crucial advice at all times, it is right and proper that now that the rules allow non solicitor partners that he should be made a partner. Well done Chris and thank you for all you have done and will continue to do.

Darren Edwards who joined Bennett Griffin in 2005 as a solicitor following qualification with Jarman and Co , Jo Ostrom who joined as a Trainee (like Ian!!) in October 2005, qualified here and became a solicitor in 2007 and Nick Hind who also joined us in 2005 having qualified as a solicitor in 1999 will all become Associate. Well done to all three, the class of 2005 is coming of age!

All these appointments emphasise the strength of Bennett Griffin LLP and are a sure indication of our future longevity and success.

Consumers must have greater protection in will writing market, says Worthing law firm

BENNETT GRIFFIN LLP has called for greater regulation of will-writers to match that of solicitors after BBC Panorama’s Wills: The Final Rip Off? revealed the risks of using will-writers.

Bennett Griffin LLP is calling for a level playing field in the will writing market to ensure consumers have greater protection against inaccurate or poorly drafted wills, as seen on the Panorama investigation into the unregulated will writing industry aired on Monday evening.

The Panorama investigation also uncovered cases where consumers had been quoted fees of £75-£100 to write a will, but ended up paying thousands of pounds for hidden extras.  Some clients were told the fees would cover the costs of dealing with their estate after they had passed away, but were not told that an additional fee percentage would be charged.  In some cases, beneficiaries have even had their inheritance stolen.

Ian Macara, a Partner in Bennett Griffin LLP and head of the will-writing team says:

“The Panorama investigation emphasises a problem that Bennett Griffin LLP has been highlighting for some time that there are severe risks to consumers in using unregulated, unqualified and uninsured will writers.  Unlike solicitors, will writers are not robustly regulated by law, nor are they thoroughly insured (if at all) to protect against errors.

“Solicitors are qualified to write wills, their obligatory insurance cover means that the clients’ interests are protected and they are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.  In the unlikely event that something should go wrong, the client and their estate are fully protected.  Will writers cannot offer that protection or basic competence.”

Last year, a study by the Law Society found that many solicitors were being passed botched wills that had been originally written by will writers.

Ian Macara says: “Until there is greater regulation and protection for consumers on wills, the best possible option to the public is to use a solicitor.  Moves by some will writing organisations to impose a code of practice on their members is a small step in the right direction, but until there is an equal level of protection to clients irrespective of whether they use a solicitor or a will writer, the public remain exposed to the risks highlighted on Panorama by some will writers.  We look to the consumer bodies for support in our drive for better consumer protection.”

Journalists can contact Jo Ostrom of Bennett Griffin LLP at jos@bennett-griffin.co.uk or on 01903 706963.

Law firm website: www.bennett-griffin.co.uk
Panorama: Wills - The Final Rip Off?, BBC One, Monday, 9 August at 2030 BST and then available in the UK on the BBC iPlayer.

Bennett Griffin nominated for Worthing Business Awards Customer Care Award 2010

NOTE: Bennett Griffin LLP are thrilled to have been shortlisted for the Customer Care Award at the Southern Business Awards 2010. Click here to find out more…

Last year Bennett Griffin LLP successfully won the coveted Customer Care Award 2009 proving that customer service is alive and kicking in Worthing. At Bennett Griffin LLP we continue to be passionate about providing customer care to our clients and we would love to continue to display our success and excellence by again being nominated (and again hopefully winning) for the Customer Care Award 2010.

Bennett Griffin LLP prides itself on providing quality and effective customer care to all our clients including individuals and businesses. Our motto is “We do what we say” and we are committed to the work we provide.

We still believe that we enhance the reputation of Worthing as a good and strong place to do business and we are proud that our educated and motivated staff has the necessary skills and experience to assist our clients in all areas of law.

However, it is not just our views that are important and in order to be considered again for this prestigious award we need your help.

If you agree that we are a worthy contender for this award and have provided you with the same excellence service we have mentioned above then please click here to nominate us.