Epoq.co.uk Legal Services News

For the second year running, a firm of solicitors has labelled July ‘Make a Will Month’, and as part of the media coverage surrounding this, a shocking statistic (shocking not because it’s almost certainly true, but because the figure does not seem to change year-on-year) is being bandied about (for example  BBC Radio 2, The Chris Evans Show, 01/07/08,) that suggests that two-thirds of people die without making a Will, leaving a good proportion of their assets at the mercy of Her Majesty’s Treasury. It’s surely no coincidence that in the same month, the second series of the BBC show ‘Heir Hunters’ is being broadcast, which follows the efforts of a team of probate detectives who attempt to track down previously unknown family members who may have left unassigned assets.

There is an underlying theme here: A Will is clearly an essential document for anyone who cares about their descendants, yet evidently they are not being created in the majority of circumstances. Why is this?

The Radio programme went on to cite the two key reasons normally provided by the British public for not making a Will as the expense of using solicitors and the time and hassle associated with visiting them. This comes as no surprise to us; these are the two compelling factors that underpin the design of services like MyLawyer and Desktop Lawyer, and explain the demand for them. Chris Evans, the programme presenter, suggested that people could potentially use DIY Wills purchased from high street retailers such as WHSmith, and the solicitor interviewed on-air for the piece suggested that this kind of product was over simplistic. That may well be the case in some circumstances, but not in all – and of course Epoq’s MyLawyer and Desktop Lawyer services offer a range of options for professional legal review, which can take that first draft of a Will and have it tailored for each customers unique circumstances.

What is clear, particularly in difficult financial circumstances, is that the need for people to create a Will has never been greater. As you might expect from a company whose products serve this market, Epoq fully support the “Make a Will Month” campaign – and would suggest that whatever level of financial planning you choose to undertake, it’s better than doing nothing….

Speculation continues as to the benefits of “off-the-shelf” legal documentation and whether or not it fits the bill as a replacement for traditional legal services. “Now you can go online and, for a few pounds, you can download a solicitor’s letter for almost anything” noted a recent discussion piece on Radio 4’s Analysis program, “…professions are under pressure as technology and de-skilling are undermining them, and rightly so”.

As one would imagine, such statements have not gone unchallenged by solicitors themselves, who are keen to point out that a basic document template will not suffice in the majority of cases, and may actually be an example of false economy. By purchasing a will online, “you can miss all the key things you should be thinking of in order to avoid tax and in order to benefit your family”.

We believe that the arrival of off-the-shelf legal documentation has had an effect on the legal profession, the very fact that these products exist is testament to the fact that the public are increasingly demanding the right to take the initiative with their legal problems. Our technology satisfies these demands without compromising on the accuracy and professionalism provided by a law firm.

MyLawyer® will provide an answer to law firms looking to re-assess their web-strategy in the light of recent developments in the legal market, and being part of the network will enable them to satisfy the demands of the modern legal consumer.

The MyLawyer® network is designed to meet the needs of consumers and law firms alike. On one hand, technology and the internet can be harnessed to provide a slicker, more transparent process for creating legal documents that cuts out any unnecessary ‘busywork’. On the other hand it fully recognises that every case is individual and as such deserves focused attention from an expert. By successfully taking on board both of these points, we are able to deliver a better, cheaper solution without compromise.

We are making healthy progress with the latest version of Rapidocs 4, which will help the MyLawyer® vision become a reality in the near future. Watch this space.