It’s important to know and understand who a solicitor or a conveyor is before one starts to source for any of them. Are you still confusing the two?
A conveyancer may be described as a lawyer who has specialized in the legal business of real estate. Conveyancers are not solicitors but can conduct conveyancing for their clients.
A solicitor is almost similar to a conveyancer but a little different because they are controlled by special guidelines on how to conduct themselves when dealing with their clients.
- The general roles of a solicitor and a conveyancer include:
- They are involved in organizing the details of a client’s mortgage.
- They may organize clients to survey potential properties before purchase.
- They may help clients obtain home insurance policies.
Procedures that solicitors or conveyancers may be involved in to obtain a home for clients
- Prepares an interest note alerting the seller and their solicitors about a purchase offer.
- Making purchase offers on behalf of their clients.
- Negotiating sale conditions for their clients.
- Performing background checks about legal ownership of the property to be purchased.
- Preparation of a deed for property ownership transfer.
- Handling complaints arising from the property sale.
- Handling of payments for the property to be acquired.
Finding a solicitor or a conveyancer
Finding a solicitor or a conveyancer may be difficult especially if one is sourcing for services for the first time. Usually, if there are no referrals, the search for solicitors or conveyancers may not be an easy task for individuals. Here are some of the ways that one might be able to find a solicitor or a conveyancer.
Recommendation by family or a friend
When looking for a solicitor or a conveyancer, one may opt to ask for referrals from family members or friends who have already dealt with conveyancers and solicitors. This is easier since one is referred to a specialist lawyer who already has a familiar track record and has been given full trust
Recommendation by other solicitors or conveyancers
Other solicitors or conveyancers may refer you to other colleagues if they feel they are overwhelmed with work from other clients or maybe you can’t afford to raise their legal fee.
Referral may also arise when the solicitors approached may feel that they are not specialized in the field in which you may require legal assistance since several solicitors have specialized in different specialisms like charity law, arbitration law, debt, and asset recovery, etc.
The Law Society of Scotland’s Specialist Accreditation Scheme (LSS)
The LSS website has a search tool where names of solicitors and conveyancers can be looked up according to specialization. This website contains all the lawyers who have qualified and certified to be solicitors by the Scotland Law Society, making them legit and reliable.
The website has a guideline on how to search for a suitable solicitor for a specified legal task.
The Local advice agency
One can also seek guidance from the local advice agency like the Citizens Advice Bureau. One would then be advised on what kind of solicitor they would require to help them in their real estate business.
Online Conveyancing
The emergence of the internet has disrupted the normal ways of doing business and the legal sector has not been left behind. Nowadays online conveyance is available and one can procure services of a solicitor from the internet without even meeting up with the solicitor.
Although this may seem convenient and less procedural, online conveyance can’t be useful in complex or sensitive law procedures.
Estate Agents
Normally, estate agents usually advertise and even broker real estate property sales that do not involve complex legal procedures i.e. complications in estate ownership, etc.
Estate agents may also provide you with information or advice on how to obtain the services of a qualified solicitor.
Independent financial advisors
Independent financial advisors can usually provide legal advice on certain aspects of the law. If the case proves to be a little complex, they may then refer you to solicitors or conveyancers who may be in a position to deal with your issue.
Duty solicitors
When people who have been charged with an offense have not contacted their solicitors, they are usually allowed to consult a solicitor at the court by the duty solicitor scheme.
Duty solicitors are usually available for free or as commonly referred to as ‘pro bono’ if the persons charged cannot afford to hire a solicitor of their own.
Conclusion
Finding a solicitor or a conveyancer that is specific to a certain legal field may prove to be hectic especially if no referrals have been provided. When sourcing for a solicitor to aid in your real estate property sales, private client tax, trusts law or even pensions law, Jones Whyte Law may help provide you with solicitors or conveyancers instead of going through a long search for legal services.