SME News Northern Enterprise Awards 2023 / 82 Most Trusted Costs Lawyer 2023 Integral Legal Costs in Cheshire is a small business that operates in a unique, highly specialised area of law, this being legal costs and how solicitors get paid. Many people remain unaware that solicitors are actually very strictly regulated when it comes to charging their clients, and all of this information has to be supplied by solicitors across England and Wales. This is where the company thrives, as Costs Lawyers being regulated and highly qualified in this area and specialists in their field. However, there are approximately 700 Costs Lawyers and yet more than 150,000 qualified solicitors, meaning that the team more than have their work cut out for them. We have the pleasure of speaking with Founding Director Victoria Morrison-Hughes, who tells us more about the company’s offerings and dedication to exceptional service. Firm in the belief that they are necessary to make a complete whole, essential, or fundamental legal team, the team at Integral Legal Costs strive to be a seamless addition to a client’s existing staff, working tirelessly to ensure that the very best results are achieved for clients and businesses alike. This entails dealing with all aspects of the often-challenging legal cost market, with the team happily guiding their clients through every stage, boasting a service that provides a clear path across the entirety of the litigation process. Further bolstering this is the company’s ethos that if its clients thrive, then it does, underpinning a drive to achieve the best possible outcomes. Setting itself apart from the competition in a series of choice ways, Integral Legal aims to forge excellent relationships with all of its clients, maintaining open communication channels and being easily accessible to remedy any concerns or cost queries, as well as taking what it describes as a “commercial and pragmatic approach” to charging. In addition to this, bespoke training is offered either in person seminars or through webinars, with specific and targeted Guidance Notes delivered to their client’s in-boxes as case law is published. The company relies largely on word of mouth and recommendations . When fee earners move employers, the pre-established contact links allow for Integral Legal to continue to assist them and their new colleagues. Moreover, the company remains active within such bodies as the Association of Costs Lawyers (ACL) and Association of Customer Support Organisation (ACSO), with these memberships upholding its drive to protect access to justice. Regularly assisting in litigations against solicitors or for solicitors, where the dispute surrounds costs, requires an exceptional amount of knowledge, patience, and care, something that Victoria and the team embody wholeheartedly. Their work, however, is becoming more complicated, largely due to the implementation of fixed costs broadening across civil ligation more widely, on cases up to £100,000 since 1st October 2023. Nevertheless, the friendly and down-to-earth North plays host to a massive legal community, which, as Victoria explains, “is excellent for customers as they no longer need to go to the big City for representation, as such the cost of legal representation is more affordable, and accessibility is greater for more in-person meetings” While it is believed that an increasing number of cost disputes will be referred to London’s Supreme Court Costs Office, the team are confident that they will continue to see video hearings being used in the way that are now, cementing the North as an exceptional place to garner legal support. As for Integral Legal’s internal culture, its status as a servant to the service industry means that skills are championed such as exceptional client care, humility, knowledge, expertise, attention to detail, confidentiality, trust, flexibility, and above all for Victoria, professionalism. To this end, the team are heavily encouraged to develop a rapport with clients as a good team to trust, converse with, and ultimately do business, achieved through an approach that can be described as no-nonsense, accessible, and filled with a distinct sense of integrity, as the name suggests. Looking ahead to the future of the firm, Victoria is assured in Integral Legal Costs’ reputation standing for itself, allowing the company to continue to secure work at the rate it has been doing, with positive results being spread through the unique power of word of mouth. As a small team, the staff remain confident in their ability to carry work out to a high standard, maintaining core values every step of the way, diversifying expertise and working with a host of organisations to help them understand their legal spending and ultimately protect their investments. Contact Details Contact: Victoria Morrison-Hughes Company: Integral Legal Costs Web Address: http://integrallegal.co.uk/
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