Helen Newman of Forrest Williams
Crying For A Client
An Open Letter from Helen Newman
Today I sat with my phone in my hand and I cried. I cried because a very sweet guy, a client, was facing a custodial sentence of up to 6 months in prison. A 6 month sentence which could have led to him missing the birth of his baby. I sat at home with my own poorly baby and I cried. And I knew that back in the office the team I work with were just as upset as I was, and that in court with the client our Senior Partner was doing everything he could to make sure that this was not going to happen, that our client was going to be going home to his partner that night.
And most importantly he did. Tonight our client is at home, where he should be, but where he very nearly wasn’t.
So now I’m going to ask you a question:
How much are you worth?
I don’t mean what is your income or how much is your house worth, have you got a flashy car or anything tangible like that – I mean how much are YOU as a person worth? To those around you, your friends, your employer, your family? When it’s put like that the value you place on things varies massively. I was reading a post on Facebook earlier, one of those tales people share, about a young boy who asks his dad to lend him some money, only to give it straight back to buy an hour of his dad’s time. I know the moral of the tale is to teach us that time is precious but it resonated with me because of something a client said to me earlier this week – about how investing in us was the best decision she has made in a long time. And that got me thinking about our company and our company ethos.
Are you a number or a name?
In this modern age of technology so many systems are automated, numbers are assigned for everything as a way of tracking your account with that business – even in ways you may not consider. Forrest Williams Solicitors aren’t like that. Yes your file will have a lot of numbers in it – reference numbers we need to talk to the courts and police/crown prosecution service – but that is not how you’re known to us. To us you are a person, you have a name, a life, a family, friends, a story, and our job is to make sure that the courts see that person behind the number. In the course of this we get to know our clients so well – especially on the longer cases – and I can honestly say that some have become friends!
So how much would you invest in your future?
I’m not talking about stocks and shares here and I’m not talking about saving funds for a rainy day. I’m talking about investing in yourself as a person. About valuing who you are and what you bring to the lives of you around you. My client today may have qualified for legal aid, but I know that he would not have had the service he received from our team from a Legal Aid Solicitor – they simply do not have the time to get to know the person behind the offence.
Would you pay more for a handmade 100% organic venison burger than you would for a burger from a fast food outlet? For most people the answer is yes – because if they’re choosing the organic burger they’re choosing it for the product not for the price. The same applies if you’re charged with an offence – you will get what you pay for. I don’t mean the more it costs the better it is, but honestly if you’re paying a solicitor £250 then you’re probably only buying an hour of his time, maybe 2. Is your case worth more than that? Are you worth investing in?
This blog post may seem a bit disjointed, and it probably is. But I can honestly say I am writing from the heart. I’m sitting in my own home, at night, writing this because I cannot stop thinking about my client today who was so nearly sent to prison but who is back home with his family because he invested in a bespoke service.
If you want a solicitor who truly cares about what happens to their clients, to have a team working with you to ensure that you get the best possible outcome, then give Forrest Williams a call on 01623 397200.
