Results for Stowe Family Law:
Stowe Family Law - Divorce Solicitors in Harrogate, York, Beverley & Other Locations:
Today's piece covers the website of Stowe Family Law where there is a fair mix of writing and images to scroll through even on the first page. Some firms have very little writing with massive images of people shaking hands and smiling. Some firms like to write alot about themselves and their services. Either way, what bits should you be paying attention to?
"At Stowe Family Law, we are the only national law firm dedicated to family matters with the UK's largest team of specialist family lawyers."
It sounds like a solid claim. But you've probably come across a dozen law firms that claim to be the 'best', 'specialist' or 'largest in' such-and-such on their website as well.
"We have family law offices in over 40 cities and towns across England and Wales, giving you access to the country’s leading family lawyers on your doorstep."
For us, that second quote further down the page is far clearer and understandable. It explains the firm's reach and capabilities with specifics which we always like to see. Some phrases may seem throwaway such as:
"A tailored approach from a team that really understands family law."
Which again you've probably seen similarly worded statements on a lot of other firm's websites. So how can you tell the difference between firms if they all say they have experience and expertise? Luckily Stowe Family Law are listed on the website of The Law Society of England & Wales. If you check out their pages you can see office addresses, contact details, languages spoken, etc. But more importantly there are details about the staff including their speciality areas of law and the number of years they've been practising.
As you can see there is a wide range of experience within Stowe, with solicitor's start dates covering all of the past five decades such as Mark Christie who qualified as a solicitor in 1984, Sarah Barr-Young in 2009, right up to Fatima Baig who qualified in 2021. We always say that experience isn't everything, but a good mix of seasoned staff alongside new youthful enthusiasm can't be a bad thing in this industry.
"Within our 80-plus strong team of leading UK divorce lawyers, we have forensic accountants, a dedicated children’s department, an adoption team, surrogacy law specialists and an international family law department and we also have trained mediators."
There will always be a debate about large firm resources versus small firm feel. Some people believe they will be 'lost in the pack' at a large firm, whilst others think the weight of a large firm behind them will increase their changes of a successful outcome. Whichever side you've typically come down on in the past, we don't think the size of the firm should sway your decision to use them. We always recommend speaking to someone at the firm before going ahead. That's why this statement on the firm's website stood out to us the most out of everything:
"We believe you should have the opportunity to speak to your solicitor, without being charged, before you choose to entrust your case to us. It is important you are comfortable with your solicitor; you feel they understand your legal needs and, just as importantly, the emotional aspects of your situation."
Obviously we are already in favour of Stowe Family Law because we list their services on this website. However this statement alone should qualify our decision. A large firm that gives you a free interview to discuss your case and costs before making you sign the dotted line is actually rarer than you might think. That's coming from someone who has been in the legal industry for over 20 years and had to seek out divorce lawyers twice. It's not uncommon for well-known divorce firms to demand £hundreds in a retainer deposit before even meeting with you.
The second impressive thing we'd point out is the firm's opening hours. Sadly despite the rest of the world moving forward to an always available and flexible contact model - a huge number of law firms still operate on the 9am-5pm / Mon-Fri timetable including closing for lunch (which is when most people get their phone calls done). Whilst there will be some variations, most of the Stowe solicitor office locations we checked were open until 7pm each day and open on weekends as well.
"Whatever you’re facing as a family, in whatever shape yours is, was, or will be, we’ll be here to listen to what you have to say and help with what you need to do."
To verify claims of whether a firm really does listen to clients, most people will check the public review boards such as Google, Trustpilot, Yelp, etc. Many firms will have testimonials on their website, but as they tend to be only the best possible comments - people want to find those disgruntled customers to see if there are any common themes. So what are people saying about Stowe Family Law?
"very supportive during otherwise difficult times"
"She tells it like it is so I always know where I stand"
"kept my costs to a minimum throughout my separation"
"service was efficient and very reasonably priced for the time taken"
"She tells it like it is so I always know where I stand"
"kept my costs to a minimum throughout my separation"
"service was efficient and very reasonably priced for the time taken"
These snippets are typical of the types of comments placed. The reviews are mainly positive from what we saw with several comments about fair pricing and time/effort put in. Fortunately or unfortunately depending on your view, some review boards separate a firm by office location. So you can't just go on Google, type the firm name, and see all reviews in this instance. You have to search for your specific local office to see reviews about it only.
Another quick note on navigation would be the website. The official site we link to above is www.stowefamilylaw.co.uk with www.stowefamilylaw.com not currently showing any firm. The official firm name actually does have those generic industry terms of 'family law' in it, but search engines seem to return the correct firm without them e.g. for 'stowe solicitors'. So the name is still quite unique. All other variants we checked such as www.stowe.co.uk were for totally different services too so we can't think of any real pressing security issues, but always be vigilant online.
At the time of writing the full list of office locations listed on the firm's website are: Beverley, Harrogate, Huddersfield, Ilkley, Leeds, Malton, Sheffield, Wetherby, York, Newcastle, Altrincham, Chester, Crewe, Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Stockport, Stockton Heath (Warrington), Wilmslow, Birmingham, Nottingham, Bromley, Esher, Richmond, Rickmansworth, Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Exeter, Thames Valley, Oxford, Reading, Windsor, Milton Keynes, Berkhamsted, St Albans, Bishop’s Stortford, Chelmsford, Colchester, Tunbridge Wells, Sevenoaks, Bournemouth, Southampton, Winchester, Guildford, Reigate, and Brighton.
Rate this article:
Currently rated 4.5 from 24 votes*
General Notes: Legal Aid availability changes constantly, so ask up front. If you are looking for a career with Stowe Family Law it's best to visit the website (www.stowefamilylaw.co.uk) and locate the correct phone/email contact details. Any quoted here will be for potential clients. Alternating or adding words such as Stowe Family Law Solicitors may bring up different background/reviews on the firm. Each firm's Law Society and/or SRA number should be on their site too.