Partner Article

Tapping into the opportunities of ‘Tesco law’

THE new head of a Darlington law firm has welcomed a major shake-up within the legal profession as a great opportunity for his practice.

Peter Furness has been appointed managing partner at Clark Willis after 15 years at the firm.

The appointment coincides with restructuring within the industry – nicknamed ‘Tesco Law’ – which will allow non-legal companies and organisations to provide legal services.

But Mr Furness, a practicing lawyer for 25 years, views the upheaval as a major opportunity to take Clark Willis to the next level.

He said: “My task is to guide Clark Willis through the next few years when there will be significant changes within the legal profession and how people access services.

“Many traditional firms view the changes as a threat, but we see it as an opportunity because it will bring far greater transparency with no hidden pricing structures and that has got to be good news for our clients.

“Clark Willis is a traditional firm with contemporary values and because we already provide so many of the ‘high street’ legal services such as criminal, family, housing and welfare law, and wills and conveyancing, we are far better placed to provide a competitive service for clients.”

‘Tesco Law’ has been so-called because it is expected that several, large well-known organisations – including supermarket chains – will enter the legal services market. It is hoped the de-regulation will bring simpler, lower cost legal services to the consumer available from many more access points and online.

Mr Furness said the first challenge for Clark Willis would be to review its fee structure, making costs far simpler to understand with incentives and discounts for early and prompt payment.

He added: “When money is tight – as it is now with the recession – people will shop around, so we have to be particularly competitive. Many lawyers feel that the world owes them a living, but the emergence of ‘Tesco Law’ will be a wake-up call as consumers will want to know up-front and quite clearly what they will have to pay.”

Mr Furness, who specialises in court martial, family and employment law and has recently been awarded his higher rights with respect to the criminal courts, said he expected many of the new practices to locate away from traditional high streets and to offer less personal interaction.

“There’s likely to be online and call-centre based firms with less focus on customer service and legal aid and a greater focus on revenue. That has an impact on the quality of service and potentially will lead to more confusion and frustration,” he said.

“The major advantage for us is that we already offer all of the consumer legal services under one roof. We are better placed because of our history, tradition and client base and that makes us stronger as a firm.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .