Does the legal industry need to be more transparent about pricing?

Many industry governing bodies have been calling for the legal sector to be more transparent about pricing for some time now. In June 2018, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) announced that it would require the firms they regulate to publish their prices and service standards online. Additionally, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has since advised that legal professionals will soon have to publish their prices for a range of services.

Recent news on the matter reveals that transparent pricing in the legal sector may soon become a reality as the Legal Services Board (LSB) has approved new rules proposed by both the CLC and SRA. The CLC’s new rules require licensed conveyancers and firms that they regulate to publish information about their prices and services online. Furthermore, the SRA’s new rules state that law firms must publish “clear and accessible” prices in a “prominent place” on their websites. Both the CLC and SRA are planning to implement their new rules by December 2018.

Transparent pricing in the legal sector has been in the spotlight since the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) report was released in December 2016. The CMA report stated that “consumers should be able to access key information to be able to make effective purchasing decisions. Where information can be accessed, it should be presented in a way that consumers can assess in order for it to be taken into account to make an informed purchasing decision.” The report continues to state that information for consumers should be prominent and timely so that it is readily available and easy to find at the relevant time.  

Furthermore, the SRA and Legal Ombudsman recently commissioned research that revealed that 85% of consumers said they needed information before choosing a legal services provider, mostly relating to price (53%). The research suggests that the industry as a whole needs to adapt in order to meet changing consumer demands in an increasingly connected world.

At Kings Court Trust, we have offered fixed fees for many years in a bid to be as open and honest with our pricing as possible. We believe that every individual deserves clarity on the service they are receiving and the cost involved.

We adopt an untraditional approach to pricing for the industry as we take the time to learn about the details of the estate by asking questions such as - is there a Will or not, whether the estate includes property, how many beneficiaries are due to inherit and is there a Trust in the Will that needs formalising. By asking these questions it allows us to then provide an accurate, fixed price quote based on the information obtained and the work that is involved.

Kings Court Trust are experts in estate administration and have helped thousands of families receive their inheritance. We offer a fixed price for taking care of absolutely everything within the estate administration process and we’ll take the legal and financial responsibility off your clients’ shoulders. If you have any questions regarding estate administration, call our Client Services Team on 0300 303 9000 or email ClientServicesTeam@kctrust.co.uk.