A new legal network has been launched which puts the power of the big law firm in the hands of even the smallest across the West Midlands.
Already backed by more than 130 firms at launch, 70 of them in Birmingham, Hub.Legal gives lawyers access to every specialism they might need without having to retain those skills in-house or refer clients elsewhere.
The new network is operated by full-service regional legal practice, FBC Manby Bowdler, which has offices in Wolverhampton, Shrewsbury and Telford.
Members of Hub.Legal can call on the specialisms of the FBC Manby Bowdler team as if they were colleagues just along the corridor, safe in the knowledge that membership brings a non-poach agreement along with a share of the fee or a rebate to their client directly.
The collaborative approach also provides benefits in group purchasing power, including office supplies, access to training for continuous professional development, a free advice line putting firms in touch with FBC Manby Bowdler’s specialists, Solicitors Regulation Authority compliance support and recruitment support when additional staff or lawyers are needed.
Partner at FBC Manby Bowdler, James Knight, heads Hub.Legal for the firm. He explained: “What we are offering is entirely free to all law firms in our region because it has tremendous benefits for everyone involved. The aim is for us, as a full-service firm with a plethora of professional accreditations, to be the ‘department next door’ for our smaller colleagues. It’s a great example of very positive collaboration with members who really want to make a positive difference to their practices and quality of service and it’s happened because our member firms asked for it!”
The already extensive benefits offered by Hub.Legal will shortly expand with the introduction of ‘hands-on’ advisory services to assist with day-to-day SRA compliance, Lexcel, solicitors’ accounts, practice management support and business development. The cost of these services to members will be subsidised with grants to qualifying firms from the government’s Growth Accelerator Scheme – providing up to 60 per cent grant assistance on some projects.
Hub.Legal’s geographic reach is across the West Midlands, taking in Shropshire, Staffordshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire. It complements a number of similar hubs catering for other parts of the country.
Mr Gurpreet Bhatia, partner at Harbans Singh & Co Solicitors, Handsworth, said: “When our clients need support in any area of law we want to be in a position to say ‘yes’. Being a member of hub.legal means that we can do this without hesitation or concern around who we are sending our clients to. We also have access to first-line advice by phone on areas in which we don’t specialise, so we can very quickly start to advise a client on even a very specific matter. It’s a hugely positive thing for the legal profession across this region to be working in such a collaborative way and it is in the interests of firms and their clients alike.”