Today's Solicitor (15)

ISSUE 15

REUTERS/Luke MacGregor

PRIVACY CASES DOUBLE IN FIVE YEARS

INTERNET OVERTAKES FRIENDS AND FAMILY AS MAIN

WAY TO FIND A SOLICITOR

MARKETING SUCCESSFULLY IN THE POST-JACKSON ERA

CLERK & LINDSELL ON TORTSREUTERS/Mike Blake

WHATS NEW IN THE 21st EDITION

Significant decisions of the Supreme Court in:

• Baker v Quantum Clothing Group - on the relationship between an action for breach of statutory duty and common law negligence in respect of a claim for occupationally induced deafness.

• R (on the application of WL (Congo)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department - where it was held that a “causation test” does not apply to the tort of false imprisonment.

Important decisions by the Court of Appeal:

• Les Laboratoires Servier v Apotex Inc - on the nature of an unlawful act sufficient to engage the illegality defence.

• Taylor v A Novo (UK) Ltd - on who qualifies as a secondary victim for the purposes of a negligence action for “pure” psychiatric damage.

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NEW 21ST EDITION A YEAR AHEAD OF SCHEDULE

COMMON LAW LIBRARY

COMPLEXITY MADE SIMPLEGENERAL EDITOR: MICHAEL A JONES

CONSULTANT EDITOR: ANTHONY DUGDALE

ASSOCIATE EDITOR: MARK SIMPSON QC

CLERK & LINDSELL ON TORTS, published its 21st edition in October 2014 giving comprehensive coverage and authoritative information on all aspects of tort law.

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3

Welcome to the latest issue of Today’s Solicitor magazine by Thomson Reuters.

In this issue Lucy Obrey outlines the key changes being proposed for non-contentious probate rules.

Practical Law provides a summary of current and upcoming developments for Share Schemes & Incentives under the Finance Act 2014.

Legal Futures talks to Chris Jeffery of Thomson Reuters about how the Internet is overtaking friends and family as the main way to find a solicitor.

FindLaw UK provides strategies for online success and how to successfully market your law firm online.

We also look at the recent developments for Lawtel including Permissions to Appeal and the mobile web app, both now live.

And of course you will find details of all the very latest titles from Sweet & Maxwell.

Enjoy!

Sophie Winter Editor

Sarah Baines Designer

TODAY’S SOLICITOR

4 NEWS

5 PRIVACY CASES DOUBLE IN FIVE YEARS

8 LAWTEL ENHANCEMENTS

10 MARKETING SUCCESSFULLY IN THE POST-JACKSON ERA

15 NON-CONTENTIOUS PROBATE RULES – WHERE ARE WE NOW?

18 SHARE SCHEMES & INCENTIVES: SUMMARY OF CURRENT AND UPCOMING DEVELOPMENTS

2O BOOK SHOP

22 INTERNET OVERTAKES FRIENDS AND FAMILY AS MAIN WAY TO FIND A SOLICITOR

24 LEGAL MARKETING: STRATEGIES FOR ONLINE SUCCESS

27 YOUR SWEET & MAXWELL CONTACTS

IN THIS ISSUE:

TODAY’S SOLICITOR | ISSUE 15

SNELL’S EQUITY 33rd EditionJohn McGhee, QC

Acknowledged as the authority on equity, Snell’s Equity explains equitable principles and remedies and their application in trusts, probate and mortgages. It is renowned for its clear discussion of how the complex rules of equity apply in practice.

December 2014 | Price: £275 ISBN: 9780414034457

Also available on Westlaw UK

DRAFTING TRUSTS AND WILL TRUSTS 12th EditionJames Kessler, QC

Written by James Kessler QC, Drafting Trusts and Will Trusts is a crucial guide to drafting and understanding will and trust documents. The work offers a comprehensive selection of precedents to suit a wide range of trust requirements, and helps ensure the practitioner can make the best succession planning judgements through the use of the correct trust.

December 2014 | Book & CD-ROM: £128 ISBN: 9780414034372

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TRUST TITLES FROM SWEET & MAXWELL

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NEW EDITION

NEW EDITION

54 TODAY’S SOLICITOR

NEWS

LONDON, UK, ISSUED THIS MONTH BY THOMSON REUTERSThe number of reported privacy cases being fought out in the UK courts has doubled in five years to 56 cases in the last year* up from 28 five years ago, as the use of privacy laws has become more widespread (see graph overleaf), according to Thomson Reuters legal business, the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals.Whilst the use of privacy law was once restricted to celebrities to prevent the publication of scandalous stories about their personal lives it now has much broader significance – impacting on how Government agencies deal with the mass of data that they are accumulating on citizens through to the more than 12,000 Google “right to be forgotten” requests submitted by UK residents.The right to privacy was introduced by the Human Rights Act which came into force in 2000 and has been extended by the use of data protection arguments in cases such as Naomi Campbell v MGN.“Growth in privacy law has partly been a response to the explosion of personal data held on the internet and the data collected and shared between Government departments,” comments Jonathan

Cooper, barrister at London’s Doughty Street Chambers and editor of ‘European Human Rights Law Review’, published by Thomson Reuters.“Improved data storage and search technology allows personal data on citizens to be much more easily shared and transferred between Government departments. The increased use of privacy law is partly driven by concerns amongst consumers over how much personal information is being gathered up and shared in the growth of Big Data.”“The right to privacy is now very powerfully enshrined in UK law. If an individual can show that their right to privacy is being systematically abused in a disproportionate way, they can use the courts to get the Government to protect their right to respect for private life,” adds Jonathan Cooper.Thomson Reuters points out that the Government was recently forced to change the laws about the disclosure of criminal records in a groundbreaking case. The courts found that the existing rules breached Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights (which includes the right to privacy) as the criminal record checks provided data on historic and minor convictions and cautions.

NEWS RELEASE

PRIVACY CASES DOUBLE IN FIVE YEARSGoogle “right to be forgotten” pushes privacy law into the mainstream

REUTERS/Todd Korol

LEWIN ON TRUSTS19th EDITION • PUBLISHING DECEMBER 2014

Lynton Tucker, Nicholas Le Poidevin, QC and James Brightwell

Lewin on Trusts; the definitive textbook on the Law of Trusts. Covering all aspects of Trust law and practice including definition, classification and creation of trusts, trustees, beneficiaries, administration, breach of trust and remedies, and variation of trusts.

The new 19th edition has been completely updated to take account of recent case law and legislation including coverage of Pitt V Holt and Inheritance and Trustees’ Powers Act 2014.

In Lewin we Trust

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“ONE OF THE CLASSIC LEGAL TEXTBOOKS” – Law Quarterly Review

NEW EDITION

Hardback 9780414024366

Also available on Westlaw UK £310

REU

TERS/Kim

Kyung-Hoon

WESTLAW UK’S MOBILE WEB APP IS NOW LIVE

We’re happy to announce that Westlaw UK’s Mobile Web App is now live and available for you to use.

The mobile web app gives you instant, easy access to cases, legislation, journals, current awareness and EU content from your mobile device.

A simple and clean design partnered with intuitive functionality means you can locate information in court, in meetings or on the move without having to navigate the desktop version on a smart phone or tablet screen.

FEATURES• Instant mobile access, anywhere, anytime• Mobile user-friendly - no more pinch and zoom• Search for cases, legislation, journals, current awareness and EU content• Filter post-search by content set to narrow down the results list• Seamless linking to related resources• Download, email and save to your folders, synced with the desktop version• View documents in full screen

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WESTLAW UK’S MOBILE WEB APP

6 TODAY’S SOLICITORTODAY’S SOLICITOR

CONCERN GROWING OVER PERSONAL INFORMATION HELD BY BIG INTERNET AND SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIESJonathan Cooper says that the rise in reported privacy cases is partly caused by the growth of businesses that store vast amounts of personal data. As well as the cases heard in the UK courts relating to Facebook and Google UK residents have also been impacted by the recent European Union court ruling over ‘the right to be forgotten’. This allows individuals to ask Google to erase online links to outdated or irrelevant information that could potentially undermine their privacy.The ruling means that Europeans now have the right to request that links be removed from Google’s search engine. Facebook has faced a number of claims relating to privacy/data protection across Europe over how users’ data is tracked and commercialised – with the latest being a class action through the Austrian courts. “The rapid growth in the commercialisation of personal data has created a lot of new threats to people’s privacy. When businesses cross the line, people feel strongly enough to enforce their privacy rights through the courts,” adds Cooper.“It is very difficult to strike the perfect balance between privacy rights and freedom of expression, as the heated debate over the European ruling over the right to be forgotten demonstrates.”“The sharing of personal data in aggregate form brings a lot of benefits, but if private information is shared in the wrong way that can cause serious problems – whether it is by a commercial business or a Government agency.”

INDIVIDUALS USING PRIVACY TO FORCE PUBLIC BODIES TO REMOVE INACCURATE AND OUTDATED DATA Thomson Reuters says that a high proportion of the cases this year were made against public bodies, with a particular concentration of cases made against the police. These included stop and search complaints as well as concerns over data held by the police.In one high profile example of the police’s invasion of privacy, recently it was revealed that undercover police officers secretly gathered intelligence over two decades on Doreen Laurence and 18 families fighting to get justice from the police over deaths in custody and other matters.“Recent revelations over police surveillance of individuals campaigning against the police and into Doreen Laurence show that there is a concern over whether the privacy of some individuals is being breached unnecessarily,” says Jonathan Cooper.“Any attempt to dismantle the UK’s human rights system, including the right to privacy, would be a big backwards step for the freedom of UK citizens.”

Paul Sandell Manager, PR & Communications

60

50

40

30

20

10

02009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14

28

40

45

55 56

THE NUMBER OF REPORTED PRIVACY PROCEEDINGS IN THE UK COURTS

* Year end May 31st. Reported cases in the High Court and above where a privacy argument was used.

NEWS RELEASE

STAMP DUTY LAND TAX

SWEET & MAXWELL

Stamp Duty Land Tax is an increasingly complex tax on which tax and property practitioners, lawyers and accountants frequently need guidance. It has become more important in light of the Finance Acts 2012 to 2014 changes, with new rules on penal rates for purchases of houses or flats, the GAAR, sub-sales, lease renewals and charities. This new publication will provide practitioners with a comprehensive and practical explanation of SDLT provisions, the rules, the rates, the various reliefs and special regimes. Helping tax practitioners and advisers comply with a multitude of SDLT scenarios, Christopher Cox and Richard Woolich provide many practical examples and deal with returns, payment, interaction with land registration, HMRC enquiries, interest and penalties.

• Outline and background• Structure of SDLT• The rates• Chargeable consideration: cash• Chargeable consideration: debt• Chargeable consideration in kind• Companies – market value• Sub-sales etc.• Leases: the charge on rents • Leases: other matters • Intra-group transactions

and reconstructions

• Partnerships • Trusts and family arrangements • Charities and the public sector • Special reliefs for residential property• Alternative Finance • Anti-avoidance • Returns• Enquiries, Discovery, Penalties • Appeals and Reviews • Interaction with other taxes

Areas covered include the following:

STAMP DUTY LAND TAX

Christopher Cox, Consultant DAC Beachcroft LLPRichard Woolich, Partner and Head of UK Tax at DLA PiperSweet & Maxwell’s Practitioner Tax Library ISBN: 9780414034402 Price: £155

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PERMISSIONS TO APPEAL ON LAWTEL. NOW LIVEWe’re happy to let you know that our new Permissions to Appeal (PTA) service is now live. As part of the core Lawtel service, Lawtel customers now receive comprehensive coverage of Permissions to Appeal cases from the Court of Appeal Civil Division, with coverage back dated to January 2014.The new Permissions to Appeal content sits within the ‘Cases’ area of Lawtel and can be accessed via the ‘Cases’ drop down menu.You now have the ability to search PTA cases from both the general search box on the Lawtel home page as well as via a new specific ‘Search Permissions to Appeal’ page. On the PTA search page, you can search by case name, free text, citations, date range, subject, keywords, result, Judge, Solicitor and Barrister. You will also have a new option to filter PTA search results by the judgments’ ‘Result’.We include basic information within the Lawtel PTA cases document including Subjects, Keywords, and Permissions to Appeal Results as well as a link to the full transcript in case you wish to view the more detailed judgment.

FEATURES• Searchable database of all PTA judgments from the Court of Appeal Civil

Division (previously only selected key judgments have been published to Lawtel)• An aim to publish judgments within 48 hours following receipt of the official

transcript• Separate from other Case law content to help with ease of searching• Presented in a simple, clear, and user-friendly way• Access to permission cases in specific areas of interest • Ability to search and filter by ‘Result’

CASE ANALYSIS LINKING

If you have a subscription to Westlaw UK, you will have access to link through to the Case Analysis document.

VISIT

Visit Lawtel.com on any mobile device.

Click on the log in to cases mobile button.

ENTER

Sign in to your account using your standard Lawtel Username and Password.

Search via the Lawtel home page search box or access the ‘Search Permissions to Appeal’ page via the cases drop down menu.

Search specifically for PTA cases with search options including Case Name, Free-Text, Subject, Result, Judge, Solicitor and Barrister.

Narrow your search results via the filtering options provided in the right-hand panel. Filter by Subjects, Keywords, Date, Courts and Result.

LAWTEL

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LAWTEL

WE KEEP TRACK SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO

LAWTEL CASES MOBILE WEB APP IS NOW LIVE IN OPEN BETAWe’re also happy to announce that Lawtel Cases mobile web app has now launched in beta.The mobile web app has been created for quick and simple case searches on your mobile device whilst in meetings, in court, with clients, or on the go.The Lawtel Cases mobile app includes over 80,000 case reports in an archive back to 1980. Reporting decisions from a wide range of courts, our team of reporters ensure that the most important decisions for our subscribers are published on the same day, providing an unbeatable service.Matching the coverage of the major law reports and over 30 specialist law reports, the Lawtel Cases mobile app also publishes thousands of unreported decisions online often on the same day as the judgment and often days ahead of any other source.

Highlights include:• Coverage of major Law Reports and over 30 Specialist Law Reports• Same day unofficial transcripts• Thousands of unreported decisions and extempore decisions often published

the same day as the judgment date• Summary of the salient points of each decision provided in a concise format• Read about the most important extempore decisions from the High Court and

both divisions of the Court of Appeal• Hypertext links providing direct access to relevant cases and legislation cited

within each decision

Email and download the relevant document. Compatible with most smart phones and tablets, optimised for iDevices and Android.Exactly like the desktop version, to save you time, each case report links directly to the full text of a judgment, often weeks and months before the official transcript is available.With our ever expanding collection of Pending Action documents, you can track developments to a case and obtain key documents as soon as the case is initiated at the High Court.

Lawtel: We Keep Track So You Don’t Have To

1 1

ARTICLE

Subject: Legal profession.

Keywords: Advertising; Law firms; Marketing; Personal injury; Search engines; Social media; Websites

Legislation: Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (c.10)

*J.P.I.L. 95 The legal profession has been able to advertise since 1986. What was first a case of crossing the Rubicon for an instinctively conservative profession was quickly embraced and is now widely practised. But the Legal Services and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (“LASPO”) makes it more important than ever to advertise effectively. This article focuses on digital media and how traditional promotional methods should work in tandem with digital technologies to reach more clients, concluding with an examination of how to monitor and measure the success of work generation strategies. The author draws on his own experience over the past 30 years, and especially since the autumn of 2011—during which period the author rebuilt his practice from one which depended exclusively on referral fee based sources of work to one which, in 2014, generates 70 per cent of its work directly rather than from referrals.

THE LEGAL AND PROFESSIONAL FRAMEWORK Since 1986 it has been possible for PI practices to advertise, but with the implementation of Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (“LASPO”) on April 1, 2013, the necessity to market well and effectively has been brought home with renewed force. Indeed, in today’s legal services landscape, to ignore marketing imperatives would be tantamount to commercial suicide. The welter of change to which the PI sector has been subject is as well-known as it is dramatic, involving the introduction of qualified one way costs shifting, the removal of recoverability of success fees and ATE premiums, the increase of 10 per cent in general damages, a greater emphasis on proportionality of costs and the extension of fixed costs, as well as fundamental changes to the court’s approach to case management and costs budgeting. Aside from all these factors, arguably it is the ban on referral fees (LASPO ss.56 –60) which brings about the greatest challenge for firms having to “self-generate” work for the first time.This article does not focus on ways to circumvent the referral fee ban through one of the avenues available, whether by forming an alternative business structure (“ABS”)

or embarking on a joint venture through an ABS, or through arranging for the provision of “information” which would enable the recipient to provide relevant services to the client through the client him or herself, or indeed through other methods. Instead, it focuses on how to generate work directly through other marketing techniques. But aside from the referral fee ban, what are the relevant regulatory provisions that practitioners need to have in mind?In marketing, as in all areas of practice, the 10 mandatory principles in the SRA Code of Conduct1 are pertinent and form an overarching framework for practitioners. Principles most relevant to marketing2 are to act with integrity, not to allow independence to be compromised, to act in the best interests of each client and to behave in a way that maintains the trust the public places in the legal profession as a whole. In addition, practitioners must comply with their legal and regulatory obligations. Outcomes from this part of the Code include ensuring publicity is not misleading, that charges are clearly and unambiguously expressed, and that unsolicited approaches in person or by telephone to publicise practices are avoided. Taking code compliance as read, how should firms proceed to plan their work generation strategies?*J.P.I.L. 96

ETHOS AND FOCUS Each practice should ensure that it has a clear position, established through focusing first on its clients and developed through engagement with all those working in its business. This will form the backdrop to the practice’s business plan generally and specifically its business development plan. Never is it more important to have clarity in positioning than when communicating with the public. An established, clearly defined firm ethos will help establish priorities, for example whether the emphasis is local or national and which categories of injured persons and liability types are in focus (and in what order of priority). The ethos and targets will inform communication and advertising as will ancillary choices such as those with regard to sponsorship.Existing clients are a goldmine of information. For instance they will inform the importance of reliable ancillary advice and home visits, as well as the sorts of information that injured people would like to be able to access through a firm’s website. What questions they have, and in what level of detail they would like answers, can all help identify changes and enhancements to assist clients and potential clients. Clients will also reveal what matters most to them, perhaps the importance of their local community, and other issues which they see as a high priority. Each practice will have different dynamics to consider and will make different choices, but it is vital that there is this kind of engagement with clients. It is an ethical as well as a commercial mistake not to do this.

TRADITIONAL MEDIA Traditional media should not be ignored, and the mix of media used will vary according to budget, locality, ethos and preferences. Digital resources simply provide new and more powerful ways of promoting a practice. There is still need to create written articles and comment, engage in conferences and be involved in and known around your community. Just as personal folders in Microsoft Outlook replace paper files, so the internet supplies the foundation for a relatively new and extremely powerful communication tool. There remains the need have to have something to communicate which is consistent with the chosen ethos and focus and it must be credible. This remains core material for practices which now can reach so many more through digital technologies.Moving away from referred work means that advertising in all its forms becomes vital. Through newspapers, radio and even TV, each practice will cut its cloth according

to its budget taking account of its target audience. Consistency and core values become even more important here to ensure that practices are consistently presented; ideally, nothing should ethically jar.

DIGITAL MEDIA Digital applications are the single most powerful tool with which businesses can communicate today. Referring to IT in his latest book Tomorrow’s Lawyers, Richard Susskind states:

“It is now pervasive in our world. There are over 2.2 billion Internet users … and every two days, according to Google’s Eric Schmidt, ‘we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilisation up until 2003’.” 3

WEBSITE The website is the shop window of a practice and it must be right. If the shop window is wrong, people will not visit. The ethos, approach and philosophy need to be accurate and therefore credible and clearly explained. This needs to be consistently presented across all aspects of the website. Services need to be*J.P.I.L. 97 clearly explained, contradictory services should be avoided; if this is not the case there needs to be a focus on something other than service type to avoid contradiction. For example, a practice specialising in both claimant and insurer PI work may have a core value around excellent and fearless professional representation whatever the issue at stake, whereas an exclusively claimant practice can take a more unequivocal claimant-campaigning position if it so chooses. Visitors to sites need to be comfortable with where they have landed, and confident they will be well looked after. Advice needs to be relevant, clear and concise.Moreover, potential client visitors landing need to be converted to be clients. Technologies like conversion analytics and heat maps to show where visitors tend to focus can help inform where an invitation to provide instructions might be most effective; it will also reveal areas of lesser interest to visitors. To most visitors external accreditations and kite marks are important, as are (perhaps more surprisingly) photographs of premises.

PAY PER CLICK Pay per click is a method of advertising on a search engine when a user types in a certain phrase. But unlike most other forms of advertising payers only pay for the click once someone has interacted with it.Pay per click became very expensive in the immediate aftermath of the referral fee ban in April 2013. Prices have settled somewhat but it remains expensive and each enquiry generated through pay per click may cost several hundred pounds or more. Pay per click is a bidding process where quality and price are relevant. If a practice is perceived to be of greater “quality” it will pay less for a search term. This is another reason for firms to invest time and resource in optimisation in that it will improve its quality rating and consequently reduce the cost of pay per click. To increase scale will also reduce the cost of pay per click. However, I focus on quality in looking at optimisation.

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION In the United Kingdom, Google has 88 per cent of the search market, with its closest competitor Bing/Yahoo having around a combined 10 per cent of the rest. In the United States, Google is less dominant, having around 70 per cent of the market. Maximising the impact of a practice through optimisation when people use search engines is important, especially so with Google given its dominant market share.While pay per click advertising can get

services onto Google, the majority of the content on the results page is still made up from organic listings. Organic listings appear on merit and what Google judges to be the most relevant content for what a web user is searching for.Optimising content to try to rank higher in search-engine owner results, known as Search Engine Optimisation (“SEO”), is a long-term project, whereas pay per click provides quick and early wins. A practice can also

calculate fairly accurately, once its strategy is established, what its pay per click spend will yield in terms of enquiries; this is not so with SEO. SEO is about quality content, and refreshing, reviewing and continually working to improve the number of visitors received. For a successful SEO strategy it is important to engage as many people working in an organisation as possible in the process.

MARKETING SUCCESSFULLY IN THE POST-JACKSON ERAFrom Journal of Personal Injury Law 2014

REUTERS/Enrique Castro-Mendivil

‘Visitors to sites need to be comfortable with where they havelanded, and confident they will be well looked after.’

TODAY’S SOLICITOR10

13

Journal of Personal Injury LawArticle


There are different challenges with pay per click: it is expensive, and the lower the perceived quality of content the more expensive it is. There are, however, dangers with SEO and organic listings. Search engines like Google are becoming increasingly strict. They want genuine websites that offer the most value and relevance, and without any manipulation. They regularly develop and change their algorithms (the rules which the search engine uses in order to rank pages), and are making concerted efforts to eradicate manipulation. Constant vigilance is required to avoid falling foul of their policing through optimisation strategies. In essence, optimisation must be genuine rather than seeking to enhance reputation falsely—which is what the search engines are trying to prevent.*J.P.I.L. 98

SEARCH ENGINE POLICING As stated earlier, Google is the overwhelmingly dominant search engine, and for this reason I use it as an example. However, the principles in operation will equally apply to other search engines.Google monitors approximately 200 signals from web pages when deciding how to rank them in its results. This process is largely done automatically and algorithmically by constantly trawling web pages to determine which is the most relevant to display in relation to users’ searches.In theory, this means that pages which are the most relevant and offer users the most value will rank above those that offer less. Google details its ranking principles in a Webmaster Guideline which sets out how pages should be built in order to provide users with the best experience.But as with any rule, there are those who will seek to bend and even break them. For this reason, a large part of the guidelines relate to “Quality Guidelines”. If a website breaches them then the practice will run the risk of a Google penalisation.Google can and does take manual action on websites where it spots anything untoward, either with regard to unnatural links or otherwise trying to “trick” Google or its users. Examples would be websites that hide text, that copy content from other websites or generally try to deceive users.There have been a number of solicitors’ practices which have been delisted following action by Google. Rather more famously, Interflora’s website was delisted for a period of time after it was discovered that the company had financially incentivised bloggers to talk about and link to its website.

The number and quality of links to a website is a key factor that Google takes into account when ranking websites. Attempting to manipulate these links can result in severe penalties and manual action.

COMPLYING WITH SEARCH ENGINE GUIDELINES The SEO agency needs to be trusted implicitly. Due diligence and referencing is essential. Practice members need to speak to the agency and those people specifically allocated to its account. A firm needs to share its plans and hear its agency’s ideas and vice versa. There needs to be clear understanding of the practice ethos and business. Practices need to be satisfied that their agency’s ethics are sound. Return on investment needs to be evaluated and understood. It needs to be known how the agency intends to raise profile online; if any of this sounds like it is easy or too good to be true then it probably is.Offers may be received from websites or agencies wanting to sell links to the firm’s website, blog or even promising more followers on Twitter and Facebook. Many of these are trying to exploit search engine algorithms and if their covert efforts are discovered it will be apparent that they have done more harm than good.There are organisations which operate solely to sell advertising on a so called “churn and burn” basis. These organisations set up a suitably and appositely named website and then set about selling sponsorship to firms, businesses and individuals who will be interested in instructions or workflow from such an organisation. However, the reality is that there may be little traffic to the website and their only goal is to sell potential sponsorship packages for 12 months.Not all website listings and sponsorships operate in this way and some may add genuine value. For example, many people still use Yell.com and having an enhanced Yell.com listing may be valuable when attracting local clients. But when offered sponsorship of this type which apparently might be useful in attracting potential clients firms need to do due diligence to ensure there is likely to be a return on investment.*J.P.I.L. 99

SOCIAL MEDIA The number of social networks (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, etc) is ever-increasing and practices should have at least a basic presence on each major social networking site. Use of social media can range from publishing news items and content to taking part in discussions or engaging with clients. Each network has its own technologies and audience, but it is important to develop a social media strategy that includes as a minimum: • who in the practice is responsible for

social media and interacting with each social network;

• what content is to be placed on each network;

• if individual lawyers are to use their personal accounts for business purposes; and

• ensuring guidelines and a framework is in place.

VISITOR CONVERSION AND CLIENT RETENTION Once a practice has acquired visitors to its website it must then turn these visitors into clients. Once a firm is instructed, tight risk

assessment procedures need to be in place. A dedicated and well-trained initial client liaison team may be the best way to ensure that potential clients are looked after and secured. Over-worked practitioners are not always the best at converting and then retaining clients. It is beyond the scope of this article to say much more on this, other than to emphasise the importance of enquiries converting to instructions for

your firm in meritworthy cases which clients wish to pursue.

MEASUREMENT AND MONITORING There are various ways to measure effectiveness in marketing and there are no absolute answers to what is right or wrong. There are below set out some suggestions for areas to scrutinise.Web content should be monitored, likewise the creation of blogs, articles and other content, including content on social media. It is important to have a clear and effective policy to ensure good content is generated which is useful to enquirers and clients. It is imperative it is accurate. Any opinions

expressed should, where appropriate, be suitably caveated.Content must be consistent with a practice’s culture and ethos. Non-lawyer as well as lawyer input can be appropriate. Writing does need to express personality, which can be an area of difficulty for lawyers, for whom care and precision of expression rather than personality are more natural.Some practices, according to size and resource, may employ PR agencies and again measurement and engagement is vital.With digital agencies content should be monitored, so too the exposure that they gain and the traffic they generate to a practice’s website. Agency performance should be scrutinised for evidence of the agency’s appetite and quality of new ideas and targeting and general “nose” for a good idea or opportunity.Each practice will make its own decisions regarding what it chooses to review and measure, but the following might usefully be considered:

Organic performance: • what search terms a practice is aiming

to rank for and progress towards achieving these rankings;

• amount of organic traffic to the website;• visitor conversion rates, i.e. the number

of site visitors versus the number of enquiries made;

• client retention rates, setting an appropriate period or periods for measuring and evaluating this; and*J.P.I.L. 100

• the quality and quantity of links to websites; as mentioned earlier not all links are beneficial.

Pay per click: • keywords, the most relevant search terms

for services that are being targeted;• Impressions, how often advertisements

are shown;• clicks, how often advertisements are

clicked;• cost per click, and what a practice is

willing to pay for a targeted visitor; and• cost per enquiry, how many clicks have

been paid for to generate an enquiry.

Marketing and financial: • work generation;• cost per enquiry;• cost per converted and retained case;

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• abandon rates;• billing rates;• risk rates by case category; and• case acquisition cost by type, to take

account of any disbursement write offs, both fault and no fault.

CONCLUSION It is a regrettable fact of life that such is the intensity and uncertainty of change that even for the excellent there is no guarantee of success. Forecasting is, at best, an educated guess. Time alone will tell how successful a firm’s marketing strategy, digital or otherwise, has been.Following the implementation of LASPO as well as rapidity of technological change, the dynamics and cost of acquiring work are now very different—especially to how they were back in the days when law firms were prohibited from advertising. The fees which can be earned for every type of PI work have altered, and for some types of case the alteration is dramatic. Changes are compound and cumulative and cover recoverable fees, procedure and process, not to mention increased client competition fuelled by the increasing prevalence of consolidation through the availability of ABSs.Add to all this the need for most to invest in wholesale new procedures and processes, and training and retraining, and one can readily conclude that these are very uncertain times. However, the vast majority of practitioners are highly motivated and determined people, who will hopefully survive and, indeed, flourish. In order to do so is, though, they need to embrace the brave new world and ensure that the firm is at the cutting edge of digital marketing.

John Spencer J.P.I. Law 2014, 2, 95-100

‘Over-worked practitionersare not always the best at converting andthen retaining clients.’

15

ARTICLE

Analytics

Website Design

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TURN A FIRST IMPRESSION INTO A CLIENT WITH FINDLAW UK

Subject:Succession.

Keywords:Law Society; Non-contentious probate proceedings; Succession

Legislation:Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 (SI 1987/2024)

*P.C.B. 197 In his 2013 article,1 Keith Biggs considered the main proposals for amendments to the Non-Contentious Probate Rules. The Ministry of Justice’s consultation that accompanied the proposed amendments closed on August 29, 2013 and Lucy Obrey asks where are we now? It would appear that the answer to this question is that we are no further forward!

NON-CONTENTIOUS PROBATE RULES – WHERE ARE WE NOW?From Private Client Business 2014

BACKGROUND In early 2009, the then Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State, Jack Straw, agreed with the then President of the Family Division, Sir Mark Potter, to establish a working group to consider the revision of the Non Contentious Probate Rules 1987 (NCPR). This was to build on the work of the 2004 Probate Review which set out a range of recommendations to improve the service provided by the Probate Service.When launching the consultation Sir Mark Potter, said:

“… the current rules are far from user-friendly and provide little guidance. They have not been widely updated since 1987 and I hope that the rules produced by the working group will be more readily understood by the public, as well as bringing the procedures into line with more recent legislation.”

The working group was initially chaired by Mr Justice Munby and the review was expected to be completed by the end of 2010. After years of waiting and a change of chair to His Honour Judge Philip Waller, a draft set of new rules, the Probate Rules 2013, were issued by the Ministry of

Justice for consultation.2 The consultation was aimed at those interested in the administration of estates, members of the public and probate practitioners in England and Wales. The consultation was initially to end on August 9, 2013, but due to delays in making the documentation available this was extended to August 29, 2013. The responses should have been published in September 2013 but they have not yet been seen!

INTENTION The NCPR pre-date the substantial changes in substance and approach of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR). The NCPR need to be updated and revised to bring them in line with modern procedure rules.*P.C.B. 198 Testimony to the strength of the NCPR is the fact that they have survived so long without substantial revision.There were several indications from the committee in the course of their deliberations of the changes that they were considering, and therefore the changes being proposed do not provide for anything unexpected or exciting. Although the rules have been re-written to make them clearer, in most cases the substance of the new rules will remain the same.

REUTERS/ David Bebber

Market your law firm online

16

Article

TODAY’S SOLICITOR 17

Non-Contentious Probate Rules – Where Are We Now?

Language The greatest change is to the language of the rules. Latin terms and phrases have been updated into modern English where possible: caveat becomes objection; citation becomes notification; grant ad colligenda bona defuncti becomes a collection grant; oral will replace nuncupative will. Also going are the words “non-contentious” from the title of the rules, which will be known simply as the Probate Rules, the intention being to make the rules easier for non-professionals to understand.The simplification of the NCPR is a commendable aim. However, the removal of some Latin terms may confuse rather than clarify the position, as those terms had a fixed meaning and their replacements are rather more vague.

Overriding objective For the first time, the new rules will see the introduction of an overriding objective, namely, “… to enable probate matters to be dealt with justly and expeditiously by the registries and courts and by persons dealing with the registries and courts.”. The concept of an overriding objective for rules of court was introduced in the CPR in order to help applicants understand their rights and responsibilities and the court’s role in issuing grants of representation.The order of the rules has also changed, having been restructured to a more logical order that reflects the process of applying for a grant of representation. A derivation table was published with the consultation to assist practitioners. The new structure consists of eighteen parts beginning with an introduction to the new rules, followed by rules on the functions and powers of the court, entitlement to a grant, grant applications, notifications (currently citations), objections (currently caveats), probate claims and amending and revoking grants. The remaining parts include rules relating to records of grant applications, searches, applications and appeals, and costs.

Witness statement and statements of truth As expected, the new rules provide for a witness statement verified by a statement of truth, which replaces the requirement to swear or affirm an oath. If agreed, such an amendment is likely to be particularly well received, by those practitioners in rural areas where finding an individual to assist with swearing an oath can often be difficult.Again following the way the CPR works, all applicants will simply complete the witness statement and sign a statement of truth. Personal applicants will no longer be required to physically attend their local probate office to swear an oath before a grant can be made to them, although it appears that the Probate Registry will retain the right to call an applicant for an interview. This will save time and money for applicants and the registries.The witness statement should state:*P.C.B. 199 a) the full name, date of birth, date of death

(as stated on the death certificate) and the address for the deceased, which must include the state or territory where the deceased died domiciled;

b) the basis on which the applicant claims to be entitled to the grant;

c) the manner in which anyone with a prior right to the grant has been cleared off;

d) whether a minority or life interest arises under the will or intestacy; and

e) the gross and net value of the estate of the deceased.

Change to the registries The removal of the requirement for personal attendance at the Probate Registry combined with a change to the rules that removes the prescription of Probate Registry locations by secondary legislation and the simultaneous retirement of many registrars maybe used by the Ministry of Justice to justify the closure of a number of Probate Registries. The consultation paper does

not specify why the proposed procedural changes have prompted a consideration of the rules providing for the location of the registries. Is the rationale for the proposal the expectation that the existing number of registries may not be required if there is a drop in the number of personal applicants required to attend a registry to make a statement of truth? There will always be a need for access to qualified staff for grant applications that are not standard. Perhaps the telephone helpline, which is also to be reviewed and run jointly by the Probate Service and HMRC, will assist. This helpline is to ensure the applicant receives the appropriate level of assistance to enable them to complete an application and contact registry staff if necessary.It is suggested that developments on this particular point should be closely monitored.

Attorney Grants As a result of a concern over its potential abuse, a complete review of the attorney application process has also been undertaken. Evidence from the attempt to make wills and estate administration reserved legal activities showed that some unregulated providers were obtaining power of attorney to deal with the Probate Registry and preparing probate papers to gain control of the estate.The options are: a) do nothing and keep the rule as

currently drafted;b) remove attorney applications from

the personal application process;c) allow only family members to act

as attorneys;d) allow only probate practitioners to

act as attorneys; ore) allow only family members and probate

practitioners to act as attorneys.

Grants where applicant is mentally incapacitated The working group has proposed the removal of the requirement to give notice of an intended application under NCPR 1987 r.35 to the Court of Protection where the Court of Protection has not authorised the applicant to apply for the grant. The Probate Service must consider an applicant’s capacity to administer the estate in accordance with the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The giving of notice is, in the view of some practitioners, an unnecessary administrative procedure. There is also clarification in the revised rule that an individual acting as a deputy cannot apply for a grant unless the order appointing him as a deputy specifically permits him to apply for a grant.*P.C.B. 200

Figures Another change will make it easier for those interested in an estate to obtain a probate inventory (the estate accounts) from the personal representatives, as the rules state that the court will generally make an order for this to be done without a hearing.The working group has provided a number of options regarding the information which should be included in the calendar of grants as follows: a) no change to the current process—the

value of the estate shown on the grant and calendar;

b) the value of the estate would be shown on the calendar but not the grant;

c) the value of the estate would be shown on the grant but not the calendar; or

d) the value of the estate would only be available on application to the court.

Settled land The consultation paper provides that the requirements in relation to settled land remain the same but there is a suggestion that the applicant is no longer required to “swear” that the estate does not include settled land.

Sealed copies The consultation paper considered whether copies of documents which bear the seal of the court should be limited to personal representatives and those who can demonstrate a valid reason for being provided with such a copy. This is another area where progress should be monitored closely.

Fees regarding pre-lodgement advice Although not set out in the NCPR, the Probate Service has historically provided a service whereby it settles (i.e. checks) draft oaths prepared by probate practitioners and provides pre-lodgement advice on more complex cases. The service, it would appear, has been abused by practitioners in the past with a significant number settling oaths as a matter of course.The introduction of a witness statement rather than an oath will mean that there are no longer any oaths to settle. However, it is suggested that probate practitioners may very well require the witness statement to be settled in complex cases. Such a service is being considered as part of the consultation process. It is also likely that an increased fee from the current settling fee might be charged.

Practice directions and additional guidance The rules are to be supported by practice directions, forms and additional staff guidance to replace current internal guidance.

RESPONSES The Law Society’s response to the consultation, dated August 2013, is largely in agreement with the proposed changes, but there were some concerns raised: • a clear definition of the term “family

members” may be needed if this category is agreed, as previous consultation on the regulation of will writing and estate administration has demonstrated the potential for abuse;*P.C.B. 201

• regarding the value of estates listing on calendars and grants, a desire for an “opt-out” procedure to allow removal of information from the grants where clients and practitioners are unwilling to disclose;

• lifting the restriction on ordering an inventory and account may result in a cumbersome number of requests, especially if personal representatives were to delay in providing Estate Accounts.

STEP UK Practice Committee and Mental Capacity SIG also published its response on August 23, 2013.4

CONCLUSION Progress on this matter is eagerly awaited!

Lucy Obrey Partner Higgs & Sons, Brierley Hill P.C.B. 2014, 4, 197-201

LANGUAGE WITNESS STATEMENT & STATEMENTS OF TRUTH

KEY CHANGES BEING PROPOSED

SEALED COPIES PRACTICE DIRECTIONS & ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE

CHANGE TO THE REGISTRIES

SETTLED LANDOVERRIDING OBJECTIVE GRANTS WHEN APPLICANT IS MENTALLY INCAPACITATED

ATTORNEY GRANTS FIGURES

FEES REGARDING PRE-LODGEMENT ADVICE

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18 19TODAY’S SOLICITOR

Practical Law Share Schemes & Incentives

ARTICLE

Subject:Share Scheme & Incentives

Keywords:Finance, Tax, SAYE

Legislation: Finance Act 2014

KEY DEVELOPMENTS FOR SHARE SCHEMES AND INCENTIVES This note summarises, at a very high level, key changes and proposals that are most relevant to share schemes and employment-related securities law and practice. It sets out the current status of each development (or proposed development), and provides links to more detailed information where available. It is intended to help share schemes practitioners see the current status of various proposals that impact share schemes practice directly at a glance. This note only includes only those developments that we consider to be core to share schemes law and practice, and the law relating to employment-related securities, and does not include all developments that may impact on share schemes, or that may be of interest to some practitioners. In particular, it does not cover:• Developments specific to financial

services remuneration, including the remuneration code.

• Corporate governance developments, except where these impact share schemes design or practice.

SHARE SCHEMES & INCENTIVES:SUMMARY OF CURRENT AND UPCOMING DEVELOPMENTS

Practical Law Share Schemes & Incentives

INCREASE IN SAYE AND SIP LIMITSOn 6 April 2014, certain participation limits for SAYE option schemes and share incentive plans (SIPs) increased. The changes are: • The savings limit for SAYE option

schemes increased from £250 per month to £500 per month.

• The limit on free shares that can be awarded to a participant under a SIP increased from £3,000 per tax year to £3,600 per tax year.

• The amount an employee can invest in partnership shares under a SIP increased from £1,500 per tax year to £1,800 per tax year.

SELF-CERTIFICATION FOR CSOP, SIP AND SAYEWith effect from 6 Aril 2014, the pre-approval process for SIPs, SAYE option schemes and company share option plans (CSOPs) was abolished and replaced with a system of self-certification. HMRC advisers will be available to assist with the self-certification process but no advance assurance will be available. Instead, companies will be required to give notice of a tax- advantaged CSOP, SIP or SAYE scheme to HMRC, declaring that the requirements of the relevant schedule of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 (ITEPA 2003) are met.

REGISTRATION OF SHARE SCHEMES ONLINEAll share schemes and arrangements, both tax-advantaged and non-tax-advantaged must be registered with HMRC online.In the case of CSOPs, SAYE option schemes and SIPs, companies must give notice of the scheme to HMRC and include a declaration that the scheme meets the requirements of the relevant schedule to ITEPA 2003. Existing schemes must be registered by 6 July 2015. Tax-advantaged share schemes will be registered individually, whilst non tax-advantaged schemes a will registered under one reference number.

ONLINE FILING OF SHARE SCHEMES RETURNS AND ONLINE NOTIFICATION OF EMI OPTION GRANTSAnnual returns must be filed online for the tax year 2014-2015 onwards. EMI options granted on or after 6 April 2014 must be notified online.

OTS REVIEW OF NON-TAX ADVANTAGED (UNAPPROVED) SHARE SCHEMESSome OTS recommendations for simplification of non-tax advantaged share schemes (rollover provisions, corporation tax deduction following a change of control, internationally mobile employees, section 222 of ITEPA 2003 are included in Finance Act 2014. The legislation also includes

amendments to Chapter 3C of Part 7 of ITEPA 2003 that were originally proposed in 2008. The amendments to the legislation governing taxation of internationally mobile employees will come into force on 6 April 2015, rather than 1 September 2014 as originally planned. Some of these provisions take effect on 6 April 2014, some on Royal Assent (17 July 2014) and some in April 2015.The government issued consultations on two further measures (marketable securities and a safe harbour employee shareholding vehicle) on 17 July 2014.The government issued draft legislation to simplify the valuation of employee shares in June 2014.

CORPORATION TAX RELIEF FOR EMPLOYEE SHARE ACQUISITIONSFinance Act 2014 extends the period in which corporation tax (CT) relief is available when a company is taken over by an unlisted company (an area consulted on following the OTS review of non-tax advantaged share. This takes effect from 17 July 2014, the date of Royal Assent to Finance Act 2014. Amendments will also extend CT relief for employee share acquisitions to situations where an employee is employed by a company that is outside the scope of UK CT, but carries out his duties for a host employer that is subject UK CT from 6 April 2015.

NUTTALL REVIEW OF EMPLOYEE OWNERSHIPThe Nuttall review proposed a number of measures to encourage and facilitate employee ownership. One of the recommendations, changes to the buyback regime, is already in force.Finance Act 2014 will, from 1 October 2014, introduce an exemption from income tax (but not NICs) for bonuses up to £3,600 paid to employees in indirectly employee-owned companies, a capital gains tax (CGT) relief (from 6 April 2014) for certain disposals to EBTs and minor amendments to the inheritance tax legislation to take account of the new CGT relief definitions.A call for evidence about abolishing the rule against perpetuities for EBTs was published on 19 November 2013, together with a progress report and guidance on the buyback of shares. The government announced on 16 July 2014 that it was rejecting the proposal to abolish the rule against perpetuities for EBTs.

TAX-ADVANTAGED SHARE SCHEMES CHANGES IN FINANCE ACT 2013Major changes to tax-advantaged share schemes were introduced by Finance Act 2013. To find out more go to: uk.practicallaw.com/practice/uk-share-schemes-incentives

This practice note summarises the key developments relevant to share schemes practice and their current status.

REUTERS/Toby Melville

2120

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COMMON LAW LIBRARY

COMMON LAW LIBRARY

COMMON LAW LIBRARY

NEW TITLE

The survey – conducted for the recent Legal Futures ‘From Click to Client’ conference – indicated that 36% of consumers use the internet compared to 30% who would prefer to rely on friends or relatives.The study of over 2,125 adults was carried out last month by YouGov for online legal information site FindLaw UK, owned by Thomson Reuters.It indicates that the shift away from recommendation to the internet is continuing, although other surveys have continued to find that recommendation remains more popular, even if the gap is narrowing.The FindLaw UK research showed that the proportion of people who researched solicitors before they instructed them was more than three-quarters, or 77%. The rest already knew a solicitor.The survey found that only 1% of consumers relied on a telephone directory, compared to 7% who sought help from the Law Society.FindLaw carried out a similar survey in the USA, though the sample was half the size of the UK’s. This showed that the percentage of potential clients finding lawyers online in the USA was slightly higher, at 38%.However, the percentage of American consumers who already knew a lawyer was lower than here – 18% compared to 23%.Chris Jeffery, head of small law for Thomson Reuters in the UK and Ireland, said the survey emphasised the need for solicitors to pay close attention to their online marketing efforts.

“Most solicitors recognise they can’t rely solely on personal referrals these days for new business, but invariably they don’t have the time or expertise to develop an online marketing strategy,” Mr Jeffery said. “Working with a professional agency is often a more realistic prospect for most solicitors.”

Nick Hilborne, Legal Futures

UK US

Internet 36% 38%

Ask a friend or relative 30% 29%

Already know a solicitor 23% 18%

Law society 7% 10%

Other 3% 1%

Telephone directory 1% 4%

Percent who would use the Internet 36% 38%

Percent who would research solicitors 77% 82%

The total sample size for the survey was 2,125 adults and fieldwork was undertaken between 11th–12th June 2014. The survey was carried out online and figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+). Results are accurate to plus-or-minus five percentage points.

ARTICLE

23

RESULTS

INTERNET OVERTAKES FRIENDS AND FAMILYAS MAIN WAY TO FIND A SOLICITOR Clients are significantly more likely to find a solicitor

through the internet than by asking friends or family, a major study of over 2,000 people has found.

Find out how FindLaw UK can help your law firm...



ARTICLE

LEGAL MARKETING:STRATEGIES FOR ONLINE SUCCESS

WHAT’S AT THE HEART OF YOUR MARKETING?While online marketing is about more than just having a website, your site is the heart of your web presence. Regardless of how they hear about you, most legal prospects will visit your website to collect information before they contact you. Think of your website like a funnel where traffic from all your marketing efforts eventually arrives. An optimised, content-rich site is a key resource for establishing your brand, educating site visitors and converting them to clients. There are three components of a successful, high-impact website: visibility, design and content.

Visibility Can the prospects who need your expertise easily find you search engines? Achieving good online visibility is key to having your choice of the best cases, particularly now that most lawyers have an internet presence of some type. Factors that can enhance your visibility include: • Site optimisation, meaning a website

with a high percentage of keywords and phrases that are unique to your practice area and location, and reflect how your prospects search

• Links from other relevant, law-related websites that direct users to your site. The more quality links you build from trusted, authoritative sites, the more popular and visible your site becomes

Promoting your firm via a range of online marketing channels is another effective way to enhance visibility, since Google results now are as likely to include videos, maps and social-media results as they are traditional web text.

DesignEffective site design engages people and projects a strong, persuasive image that reflects your brand. This can include:• Photos and other visual elements that

reflect your geographic location and key practice areas

• Headlines, section heads and other prominent blocks of copy that stress unique capabilities

• A consistent colour palette and tone that appeal to your target audience

ContentSite content can include everything from lawyer profiles and FAQs to online videos and blogs — all the compelling information that defines your unique value proposition.

It serves two purposes: • To bring search engines to your site.

For that reason it should be clear and concise, optimised for search indexing and updated frequently, so that it’s fresh for search engines and site visitors alike.

• To highlight your areas of expertise in a persuasive way. Practice centre pages, articles you’ve written, a blog devoted to your area of the law … all are great ways to position yourself as an authority that consumers can trust

WHAT ARE THE KEY ONLINE MARKETING TRENDS TO SUPPORT YOUR WEBSITE?Legal directories, video and social media are key areas for lawyers who want to engage more deeply with prospects and convert them at a higher rate. Now that search engines utilise “universal search” — meaning that the search results they serve up include videos, local business listings, Facebook profiles and other forms of information in addition to traditional text websites — these tools also boost your chance of ranking high in searches that matter to your firm. So how does this look in context?

Legal DirectoriesThe growth of the internet and the decline of print directories have led to another trend in legal marketing: more people using online legal directories — which pool lawyer biographies and legal information in a central online location — to research legal issues and find lawyers in a specific geographic location or practice area. Online legal directories receive millions of visitors every year because they provide:• An easy, accessible starting point for

people who need a lawyer and do not use the yellow pages (a growing majority)

• Search tools that help the user find the right lawyer for their specific situation.

Online directories benefit lawyers as well by linking you to prospects that have come online specifically to solve a legal problem. They need answers and, more often than not, a lawyer. The fact that they’re motivated, and can easily search by location or legal need, often means that they’re better-qualified leads. Legal directories are an opportunity to disseminate links to your website, location maps, contact information and other details about your firm — to make a strong impression,

in other words, with people who are likely to be serious about taking the next step.Which online directory is right for your firm? A key factor, of course, is popularity — you want to be seen by as many prospects as possible. One way to analyse traffic statistics is via free, third-party sites. You may also want to focus on directories that offer both lawyer listings and comprehensive legal information for consumers. That’s because about 90 percent of the time, a person will first research their legal need online before deciding to move forward and hire a lawyer. Also, keep in mind that it’s important to cast a wide net. To ensure that search engines and prospects can find you, take advantage of bar association directories, sites like findlaw.co.uk, and other opportunities to generate links and disseminate information about your firm.

Video Online video is a potent brand-building tool for law firms. The power of video to both engage and inform — to promote a business in a warm, personal way while still providing useful information — makes it ideally suited for law firm marketing. Placing videos on your website and other popular sites can

Today most consumers go online to find legal help. So naturally, a firm’s website is now at the heart of most legal marketing strategies. FindLaw UK, a legal solution from Thomson Reuters, shares some key strategies for online success.

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enhance brand awareness, give you high-impact exposure points across the internet and help prospects verify that “this is someone I want to work with.”What style of video drives visibility most effectively? For law firms, clips that feature you and your colleagues describing your practice — the unique strengths that set it apart, what prospects can expect, next steps should they decide to move forward — can go a long way toward minimising the intimidation factor and encouraging viewers to follow up. Additionally, creating a video that addresses a specific legal issue or topic with practical next steps further establishes your expertise in the area. It also provides indexable content for search engines, so that consumers searching for legal help on that particular topic will be able to find your firm.Creating a compelling video that people respond to is important. To ensure it makes an impact, however, distribution is also critical. The goal is to be seen by as many people as possible, on your website but also on legal directories and third-party sites like YouTube. Disseminating video across as many services and viewers as possible attracts more eyes, generates increased traffic to your website and enhances search engine optimisation as well — because video listings are one more way to appear in search results that are relevant to your practice.

Social MediaAn effective social media presence helps educate people about your firm, build relationships and generate word-of-mouth recommendations. A blog, a Twitter feed, your presence on Facebook; they’re all tools that enable you to proactively manage your reputation, build credibility and generate search hits (since search engines like Google “read” Facebook, Twitter and blogs).To extend your firm’s reach on social media, it’s important to build an audience by establishing “friends,” “connections” and “followers.” Connect to the businesses, people and pages relevant to the firm and its practice areas. A few creative ways to build your audience include:

• Connecting with members of your local bar association as well as fellow attendees at legal events and seminars

• Joining online legal professional or practice-area-specific networking groups

• Commenting on other people’s blogs, posts and tweets, to get your name out and show that you are an active part of the online social media community

HOW DO I DRIVE ENGAGEMENT?Here are a few general rules to help you establish your authority across all social media channels:

ListenIt may seem paradoxical, but one of the best communication tools you have at your disposal is the ability to listen to what people

are saying in the social media sphere. Whether you set up a Google alert for a particular topic or simply devote a small amount of time each day to scanning Twitter updates, active listening will inform you about others’ interests and give you insights into new opportunities for your firm.

Invest timeSocial media is a conversation. By setting aside time on a regular basis to post updates and respond to comments, you’ll help

ensure that your information is engaging and that users who want to connect with you don’t feel ignored. Devoting even five minutes per day to social media can generate real value for your law firm. Keep your profiles up to date and ensure they reflect any new accomplishments or changes at your firm.

Don’t be afraid to have funIt’s important to stay professional, but most consumers of social media will react positively if you take the periodic opportunity to lighten the mood and put a relatable, human face on your firm. Step back occasionally and ask yourself a few questions. Are my updates “push” only, meaning that I’m only sharing information and never asking questions or sharing at a human level? Do my updates give the impression that I’m overly serious and lack a sense of humour? Rely on your natural conversational skills to guide you.

Given the nature of the legal industry, you may not experience an overwhelming amount of audience engagement through social media. However, every time a follower does mention your firm or re-tweets a message, you are presented with an opportunity. Treat every mention as an enquiry and every re-tweet as a social referral, and respond to them just as you would to a potential client who leaves you a voicemail. Likewise, just as you would thank a colleague or client for a referral or endorsement, thank the social media users who go out of their way to promote your firm and its online content. The bottom line is that done well, social media can help you build a positive, authoritative presence online — one that drives referrals, generates traffic to your website and brings new clients through the front door.

AND TO CONCLUDE?The internet is a chance to create your own destiny — to define your firm and build the type of practice you want. The website now is at the heart of most legal marketing strategies. The keys to a successful website are good visibility, site design that reinforces your brand and content that engages site visitors. Today, it is important to identify your online opportunities which are ever expanding and taking on innovative new forms. Everything from maps to tweets to blogs appear in Google results and resources like online video and social media are increasingly powerful, emerging ways to connect with new clients.Leveraging those online marketing trends in support of a strong, clearly defined brand is the key to a cost-effective, successful client development strategy that can help your law firm achieve its goals.FindLaw UK from Thomson Reuters offers trusted law firm marketing solutions from website builds, design and content writing, to blogging services and social media, helping to drive the kind of traffic you want.

CONTACTTo request a free audit of your current website today, please contact the FindLaw UK team:

020 7542 [email protected]/law-firm-marketing

‘The internet is a chance to create your owndestiny — to define your firm and build thetype of practice you want.’

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