YouGov survey

YouGov research has revealed the way SMEs really feel about ‘bl**dy lawyers’.

When asked to describe how they feel when working with a lawyer, the phrase ‘over-charged’ came out as the most popular, cited by 32 per cent of the UK SMEs surveyed – highlighting serious customer dissatisfaction.

Richard Burnett, Commercial Director at HM3 Legal, said:

“We decided to commission this research to find out what our potential clients really think about legal services – and the findings are not surprising.

“We know that many SMEs feel under-serviced and dissatisfied by the service they receive when it comes to legal matters – that’s why we’re on a journey at HM3 Legal to do law differently. We don’t hide behind legal jargon and our fees are fixed, meaning there are no hidden surprises. You could say we offer ‘Legal-eez’.”
When asked which fictional legal character they felt best represented the lawyer stereotype, the most popular answer was Atticus Finch, the wise and well-respected father and lawyer in Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’. Of those surveyed this character was chosen the most frequently (6 per cent).

And nearly two-thirds said they would need to be in ‘serious difficulty’ before contacting a legal firm. The findings were also mixed when it came to how businesses felt when working with a lawyer, with 19 per cent feeling ‘confident’ but 21 per cent saying they felt ‘cautious’.

“It’s a concern for us that people in businesses may be so turned off by working with a legal services provider that they wait until they are in serious legal difficulty before consulting a legal expert,” said Richard. “We know that by involving a legal expert early in a potential legal situation, SMEs can usually save time and money resolving the issue.

“That’s why at HM3 Legal we have been working hard to provide a better service to our clients, to reassure them that we are there to help, and not line our pockets. We are focused on offering a transparent service to our clients to allay any fears of using legal services and add real value to their business.

“The results of this survey do confirm why our Six New Standards are so vital,” added Richard. “We want clients to know we’re their partner and offer a service level that you’d expect from a partner. We know what it’s like to run an SME and we want to make their life easier and more successful.  I tell the team, instead of “bl**dy lawyers” we want our clients to think of us as the ‘bl**dy brilliant lawyers.’”

HM3 Legal worked with YouGov to uncover the findings amongst 1,000 SMEs with up to 250 employees, from across the UK.