An original article by Jacqueline Emmerson

1. Solicitor Jacqueline Emmerson has got off to a flying start in her new office at Gosforth. She has over
twenty years of experience dealing with Family law, Wills and Probate and Lasting Powers of
Attorney. Jacqueline used to undertake a lot of work under the Legal Aid Scheme however; she has
now set up a private fee paying department at the Gosforth branch of Emmersons Solicitors.
“It has become very frustrating dealing with legal aid. I don’t feel that clients using that scheme can
be dealt with as thoroughly or as fast as they can if they are privately paying. The Legal Aid process is
slow and cumbersome. Legal Aid clients are often waiting weeks for decisions to be made about
their funding.
In our Gosforth office we do not offer legal aid for family law. I therefore feel that I now have time to
spend with clients discussing their cases instead of their funding issues.
I have always enjoyed dealing with complicated matrimonial matters. Often involving businesses or
investment properties. As a business owner myself I have an understanding of business accounts
and can often spot issues that some other solicitors would miss. Recently I spotted an anomaly in a
client’s accounts. When she pointed this out to her accountant it transpired that her accounts had
been badly drafted and needed to be redone. This has lead to her receiving a tax refund.
I also encourage clients to carry out as much work on their case as they are comfortable with. Some
people want me to obtain all of their financial information for them because they are too busy to do
this themselves. Others prepare a lot of their own paperwork in order to keep their costs to a
minimum. I go to a lot of trouble to explain to clients the steps they can take to minimize their costs.
I am always shocked when I hear of some of the bigger firms regularly charging clients over £20,000
for what are in effect fairly routine cases for someone with my level of experience.
I also offer value added advice which comes from the knowledge that I have built up over the years.
As I deal with wills and probate I am able to offer long term estate planning. This becomes ever more
complicated as people marry for the second time especially when they have children from their first

2. relationship. Having dealt with a number of contested probate estates over the years I have an
appreciation of which family members a client should provide for in order to avoid a costly challenge
to their estate. I also keep permanent notes in case anyone does try to challenge a will. Often the
provision of detailed notes to a disappointed beneficiary is enough to prevent a legal challenge in
the first place”.
Jacqueline can be contacted on 0191 2846989 (Newcastle) or 0191 567 6667 (Sunderland)
www.emmersons-solicitors.co.uk