TALKING BUSINESS


SETTING THE PRECEDENT FOR A BRIGHT FUTURE


One of Northamptonshire’s longest-established solicitors firms is celebrating its 180th anniversary this year. DFA Law partner PAUL CURRIE and new practice manager DANNY ROBERTS reveal how the firm has continued to flourish throughout the decades and its ambitions for the future.


DFA Law has never aspired to be the biggest firm, nor the cheapest. Over the decades, by maintaining a local focus and working hard to recruit and retain top professionals, it has grown large enough to have the resources it needs to provide a highly professional service and true value for money. Today, the full service law firm provides legal and advisory


services to businesses and individuals, locally and nationally, and boasts a very high client retention rate. In recent years the firm has been recruiting younger


employees who can confidently take the business into the future. Its newer appointees include Paul Currie, who


became the firm’s youngest equity partner when he was appointed in 2016 to help lead the next generation at DFA Law. He said: “We are all very proud to be the


solution for any issue they may face. For example, any business will tell you that cashflow is hugely important so our Dispute Resolution Team are able to provide debt recovery letters for as little as £5 plus VAT. This has proved to be a really successful cost effective solution for clients chasing payments. For those occasions where the letters themselves do not result in payment, we offer those clients a 10% discount on our legal fees for contested debts. “We are proud of our history and our connections to the


‘OUR AIM IS


current custodians of DFA Law and our job is to help reinforce the foundations to allow DFA to succeed for generations to come. In an ever-changing society, we realise we need to adapt and change our approach as the work dictates. We’ve invested heavily in IT over the years and none more so than this year when we purchased a new practice management system which will allow us to continue to provide a professional service to our clients whilst still giving value for money.” The firm has also recently appointed associate solicitor


TO BE THE FIRM OF CHOICE FOR ALL CLIENTS IN AND AROUND


town. We support local businesses where we can and firmly believe in local loyalty. “We like to advertise and entertain at key venues, including Northampton Saints RFC, as well as helping local football and gymnastic clubs with sponsorship. We also like to give back to the community and do a bi-annual charity event for causes close to our hearts.” DFA are not just about legal services for


NORTHAMPTON’


businesses and also provide high quality cost effective services to individuals too, including Conveyancing, Family Law, Wills, Tax and


Estate Administration. The property department is headed up by partner Mark Brown, a solicitor with many years’ experience specialising in property development work acting for developers and landowners and the firm are


accredited with The Law Society’s quality standard. Danny added: “Moving house is one of the most stressful


Michael Nadin, an employment law solicitor specialising in both contentious and non-contentious work, and is set to be joined by a newly qualified solicitor in January 2019, further strengthening the Corporate and Commercial team headed up by partner John Keeble. There are further changes on the horizon too with partner


Alan Kiddle set to retire in 2019 after almost 40 years practising matrimonial law, and Danny has taken over as practice manager from Philip Humphrys who retires at the end of 2018, after 20 years with the firm. However, the current team has a clear vision for DFA’s future. Danny explained: “A large number of our staff have been with


us for many years, in some cases all of their careers, which speaks volumes about the firm and its owners. We want our clients to feel the same and trust us to be their choice for any legal issue they have. “Historically, clients would go to the same professional


advisor simply because their parents did, or because it was easy to walk to. Today is a very different market with search engines and online ratings becoming increasingly important, so we have recently contracted fellow Chamber member 123 Internet Group to work with us in increasing our online presence. “We want to continue to grow and our aim is to be the firm of choice for all clients in and around Northampton, providing a


28 inbusiness DECEMBER 2018/JANUARY 2019


things many people do in their life and our team are structured in a way that means you will always get to speak to the person dealing with your file, not just a call handler. Our fees are transparent and fully inclusive with no hidden charges.” Peter Critchell is head of the Private Client Team where the


firm can offer a wide breadth of experience in Wills, Trusts and Probate. Danny said: “It never ceases to amaze me that 60% of UK adults do not have a will. “Whether that is because it is a morbid subject I don’t know


but everybody really should have one. For a relatively low cost it gives peace of mind and is the only way to ensure that your wishes are met regarding your assets, business or even children. Another important thing to note is that a new marriage also revokes any existing wills, so we would urge people to think about completing one. DFA also have a vastly experienced Family team offering a


full range of services so whether your issue is with complex financial arrangements, children matters or divorce you can rest assured that your case will be dealt with by the lawyer best suited to your individual needs. Looking ahead the firm is excited about marking its historic


anniversary and has already planned to hold a charity darts event to kick off the celebrations, with further events to follow over the next 12 months.


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