What is a Litigant in person?

A Litigant in person is an individual, company, or organisation that goes to court to represent themselves rather than being represented by a solicitor or barrister.

The benefits of being a litigant in person

Some individuals believe that they are better at putting across their own case as opposed to allowing a solicitor or barrister to do this. They may also not qualify for public funding and therefore may struggle to pay solicitor/barrister fees. Therefore, representing themselves may be a more cost-effective option.

The risks of being a litigant in person

It is important to ensure your case is heard in the best possible way in order to ensure you have the fairest shot at the best possible outcome. This is difficult to ensure if you are unfamiliar with the court process.

For many litigants in person, it is their first time ever doing anything of the sort. Many people find it extremely daunting due to their lack of experience. For most people their perception of court and the law is what they have seen on television, however, in practice this can be completely different.

Most litigants in person do not have the same level of experience as a solicitor/ barrister who practice law every day, therefore certain procedures may take them a lot longer to complete. There is also a greater risk of errors being made, especially in terms of meeting deadlines. When you instruct someone in the legal professional to act on your behalf you can be assured that they will meet all upcoming deadlines and court requirements and be familiar with the next steps in your case.

Why I should instruct a solicitor to take on my case

In areas such as Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence most firms will offer a No Win No Fee agreement, therefore if your case is taken on you would not be paying any upfront costs. There would just be a small deduction capped at 25% to come off from your damages at the end of your claim if it was successful. With this in mind, it’s actually more cost-effective and less stressful for an individual to instruct a solicitor in such areas of law than to worry about paying expert fees for medical reports and other costs for the case to go to trial.

Choose Browell Smith & Co Solicitors

At Browell Smith & Co our solicitors have a great deal of experience in litigating cases. We have been engaging in litigation from when we first established in 1995 and have achieved extremely successful outcomes for our clients.

We are a leading firm in the North East and are proud to say that we have solicitors within the firm who are dual qualified in areas such as clinical negligence. These professionals have worked as practitioners in hospitals prior to working at the firm and so have inside knowledge and experience. This in turn is extremely beneficial when it comes to litigation techniques and success.

It may be that you have already started your claim as a litigant in person, however, you may have reached a stage where you would like some assistance from one of our experts, if so, contact our expert team today to arrange a free initial telephone consultation or alternatively use our Call Back Request or Live Chat function on our website.