initial consultation with solicitor

[kinwah]

i have an initial consultation with a solicitor tomorrow to try and see the realistic chances of obtaining an SGO for a LO i was a foster carer for. it will be contested by the LA, there is a long and difficult history between the child care team and myself for reason i cant go into on a public board. I've got a list of questions to ask her, but 30 minutes isn't very long so want to get the best from her that i can so i can make decisions myself about whether it is worth progressing with this. I really want this child home, but also need to be realistic that it'll be worth running down my pension fund if i'm successful but not if i'm not!

so anyway, what kinds of questions should i be asking tomorrow, bearing in mind the decision to proceed hasn't yet been made (by me), and i need to know whether or not it is worth trying? and has anyone here actually succeeded to obtain an SGO (or other order) in the face of opposition from the LA?

[Robin D]

Hi Kinwah and welcome.

Many years ago and a RO, rather than an SGO, but yes, the child was a child of a long term foster child of ours, and the LA said we were not grandparents and therefore not 'family' and there was a 'difficult history' with the LA team.

All I can say is that the guardian was brilliant, took a long hard look at the situation giving nothing away, but then recommended to the court that we should get the RO.

It's difficult to help with questions as your situation is unique to you, but I think I would want to get their view on what impact the difficult history might have. To do that I would start with a few pertinent questions about the solicitors experiences in dealing with such cases. If they are just going to roll over to everything the LA demands, they are no use to you, and frankly their opinion is unlikely to be much use either.

If the solicitor is not familiar with the case, you need to make detailed notes of the key and relevant points of the background so you can efficiently appraise her, or you could spend the 30 minutes just telling the story.

Good luck .... Robin

[David Roth]

I suggest that you need to be clear about what you want from the meeting with the solicitor, in order to maker the best use of this very limited time that you have got with them.

You are trying to clarify whether it will be worth your while going to the time and expense of applying for an SGO, which the local authority will oppose. If you want the solicitor to help you with that decision, then I suggest that you spell out at the start of the interview that this is what you want, and then explain the full background story. I understand why you may not want to explain everything here, on a public forum, but to get informed advice from the solicitor you must tell them the whole story, including the reasons that the council will oppose you keeping the child.

Alternatively, you could use the interview to get information about the different legal orders, the court process, etc - although you can get a lot of that from reading our advice sheets, e.g. 18 and 19 tell you all about SGO and RO: http://www.frg.org.uk/need-help-or-advice/advice-sheets

Remember that when you go in, the solicitor doesn't know anything about you, or your circumstances, or your level of legal knowledge. It will be best if you can be clear about what you want, and provide the solicitor with the information they need in order to provide you with the advice that you need.

[kinwah]

thanks for that both of you. more or less what I was thinking, have to write out a brief chronology of events so I can stick to the main issues and not drift off (I procrastinate and distract easily!), have also written out the specific questions I need answers to. have done a lot of reading about the different orders so am fairly sure its SGO that I would go for in this instance. child doesn't have a guardian and has different social workers now to when the difficulties with the child care team arose so am hopeful that there may be a more impartial view now than then, I can also get witness statements that should have been taken months ago by the LA that would have resolved all the difficulties but they wouldn't consider them as they were so sure of their own opinions. I also have a level 2 complaint about what went on that is coming back upheld (so I am told verbally at least), so am hopeful there may be some chance. but will wait on the advice today. am told they are a solid and reliable firm (from a solicitor friend- but different field of expertise). so here goes. thanks

[kinwah]

so, outcome is to wait for outcome of complaint (due in next 2-3 weeks). have been warned could be very expensive (but is do-able for me fortunately), that there is a lot in my favour but will be an uphill battle if the LA does indeed oppose it. long and short is that it all rests really on this complaint response and then I have to make a decision. a lot more was said obviously but that is the place I am in at the minute, more waiting. guessing this will be the story of my life if I do proceed until it is done!

[David Roth]

kinwah - a final word - beware that 'different field of expertise'. This is a very specialised area of law, and in the process of carrying out research recently, we found that even lawyers who are supposed to specialise in this field are often unaware of important legal points that could be crucial to the case. Being a solid firm is no substitute for having the solid legal knowledge.

If you do proceed with the case, I strongly recommend that you consult the Law Society to find a firm who are on their Children's Panel. FRG cannot recommend particular firms to you, but other carers who post here may be able to share their good experiences with particularly knowldegeable and helpful solicitors.

[Robin D]

I can't reiterate enough David's first point. getting the right solicitor is vital.

On David's final point, it would help to know the rough geographical area you are in. Keep it loose so you are less likely to be identified else anyone interested in the case should read this. Hence London, Wales, East or West Midland's, The North East, South West etc.

best wishes ..... Robin

[kinwah]

I've chosen this firm becoz the solicitors I approached there are both on the children panel (the FRG web pages were very helpful, including the law society one!), the lady I spoke today is less experienced than the other but has said she will consult and it may well be better if I do proceed to proceed with him rather than her. she has done contested sgo's but the other chap (partner in the firm) has done a lot more. she did say she had to go check a couple of points in law, relating to whether or not I need to ask for leave to apply or can write direct to the LA to announce my intention to apply. i'm in a fairly unique position which makes things more complex and less able to predict outcomes for. but still have some hope for a couple more weeks at least. but she did say there is a lot in my favour, but the biggest challenge will be the LA opposition, if indeed that is the stance they still hold, hard to tell without asking and raising suspicions! the solicitors will also speak to a barrister on my behalf once my complaint is back and they've had time to consider that and the evidence I submitted for it, for a realistic appraisal of the situation and likely outcome.
so thanks for the concerns, I had considered them, always good to know i'm on the right tracks.

[Robin D]

That all sounds very good Kinwah. I hadn't appreciated you'd done so much homework. I'm sure David and the team at FRG will be pleased that the site was so helpful. I know they try very hard to get it right.

I hope all goes well. Do keep us posted.

Best wishes ...... Robin

[kinwah]

the FRG website has been extremely helpful and whether or not i do proceed i'm very grateful for the information i found that has enabled me to at least look into the possibility of having this little one return to my care. the 'advice' (and i use the term loosely!) from the LA has been very flawed, inaccurate and i believe, aimed purely at putting me off, and had succeeded for some time. i'll be in touch no doubt in the nearish future with more questions!