Home Information Packs (again!)

I know I keep banging on about this, but it is my view that a combination of inadequate consultation by government, vested interests in the property industry trying to stifle change and competition on price rather than value resulted in a huge missed opportunity. Home Information Packs, properly prepared, can be of great benefit in streamlining conveyancing, to the benefit of all concerned: buyers, sellers, agents, solicitors.

However, the crucial term is "properly prepared" - HIPs that take no account of the individual property and its idiosyncracies are almost useless - basically a waste of paper. On the other hand, a properly prepared and comprehensive HIP enables the buyer's solicitor to report on a very large part of the transaction at a very early stage, highlighting potential problems and outlining the scope of further investigations that might be needed

With a good HIP, we are usually waiting only for the draft contract and full property information form (both of which could, in my view, be included in the HIP in the same way as for an auction) or the mortgage offer (or both!) before a buyer client can exchange contracts

HIPs have the potential to do almost everything the government claimed for them, but they need to be properly prepared, not prepared on the basis of the cheapest that complies with the regulations.

I have revisited this subject because Rob Hailstone of HIPAG (Home Information Pack Action Group) fame is forming The Bold Group to campaign for "proper HIPs", and so I have been stirred to post again

Will the Tories scrap HIPs?

Comment from Rob Hailstone of HIPAG -

"Grant Shapps has recently reiterated his intention to "scrap" Hips. What he hasn't said publicly, is whether he will amend or replace them. However, the Conservatives have made it clear that they want to improve the home buying and selling process. It is therefore, highly unlikely that Mr Shapps will allow us to go back to the home buying and selling process, as it was, pre Hips.

"When the Conseravatives held their own home buying and selling review last year it was made clear to them, by Owen Inskip and Kirstie Allsopp, that whatever format the Hip eventually takes, providing 'information up front' will be essential. As an ex conveyancer I believe we should build on the developments made over the last few years so that creating a property legal pack, that is as 'exchange ready' as possible, should become standard practice.

"It has to be accepted that the political situation is not as clear as it was a while ago, the Conservatives winning with a safe majority is not a forgone conclusion. Mr Shapps might not even become Housing Minister and scrapping Hips will probably be way down the Conservatives 'to do' list, after Afghanistan, the economy, health, education etc. Some pundits now forecast a March election but it would appear that the safe money is still on an election in May.

"Whatever the outcome politically, I believe that Hips will either be with us for a while or any worthwhile replacement pack will still require the involvement of a good Hip provider and a local solicitor/conveyancer."

For what it is worth, I agree completely!

Choosing a lawyer

When choosing a lawyer to act for you, don't just choose on price. Don't just choose on quality, either - most people can't afford that! Choose on value for money at the quality and service level you want and are prepared to pay for

What's in a Twitter name?

When I started on Twitter, as I explained here, it was to keep in touch with my children while they were abroad. However, I had in mind that it would also be a useful way to promote this blog, so I chose a Twitter name that tied in with this blog’s name – as to the “rationale” behind the blog’s name, see here . “Abaddon” was already taken as a Twitter name so, as Abaddon was the angel of the bottomless pit, I chose "Abaddons Pit" - or, to avoid a space, “Abaddonspit” - as my Twitter name.

This was all fine and good, and provided an ice-breaking conversation topic at the first Tweetups at the Hoodeners Horse in Great Chart – wonderful food, beer and atmosphere, by the way. Two of the Twitterers I met there and followed decided to change their Twitter names to their real names: @romanythresher from @DirectAssist and @AngusWillson from @Pannage. This prompted me to do the same – after all, Twitter is a conversation, and using a false name in a conversation is a bit creepy. Also, it is well known that anonymity in Internet discussion forums breed bad behaviour. Further, more and more commentators are recommending use of real names by Twitterers – eg: Scott Williams.

So, I decided to change my Twitter name. I found out how to do it – a slightly unnecessarily complicated way, but it worked; this is an easier way - but found that @JustinNelson and @Justin_Nelson had already been taken, but @_JustinNelson had not, so I changed the name from @Abaddonspit to @_JustinNelson (after a brief trial with @JustinPHNelson, which was less memorable, I feel, than @_JustinNelson.

All seemed fine on Twitter itself and using TweetDeck – “Job done!” I thought. I then found that I was unable to get photos sent via Twitpic to appear in my timeline. Suspecting that the leading underscore was the problem (no idea why, just a hunch), I changed my name back to @JustinPHNelson – and found myself locked out of the account. Too many name changes? Twitter hated the “PH” bit, too? I have no idea – Twitter have treated my help requests as feature requests (ie: binned them) or as instantly resolved and closed (ie: binned them), so I guess I will never know.

This happened last Sunday (less than a week ago as I type this), and the aghast, sinking feeling I had when I realised that I was Twitless is fresh in my memory. Knowing that Twitter would be at least 36 hours away from returning to work, I gave up my futile attempts to re-access my account and resigned myself to a period of Twitlessness.

Horrifyingly, by the Wednesday (after only four days’ inability to Tweet or – worse – follow Twitterers) I decided to give up on the hope of re-accessing my original Twitter account. After checking that @JustinNelson_ could successfully send Twitpics, and launched that account on an unsuspecting world, and started re-building my follows and followers. I started with the local Twitterers – helped by the very useful Twitvite list for the extremely well-attended Tweetup at the Hoodeners Horse yesterday. Today, my aim is to re-connect to the follows I had further afield.

One mistake I will not repeat from my very first foray into Twitter: I will not automatically DM a standard “welcome” message to each new follower I get, but will send a custom message instead. The minimal extra effort involved has to be worth it if I am to build a network of friends, rather than mere connections in the ether.

The only remaining problem that I have is that my mobile phone number is still associated with my old Twitter account, so until that account is unlocked or deleted I cannot use SMS messages for Twitter - a relatively small difficulty that I hope will eventually be overcome - Can you hear me, Twitter?

Do banks seek revenge?

last year, Barclays would not increase my overdraft racility to £60,000 - to get me through the credit crunch - pending the maturing of a life policy for that amount. HSBC were happy to offer that arrangemejt, so I switched. It was a matter of commercial life or death, as Barclays well knew.

Anyway, nine months after the switch and I am ready finally to close the Barclays accounts - any unpresented cheques have been replaced with cheques drawn on the new accounts.

Because it is forbidden to mix clients' money with my own, I asked Barclays to send me two cheques: one for the balance on my clients account with them to pay into my new clients account, and one for the balance on my office account ...

Instead, Barclays transferred the clients' money into my office account and sent me a single cheque. It ia as though they are trying to get me struct off!

Anyway: my annual audit starts tomorrow, so I will make a clean breast of it to the auditor and take what comes. Wish me luck!

What's in a (Twitter) name?

I was going to blog about why I have changed my Twitter name recently, but as I seem to have broken Twitter by changing too much, I had better wait until it is fixed!

I will re-visit this subject soon, I hope!

Meanwhile, I seem to have locked myself out of receiving Tweets, so I will see if I can at least send one to explain my lack of conversation

Why use Twitter?

Speaking only for myself: I started using Twitter as an easy way for my children to keep me reassured as to their safety while they were abroad - Emily in Colorado at university and Alex in Australia and Thailand on a gap break

It grew from that to an easy way to make contact with local Twitts and to stay in touch with them (especially through the Tweet-ups) - also as a way of picking up snippets from journalists, comedians, etc, that I wanted to follow.

The beauty of Twitter is its -

• freedom: each user chooses who to follow: they are not restricted to following Twitts who follow them, and are not forced to follow their own followers, either
• flexibility: you can use Twitter on the Web, by SMS, through email, etc
• simplicity: the 140-character limit could hardly be easier!
• fun: try it and see!
  

Engineers or insurers?

One way of comparing lawyers is to classify them as "engineers" or as "insurers": engineers try to set up a contract, transaction, etc, that suits the agreed requirements of the client; insurers tend to use an established precedent that is designed to cover all possible circumstances, avoiding the risk of omitting something not currently foreseen but possibly required in future.

I tend to be an "engineer": I try to look after my clients as if they are close friends or family members:
• I give punchy, practical, jargon-free and actionable help
• I aim to keep clients' legal difficulties and expenses to a minimum
• I use my knowledge to benefit my clients

The "insurer" type instead (in my view) tells the client "not to worry about the law", and uses a "blockbuster" precedent intended to smother the problem rather than engineer a solution.

The engineering style is, in my view, better for the client and more enjoyable (though also more testing and, perhaps, risky) for the lawyer - I suppose its a case of quality -v- safety

This distinction is particularly clear in the context of -

(a) leases: in my view, as long as it covers the client's requirements, less is more: a 10-page lease that the parties can understand is (in my view) better than a 50 page lease (covering everything including lift maintenance in a ground floor lock-up shop) that the clients treat as an un-readable brick

(b) enquiries before contract on leases and property purchases: using wide-ranging standard enquiries before contract sometimes means more salient points are overlooked

(As an aside, the distinction between engineer lawyers and insurer lawyers brings to mind Kingsley Amis's classification of two distinct groups in debates over the use of language: berks and wankers. "Berks are careless, coarse, crass, gross and of what anybody would agree is a lower social class than one's own; wankers are prissy, fussy, priggish, prim and of what they would probably misrepresent as a higher social class than one's own" - Not one to hold back, old Kingsley!)

Making a rod for your own back

Pursuing a service standard of "Excellent" is definitely a case of making a rod for your own back

In my business, I strive for a truly excellent standard of service and, inevitably, I do not always achieve it. When I fail, I feel mortified, but (illogically) I also slightly resent it when clients point out how I have failed to achieve the standard I try to set - I feel unfairly treated, in that I know that even my slightly-less-than-excellent standard is better than most solicitors ever achieve, so why am I being criticised for being "better-than-most"?

The answer is that I am not: I am, quite properly, being criticised for not achieving the "best", as that is the standard I have chosen to set: I am not average - I aim to be the best; if I miss that target, I have failed, even if I am still better-than-most.

I today had a glimpse into how it feels from the other side: from the viewpoint of the customer/client. I took my family (this time, with mother-in-law as well) again to the Hoodeners Horse at Great Chart, Ashford, Kent. On the basis of my earlier visits, I promised m-in-law "the best chips ever", etc. For completely understandable reasons relating to seasonal potato varieties, different cooking requirements, etc, the chips today were perfectly good but just not quite truly excellent. As a result, I was disappointed, but it would not be fair to criticise: dealing with the real world (eg: proper potatoes) can never be a uniform experience - and, if it could be, it would not be such a thrill to discover true excellence.

I will keep going back, and keep trying the chips, but will not expect always to have excellent chips - I will be very happy on the occasions when I do.

In a service industry like mine, it should be different: we do not depend so heavily on the quality or type of a raw ingredient that is laregely outside our control; we depend instead on rigorous processes and motivated and well-trained staff. On that basis, we should be able to produce "an excellent chip" every time. In the catering industry, they can do their best, but cannot guarantee results

Andy: Sorry if I appeared to be complaining. I was so impressed by the "world-famous Hoodeners Horse chips" on the first few occasions, that it blinded me to the practical impossibility of always repeating that experience. I will instead be grateful for 99% success rate, and tolerant of the 1% "nearly-but-not-quite-excellent" times - but in my own business, I am still aiming for 100% excellence, as everything should be within my control!!

As always, the beer - St Austell Tribute, for me - and service - thank you, Sally - at the Hoodeners Horse were excellent: everyone came away happy and well-fed and watered

Right to (car) Repair Choice campaign

Keith Robles, a member of Wealden Business Group gave a presentation today at the group's breakfast networking meeting. Keith buys and sells used cars, but also is involved with a local independent garage on the servicing and repairs side (as well as sales). His presentation was about the "Right to Repair Choice" campaign

Very briefly, at present the European Union obliges motor manufacturers to provide technical and other information about their cars, so that independent garages can access that information to enable them to service and repair those cars.

The manufacturers have lobbied the EU to remove that obligation to disclose information, on the basis that cars are becoming too sophisticated to be capable of proper servicing and repair except at the manufacturers' main dealerships, which can afford the progressively more expensive diagnostic equipment that is required.

That lobbying is on the brink of being successful, so the independent garages are fighting back, through this campaign, pointing out that, if the manufacturers can withhold technical information, car owners will indeed be forced to use the main dealers, resulting in -

• increased charges for services and repairs
• longer distances to travel to get a car serviced
• the destruction of the independent sector
• car owners delaying services to save money and travel, resulting in poorly serviced cars being more common

There are arguments on both sides, but what is especially noticeable is that governmental dogma that "competition is always good in all circumstances" is again being brushed aside when it suits big business

Tenterden 'Pudding Club'

Just finished catching up on calls etc after an enjoyable meeting of the Tenterden Pudding Club

This is an informal monthly lunchtime networking meeting for Tenterden business people

If you are in business in the Tenterden area and would like to join us, send me an email at jn@justinnelson.co.uk

The Hoodeners Horse, Great Chart, Ashford, Kent UK

I have to post my thoughts on this truly excellent pub

I have visited it twice for Tweetups, and took my family today for lunch. On every occasion, I have been impressed by the warm welcome (especially from Andy Setterfield, the owner, but also from all his staff), the real ale (and cider), the efficiency and the FOOOOOD!

Today, I mainly drank the St Austell Tribute; after a few pints of that, I notice the London Pride pump - London Pride is one of my favourite real ales, but it paled by comparison to the Tribute: it took most of a pint to dissipate the lovely Tribute taste but, when I had, the LP was brilliant - Black Cat was also available, but one can have too much of a good thing!

The four of us had lunch. The pub has a Mexican food theme (though that is not the only food it serves). My wife had chicken tacos, my daughter chose chicken fajitas (each with a side order of chips) while my son and I both had Mexican burgers (which came with chips). I cannot speak too highly of the Mexican burgers - really, really nice. It is easy to beat my small appetite, but even my son could not finish completely. However, quantity is not the issue here - it is the quality that really counts, and that is top notch. The tacos and the fajitas were as good - all of us ended up stuffed and very satisfied indeed.

It is the chips that are the real story, however: I don't think I have ever tasted better - and I mean that sincerely, folks. All four of us agreed that they are the best chips going - if you only have the real ale and chips, it will make your visit worthwhile

The barmaid was lovely - not a robot or surly as in so many other venues, but a real human being who was a peasure to deal with. All-in-all, a very happy Saturday lunchtime and well worth repeating - if only there was a similar pub in Tenterden ... !

Government trickery

Typical, isn't it? My daughter is at university. In applying for grants and loans last year, my relevant income was for the financial year 2007-08, so no grant for her.

This year, after the credit crunch and while enduring its consequences (ie: a reasonable profit becomes a small loss), my relevant income is still for for the financial year 2007-08, so still no grant for her.

What's the betting (assuming the economy recovers) that the relevant financial year next year will be the year ending in 2010, which should be vastly improved from the year just ended?

Talk about making up the rules as you go along!

(Whinge over!)

Plenty of stick - no carrot

Apparently, "The Legal Services Board could punish non-compliant regulators with multi-million-pound fines " - see http://tinyurl.com/nwsa6a

And how will the regulators pay those fines? By charging them out to those they regulate

The net result will be (a) over-cautious regulation resulting in a massive increase in red tape for lawyers to comply with (b) an over-cautious approach by lawyers, resulting in even slower and more expensive legal services and (c) the risk of swingeing increases in practicising certificate fees, to pay for the regulators' own mistakes and the desire for the LSB to show it has "teeth"

None of this will help the user of legal services one jot, but if it results in complete meltdown perhaps we can start again - a post-Apocalyptic future

Mea culpa

Over a month since my last blog post - I've been too busy Tweeting instead. Must exercise more discipline and start thinking of things to say in more than 140 characters!

Suits

I try to avoid wearing a business suit for work - I am more comfortable in sports jacket and trousers, and I think clients and potential clients are more comfortable not dealing with "a suit"

Last week, however, I had to wear a suit on three of the five weeekdays - once for a funeral, once for a meeting at another solicitor's office and once to attend an auction on behalf of a client.

On each occasion, there was no doubt that a suit was appropriate, but it set me to wondering why: where is the distinction between the occasions when it is appropriate to dress down and when it is not? I don't think it is a case of wearing a suit on outside appointments and dressing down when on home territory - though that is a part of the reasoning, I think

The funeral, I think, is obvious - it is a mark of respect and, to an extent, evidence of solemnity

The other occasions are similar - demonstrating, to the client as much as to anyone, that I was treating his business with respect and seriously. As I was representing the client on each occasion, respect and seriousness were both appropriate

This is not to say that, when I am in my own office, dressing down is an indication of a lack of respect or seriousness, but I suppose it is true that, on my own territory, I can set the rules more (I would not dream of trying to do so on "foreign" territory), and I choose to have a deliberately less formal or stuffy attitude - I think it helps remove some of the barriers between solicitor and client and enables the client to accept that we are on the same team.

Otherwise, I feel there is a real danger of a client treating his or her own solicitor as part of the problem - another "suit" - rather than as a friendly expert who is on their side

"Approachability" is an important quality for most professionals, and one I try to display

"Risk" by Dan Gardner

A good analysis of how we, as a society, perceive risk, and how we should perceive it and deal with it. We worry amount relatively small risks, but become blase about much bigger ones, due to various biases - the Von Rorkoff effect, optimism bias, hindsight bias, etc - and errors of logic.

Our initial reaction to a given situation is based on gut instinct - our hard-wiring; if (and it is a big "if") our logical mind then kicks in to modify our reaction, it is normally only partially successful, with the result that most reactions are gut-based rather than logic-based

A genuinely absorbing read - I read it at one sitting - and full of ideas to mull over

Is Twitter useless?

According to Larry Bodine, who should know whereof he speaks, Twitter is "not effective for law firm marketing" and in fact can do positive harm

While his analysis seems sound, I don't use Twitter for marketing, but for fun and, as I read his article, it emphasised how I do not use Twitter as is apparently expected:

1: I do not seek to follow a large number of people - I started using Twitter as a way of keeping in touch with my children while they were abroad, and have added people that I find interesting for one reason or another. I see no point in following people who do not have similar interests, etc, unless they are inherently interesting

2: I do not seek a large number of followers: I'm not trying to change the world or people's opinions - that said, I do use Twitter to "announce" new blog posts, such as this one, so maybe I'm not being entirely honest with myself!

3: I tend to follow local people, rather than far-flung Tweeters - I enjoy collecting (and distributing) local information - or people I know of in another context. It seems that many of those who follow me (for a while) have no particular reason to, but perhaps they are just trying me out (and finding me wanting, no doubt!)

It seems that Twitter has a "miserable" retention rate of 40% - for a networking tool that is tightly limited by its very nature, I'd say that's a pretty good retention rate. And, as Bodine himself admits, Twitter "is just a blip on the radar right now" - it may have staying power or it may not, but if it does I hope it will be as a social tool, not as a marketing one

Giving up on the property dream

According to the Observer's Business swction, 'Young people [are] giving up on the property dream': only a third of 18-24-year-olds think owning a home is right for them'

Good! Home owning has become such a no-brainer that it has encouraged the sharks and the ahysters to predate on the house buying process, while treating the house renting service as unworthy of attention. Perhaps bothe will get their proper share of attention now, with better results for society as a whole

The Apprentice - spoofed

#Apprentice: See the video (sound needed - 6 minutes long) at http://preview.tinyurl.com/ob364k - it's brilliant!

Blacksmiths Inn, Ninfield

Just back from the Blacksmiths Inn, Ninfield, for its re-opening, following the extensive refurbishment carried out by Peter and Denise Slinger.

They have a good range of real ale: Timothy Taylor, Adnams Broadside, the truly ecellent Northiam IPA and the ubiquitous (but always good) Harveys Best Bitter.

Food is a strong point, too: good quality pub grub, locally sourced.

The Slingers deserve to do well

The Chicago Way by Michael Harvey

Thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended, this is Harvey's debut and is (IMHO) excellent

Written in a Raymond Chandler style, it is fast-paced with a good plot and a non-cheating twist towards the end

I am looking forward to more from Harvey, and thoroughly recommend him as a writer of detective/mystery books

What do YOU think?

"Broken Skin" by Stuart Macbride

Slightly slowly, I have now finished this. Though I felt I was getting into it at ab out the halfway/two-thirds point, it seemed to go slightly off the boil

I enjoyed the way the main character (a DS) was drawn - very believable, but "supportable". was less happy withe the rater cartoon-like DIs who were his bosses

I guess the characters are being built up into a set of players that is TV-marketable, but it's a shame that the individual book suffers as a result

"Mustn't Grumble" by Joe Bennett

Invited to travel round England and write about it (and the English), Bennett decided to use H V Morton's "In Search of England" as a sort of route map [note to self: must find a copy of Morton's book]

Bennett has tried (though not very hard) to identify "Englishness". In the end, he thinks it is encapsulated in the BBC's "Antiques Roadshow" - everyone knws the part they are expected to play and true emotions are masked by politeness and "appropriate" behaviour.

I'm not sure that's entirely true or sufficient, but the book is an enjoable, easy read, taking the reader to different parts of the country and sampling a few pubs at each stopping-off point - more for the conversation than for the beer

Jack Smithies

Just finished reading 'Mustn't grumble' by Joe Bennett. Towards the end (page 251 to be exact), a name from my past jumps out at me when the author refers to "Jack Smithies, the best English teacher of all time".

"Mad" Jack Smithies taught at Brighton Hove and Sussex Grammer School, where I spent my Sixth Form years. He was, indeed, a brilliant and inspiring English teacher - he could bring Shakespeare to life in a quite wonderful way

Joe Bennett, a few pages later in the book, also refers to the characteristic clock at the school: there was a sort of 'master clock' in the main hall, and each classroom had a 'subsidiary clock', connected to the master one by a series of rods and links. All the clocks were therefore in sync, and their minute hands clicked round, minute-by-minute, in unison; really quite spooky, when you think about it!

A breathing space

The property crash is (to put it mildly) not nice for those linked to the property market|; those who need to sell, estate agents, solicitors and other conveyancers, removal firms, carpet suppliers, etc

However, it has stopped big business hijacking the process: a lot of would-be big players in the HIP provision market have been put off (or gone bust) as a result of the recession

THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY: an opportunity for those who want to provide a good house-moving experience to establish themselves as the people to use, rather than allowing the rip-off merchants to move in as soon as the market picks up and hoover up the market for their own purely mercenary reasons

At Nelsons Property Lawyers, we plan to host a seminar of local, independent and good providers of house moving services (solicitors/conveyancers, estate agents, HIP providers, domestic energy assessors, etc) to formulate an attractive offering for buyers and sellers and create a user-friendly moving environment

(Sorry - it's late and I',m getting into anorak mode, but I do believe we can do this well and that this will benefit the clients - consumers)

Comments, please - and watch this space!

Networking

As secretary of the Wealden Business Group (http://wbg.me) I have been finalising and uploading the minutes of our committee meeting last week. As part of the discussion was on the subject of other local networking groups and how WBG differs, I thought I'd try to find out a little abvout the competition.

Not as easy as it should be! Some seem to have almost impenetrable websites that send you round in circles. Others seem more keen to get you to join and pay a subscription than to yield up details of their members. However, my perseverance has been rewarded.

It seems that WBG is somewhere in the middle in terms of membership: 22 current members, compared with other groups with 9 and 13, and others with 22 also and 25. There is one with 44 that seems to be doing very well - and is the No 1 "chapter" in its organisation worldwide!

Where WBG "wins", however, is not in the numbers game but in its possibly unique combination of prtofessionalism and friendliness - attributes that we intend to build on into the future!

Yesterday's Tweets

For those confused by yesterday's Tweets, this is what happened:

1. Originally, Anne and I were to sail from Rye to Eastbourne with another couple to attend the Round Table and Ladies Circle National Conferences there - Jane being a former National Chairman of Ladies Circle

2. The plan was that we would sail to Eastbourne on Friday, have a meal and sleep on the boat, then go to the conferences (and the pubs!). We would have an evening meal and sleep on the boat on Saturday, then sail back on Sunday

3. The worsening weather destroyed that plan - sailing a 30-foot boat along the Channel in force 7 or 8 winds was not going to be joyful, so we cancelled the sailing trip.

4. Having made arrangements at work (and cancelled a game of golf), Anne and I were at a loose end. Rather than waste the day, we decided to go for lunch at the Coastguard at St Margaret's Bay

5. This is where the Tweets went wrong, as the venue was out of my mobile phone coverage, so Tweets by SMS were not going in the order I sent them. As a result, a series of Tweets got out of series, and became garbled. But the beer was good, especially the Gadds' No 5 ;-)

Anyway, it's a lovely day today, so Anne and I are off in search of another pub lunch!

Why don't HIPs include contracts?

If HIPs (Home Information Packs) were really meant to provide a comprehensive package of pre-contract documents to speed up the conveyancing process, why do they not include a draft contract?

It is not because of any technical difficulty: the draft contract can be prepared at the same time as a property information form (see my earlier post). The details of the buyer and the price would need to be left blank until a buyer made an acceptable offer, but the buyer's details are normally provided by his or her conveyancer anyway, not included in the draft contract from the outset.

It could be argued that having a draft contract in the HIP, availablke to any interested party, means that multiple draft contracts have been issued, in which case all interested parties have to be informed. However, that is easily dealt with by amending the relevant practice rule, so that it does not apply where the draft contract is included in a HIP

The only reason that I can think of not to require a draft contract in a HIP is that even this government recognises that a contract is a legal document, which most sellers will want prepared by a lawyer, rather than by a HIP-provider, and the government would rather avoid involving lawyers for as long as possible.

With the new requirement for a HIP to include a Property Information Questionnaire (coupled with the selling agent's liability under the Property Misdescription act if the agent helps complete a PIQ that turns out to be inaccurate), it is likely that seller's lawyers will be involved in the preparation of the HIP more than they have been.

If so, I think this is a good thing: ideally, the seller's lawyer will review (or, indeed, prepare) the whole HIP, ensuring that it is accurate and comprehensive. Bedtter still if they can also ensure that a full property information form is completed, and best of all if they also include a draft contract.

That would make HIPs genuinely comprehensive and useful. OK, it means a lot of up-front work, but many lawyers will do that on a contingency basis - and it is no different to having to follow a pre-action protocol in issuing court proceedings, where the work is heavily front-loaded in the interests of a more efficient overall process

Heretical thought - HIPs do help (sometimes)

Despite the many faults of Home Information Packs and the way they were implemented, they do (on the whole) help to speed up the conveyancing process. Usually, the legal pre-contract work is now completed well before the buyer's mortgage offer is issued - it used often not to be so.

The slowest item in the legal aspects is now the provision of up-to-date property information by the seller. This is presumably why the curent rules now require a "Property Information Questionnaire" to be included in the HIP. However, as the PIQ is no substitute (in either scope or effect) for full property information, its inclusion hinders rather than helps the process.

If the government could bear to swallow its pride for a bit, it should invite the Law Society to convene a panel of experienced conveyancers to come up with a comprehensive but well-designed property information form - as was done for the Law Society's National Conveyancing Protocol, its Formulae for exchange of contracts by telephone, its Code for completion by post, etc. The Law Society has a good track record for this sort of thing, and it is crazy for civil servants to design forms and procedures they know relatively little about.

Any standard form is, of course, going to need supplementing in some cases, but a well-designed form can be used to cover all appropriate information for the vast majority of cases - the Property Details Questionnaire produced by HIPAG - the Home Information Pack Action Group - is a very good example of a comprehensive form; it could be improved, but it is very close to ideal.

If such a property information form were completed by a seller with his or her conveyancer's help, and in a genuine attempt to provide all relevant information in an accessible way, it could be included in a HIP at the outset (or, better, added during the marketing of the property), to make the HIP genuinely comprehensive - apart from a contract (see next post)

"The anonymous uniform of the professionally uninterested"

That phrase caught my eye when I read it during the past week. I think it was in reference to (for example) bank employees in uniform who don't really care about customers, only about achieving their targets

Yet I think it applies more to professionals who assume that a suit is required uniform - without necessarily looking at it from their clients' point of view

For myself, I rarely wear a suit if I am staying in the office - clients tell me they prefer to see me in a sports jacket and trousers, even in shirtsleeves, and that they find dealing with suited professionals very daunting - it is another barrier to overcome

I do wear a suit (normally) if going out on appointments - something to do with being a visitor and on my best behaviour, as opposed to being "at home" and welcoming - though I have not tried to work out the psychology

Does it matter?

Police over-reaction

At last! Someone is writing about the Nottighamshire protest arrests: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/henryporter/2009/apr/14/protest-power-station-arrest

If you are buying - get a survey

If you are buying a property, PLEASE get a survey. For a few hundred pounds, you can save yourself tens of thousands of pounds.

First, if the survey reveals defects, you can re-negotiate the price to reflect these

Second, if the survey does not reveal defects as such, it will include useful information, and at the very least will reassure you that there are no major problems

I used to think that the only cases where I would not strongly advise a buyer to get a survey was in the case of a newly-built house with a new home warranty - even then, getting a surveyor to prpare a properly-detailed snagging list is, in my view, well worth while. That was until the time that a client decided that, despite the new homes warranty, she would also have a survey. The surveyor spotted that the external wall on one side of the property was not tied in properly - the brick outer skin was not tied to the frame - and could collapse at any time. Though this would (presumably) have been covered by the NHBC Buildmark cover, it was far better to get the problem remedied before committing to the purchase and having to get the problem remedied afterwards.

So, I now recommend surveys in all cases

In addition, buyer should get electrical wiring, gas appliances, central heating systems, etc, all checked by appropriate specialists - remedying problems or renegotiating the price to reflect problems, is soooo much easier before exchanging contracts!

You know it makes sense - get a survey

HIPs "upgraded" from 6 April

Now that HIPs must include a PIQ, there is another hurdle to leap before marketing a property, but we at Nelsons Property Lawyers think we can help

There are different versions of the PIQ for existing homes and for new homes - a new home for these purposes is a home that is being designed or constructed or which has never been occupied. – and different versions for freehold and for leasehold properties.

The forms produced by the government do not have to be used; so long as the same information is collected. This gives those who want to prepare a more comprehensive HIP an opportunity to make the PIQ more useful than the minimal form would be, but the current trend with HIPs is to do as little as possible to comply with the legal requirements, rather than as much as possible to expedite the sale process, so I will not expect anyone to try very hard to improve on the “basic” PIQ.

It should take most sellers less than ten minutes to complete the basic PIQ for freehold properties, but completing even the basic PIQ for leasehold property will be a longer, more daunting process.

The PIQ says, “The Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 (PMA) does not apply where the form has been completed solely by the seller.” There is, therefore, a clear implication that an agent who helps a seller complete the PIQ could be liable for property misdescription if the PIQ contains errors. Accordingly, it would be best for the estate agent to get the seller to complete the PIQ alone, or to get the HIP provider to deal with it or to enlist the assistance of a local solicitor or conveyancer.

Most sellers will, after some initial grumblings, complete the freehold part of the PIQ without too much resistance. However, the leasehold part is another matter completely and I anticipate that many sellers may feel the need to speak to a solicitor or conveyancer - ideally, the solicitor or conveyancer who acted when they bought the property.

Where they cannot (or will not) do that, we will be happy to help. We will spend up to half an hour at our office free of charge, helping a local seller complete the PIQ and guiding them on where they can find any information they are lacking. If more than half an hour is involved, we reserve the right to make a charge (probably £50), but would normally waive this - our aim is to build relationships with local agents and prospective clients, and to help streamline the conveyancing process, rather than to make a profit out of this quasi-legal work.

If you want help in completing the PIQ, please contact Sam (Samantha Robb) or Anne (Anne Browne) at Nelsons Property Lawyers in Tenterden: telephone 01580 767100

Special offer for local first-time buyers

To help local people stay local, we have introduced a very special, not-to-be-missed, fixed fee offer for local first-time buyers of property - see our leaflet for details

Bankers suffer - but (litigation) lawyers will thrive

http://www.euromoney.com/Article/2175805/Category/204/ChannelPage/0/Abigail-Hofman-No-win-situation.html

What I try to do

I try to look after my clients as close friends or family members: giving punchy, practical, jargon-free and actionable help; keeping their legal difficulties and expenses to a minimum; using my knowledge to benefit them.

from The Moonstone ...

"it [is] always desirable for the sake of peace and quietness to be on the lawyer's side"
Hee! Hee!

Wealden Business Group

I am a member of the Wealden Business Group (WBG): a breakfast networking meeting for business people in the Weald of Kent and Sussex. We meet on Wednesdays at the Little Silver Country Hotel, Ashford Road, St Michaels, Tenterden - further information at http://www.wgb.me

Having previously been chairman and secretary and filled other committee posts, I felt I had done my bit for the group; indeed, when I gave up being secretary a couple of years ago, I promised my wife not to take on another job - at that AGM at least

So I was rather surprised to find myself volunteering to become secretary again at the AGM on 1 April (last Wednesday) - I almost felt I was playing an April Fool's joke on myself!

I didn't tell my wife until Thursday evening, 36 hours later - I tell myself that this was because we had both been busy during the days and she had been away overnight, but I suspect it was also because I thought she'd thump me!

However, it is quite good to be fully involved again - I bet I won't feel the same this time next year!

Donating blood

I have been donating blood for 25 years now - two or three times a year, as they normally only take a donation at least 16 weeks after the previous one.

The National Blood Service has, it seems, decided to reward "frequent flyers", as I have received a letter, congratulating me on giving blood 3 times in 12 months (not the first time, but the first time it has been commented on), and offering me a "a special cemmemorative slate coaster ... as a small token of our appreciation"

I feel quite touched! ;-)
(and I am NOT being cynical)

Home Information Packs - again

On Monday, the new, tighter rules for HIPs come into play -

• the HIP must be complete (well, nearly ...) before the property is marketed, rather than being in the course of preparation
• the HIP must include the Property Information Questionnaire: a very watered-down and pointless version of the full Property Information Form that buyers' conveyancerswill expect to see; either the HIP should include a full information form or no such form should be required: adding an extra, largely pointless form is ... pointless
• the HIP must include "full" searches - see below

Largely in order to produce HIPs as cheaply as possible - because everything is sold on price, not quality, these days, it seems - most HIP providers use agents to carry out "personal" searches, rather than getting "official" searches direct from the relevant councils. There is also, sometimes, an argument that personal searches can be quicker, but most councils, certainly in Kent, have an impressively speedy turnaround time now

Anyway, many personal searches did not contain answers to all the required questions, believe it or not. Usually, this was because some councils, apparently in an attempt to protect their income streams by encouraging the use of official searches, would refuse to allow access to relevant information unless obliged by law to do so. For instance, though the planning register must be open for inspection, the information relating to possible breaches of planning control need not

(BTW: some councils, including Ashford, offer "value added" searches, by including with the result copies of any conditional planning permissions, plans from Tree reservation Orders, etc - saving the need to apply separately for these once they were revealed by the local search result)

As a result, personal searches tended to paint a partial picture, while official searches painted the full (or, at least, a fuller) picture. Though personal search agents would offer insurance cover in respect of any "nasties" not revealed by the partial nature of the search, that is poor compensation (assuming the insurers in fact pay out) if your dream home is blighted by something that you would have known about in advance had an official search been available.

In addition, a significant number of lenders will not accept personal searches (or only if the buyer's conveyancer (as opposed to the person who carried out the search) guarantees their accuracy. As a result, if a HIP included a personal search (and most do) the buyer might need (or want) to get an official one too, increasing the cost despite the government's stated aim of reducing cost.

From 6 April, personal search will not be allowed to say "Don't know, but if there is a problem you are insured against it" - they will have to include answers to all the questions.

Unless the government is also obliging councils to answer all the questions (I simply do not know what is happening on this score), this will result in official searches being included in HIPs - something that I, as a conveyancer, will heartily welcome

Dumped by the Abbey - an update

Following representations made by the Law Society to the Abbey, it appears that the preremptory letter issued to 6,000+ firms last wek is part of an exercise to invite firms to apply to joing a combined panel for the Abbey and Alliance + Leicester. If this is true, the original letter was extraordinarily cack-handed, as it gave no hint of this. It may be that the Abbey is finding a way to climb down with grace. We shall see ...

Dumped by the Abbey - yet more

The Abbey's draconian step of removing some 6,000 solicitors from its conveyancing panel for mortgage work - without warning or any specified reason except low volume of transactions - is getting some media publicity

Proof of identity

When acting for clients on transactions (eg: house purchases or sales), solicitors are obliged to check their clients' identities. It is not an integral part of the legal work we set out to do, but an obligation imposed on us under anti-money laundering legislation. It is an extra cost that we must absorb, and an extra risk we must accept, but we are not given any option. Failing to comply will result in us being sent to prison, it is treated that seriously.

The Land Registry has recently tightened up its own requirements. When applying to register a land transaction, we must either confirm that we are satisfied as to the identities of all the various parties (whether they are our clients or not) unless represented by another conveyancer, or we must tell the Land Registry we have not checked the identity of (say) an unrepresented seller; the Land Registry will then require that person to provide proof of identity before registering the transaction. As that is no good at all if our client has already paid for the land, this effectively means that we need to check the identity of non-represented parties as well, in order to protect our clients' interests.

Today, we had a call from someone who did not want us to act in his particular transaction (buying a piece of farmland to extend his garden - which raises planning issues of its own), but wanted us to verify his identity, to satisfy the Land Registry requirements. We said, "No" - we are not in the business of verifying people's identities; we are not trained to spot a fake passport; the fee we would want to charge to cover the time and opportunity cost involved, let alone the risk, would be unacceptably high; it would be a high-risk, lose-lose situation.

We suggested he went to the local Land Registry to verify his identity, but apparently not all Land Registries are set up to carry out the verification that they themselves require - yet they had glibly told the enquirer to "go to any solicitor with your passport - it is only a case of filling in a form" - bloody cheek!

Libraries - it's about the books

Why are councils closing libraries or ignoring the books?

Let's start with suggesting some principles - challenge them, if you want

1 Reading is a Good Thing and therefore to be encouraged

2 Reading books (as well as other things, such as newspapers, blogs, instructions from above and ASBOs) is a Good Thing and therefore to be encouraged

3 Reading books is, perhaps, an area where quantity matters almost as much as quality - range matters

4 That said, quality matters, too, and people should be encouraged to try tough books as well as reading what they know they like - again, range matters

5 An educated or well-read population can create a better democracy and society than an ignorant one

6 All the qbove are assisted by the continued existence of well-funded and well-staffed local libraries that focus on books

7 'A library is supposed to be about the things you can't find in a ... station bookshop as well as the things you can. You don't always know what you want until you see it' -Christopher Hawtree

What point am I missing? Why are libraries in peril, when they should be cherished?

Dumped by the Abbey - further thoughts

I have today heard from another (fairly local) solicitor who has been dumped by the Abbey from its conveyancing panel

This is particularly harsh for him and his clients, as he has 4 cases going through at present, and suddenly the Abbey is disrupting everything and causing chaos and extra expense. This does not surprise me - the Abbey just does not seem to care - but it has firmed up my decision to protest: I don't think the Abbey will change its mind, but at least I can give them a piece of my mind!

They do have impeccable timing: just when the country is totally disgusted at big financial institutions behaving selfishly, so the Abbey (part of the Santander group) is throwing its weight around, causing inconvenience and extra cost to its customers and doing its best to damage local businesses. It seems to be yet another example of a big organisation concentrating on process for its own benefit, rather then on consumer benefit - and that is putting the best interpretation on things

No doubt more to follow ...

Another test

Third time lucky, I hope!

Beards and beer

Articles extolling the eco-credentials of beards and local beer - I must be doing something right!

Chamber of Commerce Spring Hop

Received from David Caulfield:
================================================================

Spring is here (nearly) and there’s no better time to get everybody dancing at a live music event. The ‘Spring Hop’ in St Michaels, Tenterden is to raise money for the Kent Air Ambulance and the Motor Neurone Disease Association – to be split equally between the two charities. There will be ten musicians and singers performing who are giving their services free of charge (not even expenses). The music is 50s, 60s and 70s. Some of the people taking part were in the hit pop group ‘The Dooleys’.

We are aiming for 200+ local people to attend and we will produce a program clearly listing all businesses that have contributed to the event. We will also mention everybody’s name on the night.

Here are some answers to some of the questions that will have immediately occurred to you (I can read your mind);

Q: Have we done this before?

A: Yes, last year we raised £660 for the Kent Air Ambulance and Demelza House.

Q: What are you aiming for this year?

A: We are determined to raise over £1000.

Q: Have you registered with both charities for this year’s event?

A: Yes.

Q: You haven’t told me the date.

A: Oh, it’s the 2^nd May. Here’s the rest of the details.

Spring Hop featuring Group 66 and members of The Dooleys.

2^nd May 2009.

Venue: St Michaels Village Hall, Grange Road, St Michaels, Tenterden.

Doors open 7.00pm for 7.30pm start – until late.

All proceeds to be split evenly between the Kent Air Ambulance and The Motor Neurone Disease Association.

All are welcome. If you would like tickets, please do not hesitate to get in touch. Many thanks.

David Caulfield: Mobile tel: +44 7770 483183
================================================================

So, if you want tickets, phone David

Dumped!

On Friday (in common, apparently, with a lot of other sole practitioner lawyers and low-volume conveyancers) I received a "Dear John" letter from Abbey National (or "the Abbey", as they like to be called but have not bothered to change their name to).

They have unceremoniously and without warning "dumped" me - I am, with immediate effect, no longer on their conveyancing panel for mortgage work.

No real explanation - I just don't rock their boat, apparently

I will try to engage in a dialogue with them, but don't hold out much hope

I have some theories as to what is going on, and will publish them here over time

Don't get HIP-ripped

We provide high-quality HIPs (from HIPAG) at less than £275 - including the PIQ with help from us - so why spend £400+ getting one from another source? Phone Sam(antha) or Anne on 01580 767100 for details and a chat

ANOTHER charity shop in Tenterden?

It looks as though the former Cardfair shop in Sayers Lane, Tenterden, is going to be yet another charity shop - British Heart Foundation this time

While I don't particularly rate card shops, having yet another charity shop seems to be overkill

Blooming banks!

See BBC news item (thanks, Laurence for your Tweet) - I'm glad I'm with HSBC; so far, at least, they seem to be behaving as normally and as helpfully as banks ever do!

The White Dog at Ewhurst Green

A truly excellent meal yesterday evening at the White Dog, now run by Bill and Jacqui Tipples - gorgeous Rye Bay scallops to start, and pork saltimbocca as a main course; truly excellent food!
The beer wasn't bad, either: Fuller's London Pride and a well-kept pint of Harvey's Sussex bitter

Trade guilds against HIPs?

Entrenched interests always fight change - see Seth's Blog - which may be why so many vested interests undermine Home Information Packss (apart from the fact that their implementation was, and remains, crap, of course!)
In addition, those who are merely competent will resist change, because it undermines their competence
However, I do find that a well-prepared HIP (with, for instance, official rather than personal search results) combined with a carefully completed comprehensive set of property information forms does enable a very swift transition to exchange-ready status - assuming there are no fundamental problems with the property or its title, of course - well-packaged rubbish is still rubbish

The Bull at Sissinghurst

I visited the Bull in Sissinghurst yesterday evening. The new owners have spruced it up nicely, there is a good, friendly, busy atmosphere and the food is of very good quality and well-priced: whitebait followed by lamb cutlets at £8.95 is hard to beat, and the quality of the gambas I had (at £7.95) was ecellent!

A couple of good pints of Harveys Sussex Bitter went down a treat, too!

When it's worth paying for it ...

Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal

Oven-ready chips? Exchange-ready HIPs!

In an earlier post, I commented that the latest "improvements" to HIPs would not in fact make them more useful. What is needed (IMO) is a cultural change, so that sellers, agents and solicitors accepted that, however badly-thought-out (by civil servants and poloticians) HIPs are, the property professionals can make them work and use them to benefit buyers and sellers

If, instead of going for the cheapest HIP - which probably adds alsost nothing to the efficiancy of the conveyancing process - sellers could be persuaded to commission a HIP that would contain everything that a buyer could reasonably want before exchanging contracts, the only things that would prevent immediate exchange of contracts (and certainty) would be (a) the buyer getting a mortgage offer, (b) the buyer selling his or her own home (if needed) and (c) the seller having somewhere to move to

Exchange-ready HIPs would have -

• official search results, not personal ones which are not acceptable to all lenders
• a comprehensive set of property information, not the half-baked pointlessness that is the Property Information Questionnaire
• even a seller's survey by a real surveyor

If done properly, that would cut out delays, removing the opportunities for gazumping and gazundering, and actually achieve the objective the government said it had when it originally introduced HIPs

Will it happen? Only if enough people insist on quality work rather than the cheapest possible price

Tenterden Pudding Club

Not as interesting as the name implies ... the so-called "club" is simply an informal monthly lunchtime meeting of various local business people - mainly solicitors, accountants, estate agents, bank managers, etc

We meet on the last Friday of each month, so the next meeting is on 27 February, at No 75 in Tenterden High Street at 1pm. We usually have a one course meal and a drink, and aim to get away at about 2pm.

If any other local business people would like to join us, there is no need to book in or apologise for absence - just turn up at 1pm - but if you would like to be added to the email reminder list for future meetings, please let me know - I usually confirm the venue about 2 weeks before the next meeting.

Lawyers are not always a bad thing

People often moan about the way in which compensation lawyers encourage a blame culture, resulting in ridiculous claims and the "health and safety freeze" that (allegedly) means that schools, for instance, close at the slightest sign of snow. However, I suspect that a lot of the stories told are urban myths, encouraged by the anti-PC brigade and by those who have a vested interest in lawyers not representing claimants - so that the claims can more easily be brushed aside or settled at lower-than-appropriate figures

This article in The Times Online tends to support that view

I would always recommend someone who has suffered injury not purely as a result of their own fault to seek early specialist advice. There may be no claim, or pursuing a claim might be inappropriate, but it is better to find out first, then make a decision

I do not handle such claims myself, but (as for other legal work that I do not handle) I would be happy to refer "victims" to a suitable local specialist solicitor - just get in touch, and I will be happy to help

Uh-oh! Here comes trouble! (With added acronyms)

6 April 2009 is coming – the date from which house (and flat) sellers must have a complete Home Information Pack (HIP) in place before their property can be marketed

The HIP must contain –

• an index
• an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) – or, for newbuilds, a Predicted Energy Assessment (PEA) - though marketing can start without these documents 14 days after their request if they are not yet available but are expected to be available within 28 days of the original request
• a Sale Statement
• a Property Information Questionnaire (PIQ)
• for registered properties, official copy registers and title plan; for unregistered properties, a Search of the Index Map (SIM) and an Epitome of Title or Abstract of Title
• for leasehold properties, a copy of the lease, or confirmation that it has been requested and is expected within 28 days
• searches: a local search and a drainage and water search or confirmation that those documents have been ordered and are expected within 28 days

There are two new elements. The first is the requirement to have a HIP in place, not just commissioned, before marketing begins. The other is that the HIP must include a PIQ.

There are different versions of the PIQ for existing homes and for new homes - a new home for these purposes is a home that is being designed or constructed or which has never been occupied. – and different versions for freehold and for leasehold properties.

The forms produced by the government do not have to be used; so long as the same information is collected. This gives those who want to prepare a more comprehensive HIP an opportunity to make the PIQ more useful than the minimal form would be, but the current trend with HIPs is to do as little as possible to comply with the legal requirements, rather than as much as possible to expedite the sale process, so I will not expect anyone to try very hard to improve on the “basic” PIQ.

It should take most sellers less than ten minutes to complete the basic PIQ for freehold properties, but completing even the basic PIQ for leasehold property will be a longer, more daunting process.

The PIQ says, “The Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 (PMA) does not apply where the form has been completed solely by the seller.” There is, therefore, a clear implication that an agent who helps a seller complete the PIQ could be liable for property misdescription if the PIQ contains errors. Accordingly, it would be best for the estate agent to get the seller to complete the PIQ alone, or to get the HIP provider to deal with it or to enlist the assistance of a local solicitor or conveyancer.

Most sellers will, after some initial grumblings, complete the freehold part of the PIQ without too much resistance. However, the leasehold part is another matter completely and I anticipate that many sellers may feel the need to speak to the solicitor or conveyancer who acted when they bought the property. Be prepared for this.

(My thanks to Rob Hailstone, CEO of HIPAG – excellent HIP providers – for his assistance to me in producing this note. Any errors are mine!)

CPD

All lawyers (well - all practising lawyers, in the UK at least; I don't know about others) are required to undergo Continuing Professional Development - basically, in-service training to keep up to date.

It can be frustrating having to spend a day or half a day out of the office when there is so much to be dealt with on one's desk; and the workload is only increased as a result of attending a well-chosen course: improving systems, updating precedents and information leaflets and generally improving standards of service as a result of what has been learned - or, sometimes, remembered - on the course.

Still, lawyers' CPD obligations are relatively light, compared to accountants' and IFAs', and polishing up one's knowledge and office procedures reaps immense benefits once the course-inspired changes have been implemented

I mention this today because I spent yesterday (Saturday) on a course - not for lawyers, but for new school governors. As a recently re-appointed governor of Tenterden Infant School, I attended an induction course at the Abbey School, Faversham with a couple of dozen other "new" governors, learning the basics - particularly that governors must not interfere in the day-to-day running of the school, but only keep an overview and ensure strategic policies are followed and the school kept within budget

Many of the attendees were first-time governors. Others, like me, had been governors a few years ago. At least one had been a teacher, latterly a senior teacher, who had been invited to become a governor when she retired. We therefore had a wide range of experience of schools. As parent, staff, community or foundation governors we also had a wide range of different starting points as governors.

Ideally, governors also come from as wide a range of backgrounds as possible, though it was noticeable that all who attended yesterday were white, they were predominately middle class (as far as I could tell); though I did not actually count, I think women were in a slight majority.

As a result of attending the course, I was reminded of the sense of satisfaction and happiness I experienced when I was a governor before, and (though there seems to be a lot more responsibility and accountability now - a good thing, I believe) I am looking forward to getting involved in the work of the governing body again.

Tenterden Infant School is, in my admittedly limited experience, a marvellous school - well run by each of the headteachers there that I have known, with enthusiastic and well-qualified teaching and other staff, the children always seem happy, well-behaved and receptive. It could be argued that this is relatively "easy" in an infants school in a prosperous rural town, but running a school is never "easy" - and running it well is always important, whatever the age of the pupils or the size or location of the school.

The input I have as a governor is relatively small, but it is wonderful to be part of such a worthwhile, hardworking and happy organisation. I would recommend being a governor to anyone who wants to help their local community and particularly to help its children and to help promote high standards of educational achievement

ID card "mission creep"

I seem to recall that, when ID cards were being proposed, we were assured that they would not be used as general means of proving ID, but only as "entitlement cards" for hospital services, benefits, etc.

If my recollection is correct, what are we to make of the comment by Meg Hillier, undersecretary of state at the Home Office, that "for legal transactions it might well be worthwhile [solicitors] having a reading machine to quickly verify ID"?

Am I being over-cynical to suggest that the government is using taxpayers' money (and citizens' personal data) to produce a scheme that private enterprise can use to sell kit to businesses for a profit?

Why Abaddon's musings?

Well, "musings" is fairly obvious, but who is/was Abaddon?

The Abaddon I have in mind is the angel of the bottomless pit - there are others, but not relevant

Partly, I am referring to the bottomless money pit that everyone (especially the tax man) seems to think I have access to, but more I am referring to what I hope is a bottomless pit of experience, knowledge, advice, etc, that I am expected to share - and which I am usually happy to do, within reason, certainly for clients and genuine prospective clients, professional contacts, etc.

I am in danger of being a "soft touch" but, as Seth Godin suggests (see lonely-scared-bitter for elucidation) calm, generous people should end up busy, happy and prosperous - well: two out of three ain't bad!

Home Information Packs

Setting to one side (for now) the inept way in which Home Information Packs (HIPs) have been introduced, and assuming (for the sake of this post) that they are, if properly implemented, a Good Thing, the changes that will take effect on 6 April 2009 are likely to have a significant impact for sellers, buyers, estate agents and lawyers. To take a couple of points -

1: The HIP will need to include a Property Information Questionnaire (PIQ). This must contain some information about the property, but it is not clear why the specified information has been selected, and the PIQ will not remove the need for the seller also to supply full, relevant information about the property. It is therefore hard to see how the requirement for a PIQ improves the HIP system. However, it can make the system worse, simply because there will be yet another document needed to complete the HIP and (from 6 April) the agent cannot start marketing the property until the HIP is complete

2: OK, so the PIQ is not difficult to complete, but I anticipate that a lot of sellers will put it to one side, if allowed to, and then complain that the marketing of the property has been delayed! To avoid that, the agent may decide to help the seller complete the PIQ - thereby risking a complaint under the Property Misdescriptions Act if any details are wrong. So, the agent risks delaying the start of marketing or risks a misdescription complaint - what a choice! The solution is (in my biassed view) to pass the responsibility on to the seller's conveyancer: if the seller uses a local conveyancer, the agent can encourage them to pop in to their office to complete the form, minimising the delay and the risk of liability

Or am I wrong? Are HIPs a great improvement, made still better by the PIQ?

Why this blog?

At the end of last year, I decided that I should start a blog, and have at last done something about it.

I do not delude myself that I have anything of particular interest to others on most topics that most bloggers (especially male bloggers) seem to want to blog - or rant - about, and this is not intended to be that sort of blog.

However, I do have concerns about various changes I see, especially to legal system generally in this country and the house conveyancing process in particular, and the impact this will have on the legal and associated professions and on businesses in small towns. I am certainly not opposed to change in principle, but I believe that the reasons for some changes are suspect and the implementation sometimes disastrous.

Though I have started this blog, I do not want it to be "mine" alone - I hope others will contribute, particularly -
- other solicitors, especially those whose views differ from mine
- other professionals involved in the areas of work that I cover as a lawyer and comment on here (estate agents, valuers, bank managers, etc, all of whom will be affected, too)
- the clients and service users who are on the other end of the experience, with their angle on things
- residents and business people in Tenterden and other small towns

I hope that my posts will be informative and constructive, and will provoke informed and constructive discussion

Well: that has set out my stall, to some extent. Now I need to start posting properly