A. L. Hughes & Co.

Solicitors and Commissioners for Oaths


Introduction

A. L. Hughes & Co. is a small firm of Solicitors in Streatham, South London, founded in 1950. The photograph shows a view of Streatham from more or less outside our offices, but taken in the 1960s. Currently the road is a red route, with perpetual congestion and no-one lurking on the road as shown above.  Although Streatham High Road was voted the least attractive high street in Europe, or was it the world(?), the architectural features of the frontages are such that the Council decided that it should be a Conservation Area, a judgement which raised a few eyebrows, but is a fair one. By all means look up at the attractive gabling and tilework, but watch out for potholes and abandoned debris beneath your feet.

To get to us, why not start by clicking on the hyperlink

Location Map of our offices

You'll then need to arrange transport.  The area is well served by trains and 'buses. 

What are we about?

We aim to provide our clients with a quality of service which they would expect from a central London legal practice, but with the personal touch of a small firm, and at a reasonable cost to them.

Our Client Information Notes and Terms of Business are available on-line. Just click on the hyperlink.

Client Information Notes

 

 

Our fields of work.

We specialise in Property Law work.  In essence that means:

  • Commercial Property:  Leases, Assignments, Renewals.
  • Domestic Property: Conveyancing, Re-mortgages, Lease extensions, collective enfranchisements.
  • Development Property:  Setting up developments, Building land. 
  • Unregistered land Conveyancing
  • Town and Country Planning advice.
  • Wills and Probate and Estate Planning.
  • Powers of Attorney and Public Guardianship Office applications.
  • Partnerships and Shareholder agreements.


 

Costs Information

The Solicitors’ Regulation Authority require all firms to publish costs information on their website in relation to certain areas of work.  The areas which we undertake which are affected by this are Conveyancing and Probate.

So to explain how we charge clients.

Conveyancing

We like to give an estimate at the outset which sets out our fees and expected expenses.  We estimate the length of time a transaction will take, and charge a rate (currently £240 per hour plus VAT) plus a small fraction (50p per £1,000) of the price, and 25p per £1,000 of any mortgage being entered into). 

One question we are often asked is “How fixed are your estimates?”  The answer to that is that in the unlikely event of a transaction becoming very protracted, we will discuss our charging with you and seek agreement to a way forward.  However, we can’t remember the last time that happened.

If a transaction is abortive, we will cap our fees at a maximum of 50% of our estimate, but obviously if less work is done than this cap, we will be charging less.

 

Probate

Probate transactions are charged on a time basis at the rate of £240 per hour plus VAT.  Any Conveyancing element of a Probate is charged instead at the Coneveyancing rate above.

Who does the work?

 

Legal firms have moved on in the last half century.  The modern way is to have semi-qualified or even unqualified staff doing the nuts and bolts of transactions, uncomprehending of the underlying law or practice and engrained with the ethos of “computer says no”.  Then what they have done is passed up to a supervisor who checks it and then deals with the stuff that hasn’t been done before passing the file to someone else.   This, we are told, is efficiency – it does cut costs of course.

 

Well, stuff that. All the legal work in our firm is done by the three Solicitors listed below.  We work together of course, and cover for holidays, but when you speak to or write to the person handling the case, it’s us.  We don’t employ assistant lawyers or paralegals.

 

 

People

Norman Mann (Consultant)

Has been at the firm since 1968 and was admitted as a Solicitor in 1969 at a time when people used quill pens and sacrificed goats to ensure successful house moves. Now part time (Tuesdays only if we are lucky), he plays a lot of Golf between commercial leases.

Laurence Mann, LLB, FRSA (Partner)

First worked at the firm in 1977 before going to University. Qualified as a Solicitor in 1984. Deals with Commercial and Residential Conveyancing, and Leasehold Enfranchisement Is a Governor of a Community Comprehensive Secondary School in Twickenham.  Is involved in a Community Choir, but will not sing at you without giving notice.

Frances Holton (Partner)

Trained at the firm from 1980 and was admitted as a Solicitor in 1983. Specialises in Residential Conveyancing, Wills and Probates, Powers of Attorney and applications to the Public Guardianship Office (which is the newish name for the Court of Protection).  In her spare time, her two Schnauzer Dogs keep her very busy.

 

Contact Information

We aim to be accessible.  If you are calling or faxing from outside of the UK, please use (+44) 20 instead of 020 as our telephone and fax prefix.

Telephone

020 8769 7100

FAX

020 8677 6644

Postal address

340 Streatham High Road, London, SW16 6HH

Document Exchange

DX 58457 Norbury

Electronic mail

General Information: mail@alhughes.co.uk
Webmaster: laurence@alhughes.co.uk

 

  • By all means email one of our Partners with your enquiry, unless you are trying to sell something, in which case please read this.
  • Our firm is regulated by the Solicitors' Regulation Authority and our ID is 51553

 

 

We also have a Blog with information and articles written in spare moments.  We have not written anything for a while, as reality appears to be more unlikely than anything we can come up with.

 

www.alhughes.blogspot.com

 

 

Information

You can download pdf versions of our Information Sheets from these links.


Information Sheets

Auction Information Sheet
Permitted Development Leaflet
Whose fence is it?  A guide to boundary issues
Searches: what are they are for?
Making a Will Guide
How you can help

Avoiding Frauds Leaflet

Unregistered Conveyancing Consultancy

 

 

Local Links: 


Interesting and possibly useful links

 

 

Important Notes:

  • We are regulated by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority.
  • A list of partners can be inspected at our offices (see above for address).
  • Cookies. We don't think there are any cookies on this website, and we prefer custard tarts anyway, but if there are, then your use of this website may involve their getting into your computer.  
  • Privacy.  We do not track users of this site. Who knows who has been here?
  • We don’t accept service of documents by fax or email without prior arrangement.
  • It is important for you to note that any information in our Information Sheets is not to be treated as formal advice.
  • We have only one office, in Streatham. We are aware that Solicitors' firms are targeted by fraudsters who claim to be operating from another office. We do not have such an office and so if you get any such fraudulent emails or letters, please refer them to the police and send us a copy too. All of them offer things which are too good to be true.  Our advice is that if something appears to be too good to be true, then it is very likely not to be true, and not likely to be good either. Obvious, eh?
  • Our Bank details were last changed in 2010. If you get an email saying they have changed, then it’s going to be a fraud.
  • If you are trying to sell us something, we beg to inform you that we never ever buy anything or commission any services whatsoever from people who write to, email or telephone us offering such things. You are wasting your time if you think you will be the one exception to this rule.  You won't be.  No, really. That means:
    • We are not interested in photocopiers. Is anyone?  We no longer have one. 
    • We are happy with our stationery supplier.
    • Our office furniture is servicable.
    • Telephones.  We don’t want any more.  We like the comforting feel of legacy equipment.
    • We do not need a franking machine. Who sends letters?
    • If you sent us a letter or flyer about your services or products, thanks. it's been recycled.  If you sent an email, well, it’s been deleted.
    • We don't want to speak to people pretending to be from BT.
    • We organise our own training.
    • We do not want to borrow any money.
    • We are allergic to recruitment agencies. 
    • We see no need to outsource our work to far off places. We like our staff.
    • We do not pay referral fees Not now, not then, not never.
    • We love our current electricity supply arrangements.
    • We never advertise. Our Google ranking bores us. 
    • If you say you are calling on behalf of local hospitals, police forces, schools, etc., about adverts in brochures or plasma TV screens, we know what sort of scam you are seeking to perpetrate, so forget it.
    • Our website is the best in the universe, and no, you cannot improve on that.  We even changed the colour recently.  That’s sophistication for you.
    • We do need people to meddle with our computer equipment and charge us for it. Like a hole in the head.
  • Please note that the content of this website is out of date just as soon as it is posted.  We are always happy to supply the latest versions of any of our materials.  The last revision was in Autumn 2018.
  • The reason this website does not have floating frames, CSS, RSS, ISS, drop-down interactive and context sensitive menus, and other bells and whistles is that we are more interested in getting on with legal stuff than playing with these things. And who really wants them? Do you?