Witness Statement

[Pezza54]

I have just read a long list on anglolaw.co.uk of 22 documents that may need oaths and certifications. A witness statement was not on the list.
If you think you need a solicitor to verify the identity of the witness, then should be about £100 plus VAT per witness.

[Golden]

Thanks for the info. PEZZA54. Anglo Law are located in the London area and I am based in the Midlands so it would make sense to look for someone more local. It's good to know though what I should expect to pay for this service.

ĄTTICUS - After reading my breakdown of what has happened so far, do you have any comments? When working as a Solicitor, were you ever involved in a situation similar to mine? If the Claimant will not co-operate, would the Cobden-Ramsay order be worth looking into? Any other thoughts/ideas?

[atticus]

All I can say is that something does not stack up. I am surprised at the lack of progress for that amount of money. I cannot comment on why you are not a great deal further down the road of litigation in relation to warning off the caveat.

It could be the solicitor, or it could be his client who has made things more complicated, or it could be six of one ...

NB, I have given a link to the requirements in the CPR for witness statements. Pezza54 might wish to read it. I missed the reference to verifying identity, but it may be that your solicitors have said that they would wish to satisfy themselves of the identity of the person presenting as a witness.

[Golden]

"Something does not stack up" - I would say it is a mixture of things....

My Solicitor was charging £420 an hour (inc. VAT) for her time. She always charged a minimum 6-minute block (£42), even for a quick email. In the beginning, a lot of time was spent corresponding with her, asking for her to explain things, for her advice on strategy and what I should do/my options.

Another reason is that whilst I was instructing my Solicitor, the Claimant bombarded her with correspondence. He even sent a 14-page response to my Letter of Response (basically repeating the information he had already included in his Letter of Claim). Every time my Solicitor received something from him, she would read it and then forward it to me with her advice/comments (and of course, also charge for her time in doing so). This correspondence from the Claimant was not progressing the dispute, just stacking up the costs for me (a strategy on his part, I believe). In the end, I had to dis-instruct my Solicitor as I had exhausted all of my savings and couldn't afford further legal advice. Not surprisingly, the correspondence stopped once the Claimant was told by my Solicitor to correspond with me directly as she was not instructed any more.

Regarding the Witness Statements, my Solicitor's main concern wasn't about verifying the identity of the witnesses. It was that I shouldn't be involved in the process (as I am the defendant in the dispute). I was told to be very careful about preparing statements myself for the friends as in the future there could be cross-examination on the points and any opposing counsel would try to undermine the reliability of the statements by saying they had been prepared by me. I understand and agree with the advice, which is why I am looking for someone who can help with this.

[Golden]

Hi all, as mentioned in the above thread, I have been looking for assistance with witness statement drafting and I came across a company based in Liverpool that provides witness statement drafting services ( www.statementdraftingservices.com ). Their reviews on TrustPilot UK look good. Their services also comply with Civil Procedure Rules.

Has anyone ever heard of them before or actually used them?

TIA.

[atticus]

Tia, they say they work for the motor insurer, legal & claims management profession. This suggests a very specific client base and type of case. You would need to check that they would be prepared to help you, and also that they would be prepared to assist in your particular legal area.

[Golden]

Hello ATTICUS,

I reached out to them a few days ago and they said they could help me. I am waiting for a time/cost estimate and in the meantime I thought I'd see if anyone else has used them in the past. Btw - TIA meant "thanks in advance"!