Harrogate and Leeds solicitor Andrew Gray has launched the Immigration Lawyers Organisation, a new platform to raise the quality of immigration law practiced internationally.
Gray (pictured), founder of Yorkshire firm Truth Legal Solicitors, decided to create the Immigration Lawyers Organisation after seeing “many examples of poor immigration law practice”.
Called the Immigration Lawyers Organisation, the platform will act as a quasi-regulator of immigration lawyers internationally by distributing a badge signifying high standards of practice, subject to verification.
In order to become a verified member of the platform and be allowed to use the badge, international immigration lawyers must adhere to a stringent charter of obligations.
Membership is free, but only verified members who have confirmed their acceptance with the charter during an interview can carry the Immigration Lawyers Organisation badge.
Currently, more than 1,000 lawyers and law firms are registered on the platform.
As the Immigration Lawyers Organisation grows, it is also hoped the platform, which accepts reviews from clients, will serve as a means of quality lead generation for international immigration practitioners.
Explaining the aims of the platform, Gray said: “Although the overwhelming majority of immigration lawyers internationally offer a wonderful service, some poor immigration practitioners are causing mayhem to their clients. Often, immigration clients are most vulnerable and usually using a foreign lawyer from their home country. If something goes wrong, it is usually very difficult for the client to seek redress.
“And in the unlikely event that a client suffers loss at the hands of their immigration lawyer, no amount of money could make up for the devastation that is caused, often splitting up families, and ending careers. In the UK, the Home Office are particularly robust and unforgiving when deadlines are missed, or the wrong paperwork is submitted. A mistake by an incompetent immigration lawyer could easily mean that a client is forbidden from work. An error by a lawyer might even lead to a client being deported.
“And here in the UK our legal services are—quite rightly—tightly regulated. Other countries do not regulate their lawyers to the same degree. This platform will, hopefully, screen-out the worst immigration lawyers. Conversely, the best immigration lawyers stand to get far more quality leads.”
Image source: Immigration Lawyers Organisation
