How is it that Tank Jowett Solicitors’ name crops up in many of the high profile cases appearing in the courts across the country, from Bournemouth Crown Court to London’s Old Bailey, to Teesside Crown Court?
The reason is simple – recommendations and referrals.
Over 95% of the cases Tank Jowett Solicitors take on every year, from complex fraud, to murder or corporate manslaughter, to serious sexual offences and low level assaults, where the stress of the case on the client is all consuming – come from one source – recommendations.
At Tank Jowett Solicitors, we pride ourselves on fighting each case as if it were our own. We consider the evidence and look for flaws. We investigate defences and present them in the strongest possible way. Our commitment to the client’s cause is absolute.
When arrested, many persons do not know a solicitor to use, so ask for the ‘duty solicitor’. There are a great many firms of solicitors in London and across the country who rely on the duty solicitor scheme as a source of work. Those firms deal with low value, small cases, and the pressure on them to make ends meet is enormous.
Mistakes are made when thinking that a court will be sympathetic if the solicitor representing the client is providing inadequate service; they will not. Therefore, receiving substandard service from a firm of solicitors can often be worse than being unrepresented, as the court assumes that the solicitor is providing sufficient service.
Our clients do not fear that their cases are being neglected, but instead have the comfort that comes from being represented by the best team possible.
Tank Jowett Solicitors have adopted an 8 point plan, for providing the best possible service to clients:
There is a direct link between the amount of work the lawyer puts in to a case and the result.
Tank Jowett Solicitors have achieved for clients what many other lawyers have failed to do, but in many cases it comes down to honest hard work. As Simon Jowett says, “Many lawyers give up too easily. They think there is no point, or they can’t be bothered, perhaps because they may be working for a fixed fee, or they switch off at 5.30pm. It’s at that point that you are really letting your client down. You have to see the result you want, and not give up until you achieve it, which could include a not guilty verdict, a lesser sentence, or the case being dropped.”
Instruct the best barristers, but don’t depend on them.
You have to take responsibility for the case. If you are using a barrister, make sure he or she has a good track record, and cares about your client’s case. But you can’t just leave the case to them. You have to make sure the case is fully prepared, before it goes to the barrister.
Every case is equally important.
The firm has defended in countless murder cases, but often relishes defending in small cases as well. Why? Often the smallest criminal case will be, to the client, the biggest most important issue in their life at that moment in time. As Simon Jowett says, “criminal cases, including small cases, such as a harassment case, or a theft matter, can destroy careers, split up families, ruin businesses, and cause irreparable damage to people’s lives. Even if the penalty as low, the client could lose his whole business, his job, or his career. He goes on, “I have walked into the office having just come back from an Old Bailey murder trial, and seen a professional client wrongly accused of harassment. The case may seem minor. But, the chances are, he hasn’t slept for a month. His stress levels are through the roof. That case is a must win. The client is depending on you. Don’t let him down”.
Remember the responsibility on your shoulders.
The alleged victims have the support of the police and the whole system. But the criminal defendant? Who may very well be innocent? He or she gets one lawyer to fight for them. Never forget, as a criminal lawyer, just how much responsibility is on your shoulders.
Just because your client is innocent, or only played a minor role in the commission of an offence, does not mean that the Prosecutor will see it that way.
The system can be grossly unfair on your client. Many prosecutors, especially in large conspiracy type cases involving tens of thousands of pages of evidence, get lost in their own evidence. The danger is that they create a false inaccurate picture of what your client did, because they don’t understand their own case. Getting the Prosecutor to change his or her mind can be sometimes almost impossible. But in many cases it is achievable. The criminal lawyer must never relax, until the result is achieved, such as a not guilty verdict, the case being dropped or a low sentence. The Prosecutor must be educated as to why your client is innocent, if you want him to drop the case.
Remember the value of expert evidence.
The firm regularly instructs experts in the form of forensic accountants, psychologists, psychiatrists, doctors, drugs experts, and road traffic experts to name but a few. Expert evidence can bolster your client’s case in a way that could prove decisive, and should always be explored.
Always explore the possibility of preventing your client from being charged.
Very often, clients are placed on police bail, pending further enquiries, but the vast majority of lawyers do nothing to prevent their client from being charged, preferring to sit back and wait for a case to materialise. This is however missing a golden opportunity to advance your client’s interests. Work on preventing your client from being charged, by obtaining as much evidence as possible, and making representations to the police and prosecutors that there is no realistic prospect of conviction, or that the case is not in the public interest, the two tests that prosecutors must apply before authorising a charge.
Hire the best staff.
The firm has employed hundreds of would be lawyers over the years. Many of today’s solicitors in London trained at Tank Jowett Solicitors. Simon Jowett has the following message: “Nowadays, I only take on people who have demonstrated a clear passion for the law, and criminal law at that. I need efficient hard working people to help me with my work. In 2008 I was running a murder trial, a spying case, the Royal blackmail case and a conspiracy to obtain a Royal pardon, all at the same time. But the solicitors and counsel I had working with me were exceptional, and together, we gave the clients the service they deserved.”