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Are you looking for independent legal advice in the East Midlands?
Independent Legal Advice (“ILA”) is where a lender requires you to obtain specific advice in relation to their transaction documents from an independent legal adviser.
When is Independent Legal Advice needed?
There are many types of transactions where you will be required to obtain independent legal advice. Some examples include:
- Personal Guarantees – where you are purchasing a property through a company, obtaining a commercial loan, extending your commercial overdraft facility, or guaranteeing a family members loan or mortgage
- Occupiers Consent Forms – where you occupy a property but are not a party to the mortgage documents
- Providing Security – where you own a property or land, and a tenant (perhaps your company) is offering this as security to a lender
- Face to Face advice – where the solicitors acting on your behalf for a property purchase involving a mortgage (or a re-mortgage) are too far away to meet with you directly, you will need to find a local adviser to see you in person.
This list is by no means exhaustive; we are seeing an increase in lenders seeking Personal Guarantees for a wide range of transactions.
Why is Independent Legal Advice required?
To answer this question, ask yourself if you have ever read through a mortgage, charge or loan agreement in detail to understand exactly what the lender can or cannot do?
If you have read agreements and policy documents, you will know that their powers are usually far-reaching. You will also be in a minority! For this reason, lenders require you to obtain Independent Legal Advice to ensure that you have a full and frank understanding of the risks and obligations associated with taking on the loan, mortgage or other facility. You will not then be able to claim that you didn’t understand what you were signing if there is a dispute in future.
For you, the client, knowledge is power. You may choose to rethink your personal and business banking structures after reading through a guarantee, or at the very least see if there is a better deal available from another lender.
How much does Independent Legal Advice cost?
At Crystal Law Solicitors we offer this service on a fixed fee basis of £250+VAT per person, per guarantee. Our experienced, commercially minded advisers provide a fast, efficient and accurate service and will be able to answer all of your questions before you decide whether to sign your lenders documents.
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Why Crystal Law?
Our team are here to make the law crystal clear.
Our expert solicitors have a wealth of experience, bourne from years of helping 1000s of clients located across the UK on a wide variety of legal matters.
With our extensive knowledge and understanding across many key areas of UK civil law, we're able to provide bespoke legal advice that's tailored to your circumstances.
We know that the law can feel extremely complex and we are there to guide our clients with our down-to-earth approach and jargon-free legal advice.