Can I claim to be a specialist or expert?

You need to address two issues in relation to the Solicitors Rule 2007 to be able to make this claim.

The first is whether you can justify this claim, as a matter of fact. If not, then your claim may be false, misleading, deceptive, or likely to mislead or deceive, contrary to s.36.1 or s.36.2 of the Solicitors Rule - see FAQ What are the rules about solicitors' advertising generally. Clearly if you are a QLS accredited specialist you are justified in making such claims, but remember that this accreditation is yours personally and not that of your law practice, and is also specific to a particular area of law. Also a claim to be a specialist or to specialise is likely to be seen to be a claim to expertise rather than just to a preferred or usual area of practice, so do not make such a claim in this sense.

The second issue with the Solicitors Rule, if you are not a QLS accredited specialist in that area of law, is whether this would be a breach of s.36.4 of the Solicitors Rule - see FAQ What are the rules about advertising specialist accreditation? The issue is whether any of the words you use are a derivative of the words “accredited specialist”. “Derivative” is not defined in the Solicitors Rule or the Legal Profession Act 2007. The Legal Service Commission’s view is that it is likely that the word “specialist” is a derivative in terms of this rule.

For personal injury advertising, in print or on the internet, there is no restriction in PIPA on claims to speciality or expertise, as this falls within “information as to any area of practice or speciality” in s.66(1)(a). However, the LSC’s interpretation of PIPA limits you to a bare statement of the speciality or expertise, without any additional “self-promotional statements”.

You should also be aware that if you hold yourself out to be a specialist or expert in a particular area of work, then in the event of a negligence claim a higher standard of care will apply.