Why every day’s a school day at Optimal Solicitors

It was Learning at Work Week recently – but for us, every day is a school day. This year we’ve been sharing educational content, providing our management with related training, and upskilling staff. For instance, our trainee is on their way to becoming a solicitor and our H&S Officer has just taken the IOSH Managing Safely course.?

Read on to discover more about how we’re promoting learning, along with the latest legal insights and Optimal news – including our involvement in Hats for Headway Day and Mental Health Awareness Week.

LawCast: Episode one

Our podcast, ‘LawCast’, has officially launched! Family Lawyer Llewelyn Stott hosts the first episode. He explains what rights grandparents have in the UK. In the next episode, Paralegal Beth Jones will be diving into fixed fee divorces for married couples – make sure to look out for it on our social channels.

Listen now

Legal briefing

Legal aid reform improves opportunities for justice

New means testing will help those who’ve experienced miscarriages of justice, harm, or injury to be eligible for legal aid. As a result, certain compensation payments will not automatically make victims ineligible anymore.

Calls for discount rate formula to be assessed prior to review

The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) has warned the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) that assumptions about the ways those with a serious injury invest their compensation aren’t grounded, and this needs to change ahead of a discount rate review.

The Optimal pulse

Optimal office updates

• Optimal will be hosting a summer party. We'll be revealing more about this soon!
• Our management team recently undertook some training around how to successfully manage people through change, discovering tools and techniques for mitigating negative effects, tackling ‘difficult’ behaviours, and more.
• New Business Team Leader Jacek Zawieracz attended an Adult Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) course, updating his skills to support his own and others’ wellbeing.
• We took part in Hats for Headway Day! Our team wore wacky hats as part of this event to raise money to improve life after brain injury.?
• With Mental Health Awareness Week earlier this month, we embraced the ‘moving more’ theme with a walking competition. Ghazala Aziz won with an average step count of 29,068 steps per day, with Stephanie Matthews the runner up at 15,070.

Employee of the Month

May’s employee of the month was Tracie Thomas! Although she’s only joined our firm recently, Tracie has already proven to be an asset to our team. She’s systematically worked her way through a backlog of important matters, demonstrating diligence, kindness, and thoughtfulness in her approach.

Work anniversaries

May saw Dominika celebrate a big work anniversary. Thank you for your hard work and commitment over the years!

?? Dominika Beza – 7 years

Introducing… Kerry Harding

This newsletter, we’re introducing you to Kerry Harding. Her background is incredibly varied – she first studied law, then moved into the travel and aviation sector, and then retrained in HR around a decade ago. Kerry joined Optimal in 2017, and as our Head of People, naturally the best part of working at Optimal for her is the people! Their unique opinions, ideas, perspectives, and suggestions, as well as how they help our firm grow and exceed client expectations, makes Kerry feel lucky to work with such an exceptional group.

Latest blog: What are grandparents’ rights in the UK?

Family transitions such as separation or divorce can cause issues around seeing and maintaining bonds with grandchildren. Our most recent blog, written by our expert family lawyer Llewelyn Stott, explores the rights of grandparents.

Discover how to navigate the legal landscape

A heartfelt thank you to our clients

We’re truly heartened to receive such a positive review from another one of our valued clients. It reaffirms our dedication to providing the highest level of service in every case we handle.

Thank you for placing your trust in us. We look forward to continuing to serve and support our clients with the same dedication and commitment that was recognised in this wonderful feedback.

Check out more 5* reviews on our Trustpilot.?

Learn more about your legal rights with Optimal Solicitors

Know exactly where you stand legally. Get expert help from our team by calling us on 0161 250 7771 or completing our online contact form.