The Story of Arscotts Solicitors
My name is Paul Arscott and I am the Managing Director of Arscotts solicitors.
My father Keith Arscott founded Keith Arscott & Co back in 1980. Keith was very much a general practitioner who built a loyal bank of clients and associates. The office was based in New Church Road in Hove where he ran a small practice until the move to Albany Villas in Hove in 1986. With the additional space provided by these offices the firm started to grow rapidly with the introduction of more solicitors with different skills enabling the business to provide a more all round 'high street service'. My mother, Wendy also joined the firm and with her accountancy background took the business forward by effectively managing administrative side of the practice.
In 1988 at the age of 20 I joined the family business. I obtained my qualification as a solicitor in 1998 and it was around this time that the company name was changed to 'Arscotts'. Shortly after this time we moved to Lansdowne Place and the business really started to grow particularly in the field of property. The need to modernise was recognised and managers were introduced to run the business side of things therefore leaving the solicitors and fee earners to concentrate on serving their clients. During this period we marketed aggressively and formed strong links with the business community. Within a short space of time the firm became unrecognisable to the one from a few years previous. We also invested heavily in training young people to work their way up within the company and found that 'organically' promoted fee earners were best placed to retain the feel of a family business whilst at the same time enhancing the standard of service we wanted to provide.
Our growth during this period started to make in roads into the outside areas in particular West Sussex and in 2005 we invested in office premises in Shoreham High Street. The 2 offices complemented each other and the business continued to go from strength to strength.
Sadly, things changed drastically following the collapse of Northern Rock in the summer of 2008 and the resulting recession, but with careful direction and restructuring we managed to stabilise the company and are once again pushing ahead with new exciting ideas. There is a fresh impetus within the firm with a strong modern focus on all areas of the service we provide.
There are huge changes and challenges lying ahead for the legal industry particularly with the implementation of the Legal Services Act in October 2011. This piece of legislation will enable non lawyers to own and manage law firms. It is expected to completely change the face of the way legal services are provided. It is recognised that to remain successful we will need to embrace the changes that lie ahead. In particular we will need to focus heavily on service and client care.
I and all at Arscotts are certainly looking forward to the challenges ahead.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us or continue on to meet the team
