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Why your clients are not seeing matters through
Despite the majority of business owners seeking expertise from lawyers when dealing with a dispute, they don’t always see the matter though due to myriad reasons, a new report has found.
Emma Musgrave
The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman has just released its Access to Justice report, detailing where small businesses went to for dispute resolution matters over 2018.
Of those who had escalated a serious dispute, 57 per cent had been resolved (29 per cent in favour of the business), the report found. However, 13 per cent of disputes were abandoned mid-process, with the report providing a look into the reasons why.
It found that 49 per cent of respondents who escalated a dispute with their lawyer abandoned it mid-way through due to the costs associated outweighing the potential gains.
A further 24 per cent said they believed they were unlikely to win, while 19 per cent said they “didn’t have time” to take the process all the way.
Twelve per cent said they were advised not to proceed further, while 11 per cent said they either didn’t feel confident they’d get a fair ruling, or they were concerned about their mental and/or physical health.
Seven per cent cited reputational concerns, 4 per cent said they didn’t feel confident that they understood the procedures and a further 4 per cent said they either didn’t want to damage the relationship with the other party, or, were concerned about retribution from the other party.
Emma Musgrave
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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