Author: Catherine Bates

    I often talk about people’s preconceptions about law and how they are often wrong. Litigation can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. Living with a partner for a long time doesn’t automatically give you spousal rights. An agreement doesn’t have to be in writing to be binding. You can record conversations […]

We all know that if something is too good (cheap!) to be true, it probably is! If the ad says that it’s a Rolls Royce at a bargain price, you might find that it’s not the shiny showroom-ready vehicle you were hoping for! And that you get what you pay for. Nevertheless, I still sometimes […]

It is said that a picture is worth 1,000 words. In some circumstances, that might be true, but does it always apply? Take this picture as an example. I have no doubt that anyone looking at it will come up with a different interpretation, but it’s highly unlikely that anyone will get it right. If […]

I’m a big advocate of the benefit of a good night’s sleep. It’s why I’ve never fallen asleep on my train and missed my stop – my devotion to getting to my bed on time being that strong. Although I have (on at least one occasion) been so sleepy (really, I wasn’t drunk, honest!) that […]

  Televisions lie! I don’t mean as in, all news reports are exaggerated, kind of way (although yes, that too). But in a, that would never happen in real life, kind of way. If things like Eastenders and Coronation Street were representative of real life, everyone would be spending so much time fighting, having affairs, […]

Have you noticed that many professionals have a code. For example, if an estate agent refers to a motivated seller, they often mean that they are desperate! Or if a mechanic or builder takes a sharp intake of breath, you know that means it’s going to be expensive. If your teenage children pay you a […]

When my eldest son was quite young, his way of counting was 1 2 3 a lot!  Everyone else laughed, but I knew that he got his head for figures from me, especially when it comes to how many drinks I’ve had! Which may explain why I chose law, rather than accountancy like my father […]

One of the things I love about my job is the opportunity it has given me to develop long term relationships with a wide variety of people. This morning I had coffee with a fabulous woman who I first met when she was 12 years old and I was helping her mother set up her […]

I often say that age isn’t important. It’s a state of mind. Most days I have to remind myself that I’m not a teenager any more, and that cases I worked on in my early days, or things that were normal practice when I started out, happened before some of my colleagues were born. But […]

Progress is not always a good thing. For example, I love my mobile phone – I cannot believe how I ever lived without it and if it even gets close to running out of charge when I’m not near a charger or back up battery, I show visible signs of stress that are even worse […]