Would you ever buy tickets for the cinema and then choose to only see half the film?  Well I suppose you might if it’s a very scary film and you’re hiding behind your seat half the time, but on the whole, people want to see it all.  Beginning, middle and end.

You might be tight for money, but even then you probably wouldn’t be tempted to try to negotiate with the cinema that you should only pay for half your ticket if you only watched the fight scenes, or the dramatic chase scenes, and closed your eyes and ears during the rest.   And even if you did, would watching half a film be worth it if you didn’t see all the parts that link it together?

Yet that is exactly what some people do when they go to a professional such as a solicitor or accountant.  They think that if they just give you an extract of a contract to read, you’ll be able to give them the answer in less time, and so it will cost less money.  Or that they can get tax advice without telling their accountant their full financial affairs.  Whilst it might save time and money in the short term, in the long run it is likely to cost you more, because the missing information may affect the advice.  Or your adviser may refuse to give any advice at all until they have the full story, so actually time and money is being wasted.

So my advice, for what it’s worth, is to make sure you tell your professional advisers the full story, warts and all.  Even the scary bits that make you want to hide behind the seats, or the bits that you are embarrassed by or worried about.  Trust me when I say we’ve heard it all before.  After nearly 35 years in law I think I’m unshockable, but if you want to put that to the test, you know where I am.

Kleyman & Co.  The full service law firm.  Now with extra popcorn!