'First legal brokerage' to manage cases for wealthy clients

A Russian national who qualified as a lawyer in Australia is launching what he claims is the first ‘legal brokerage’ in the UK.

Dr Yuri Rapoport, who now lives in London and is registered as an overseas legal consultant at the Law Society, said the aim was to ensure that lawyers provided advice to the required standard and clients were not exposed to “unnecessary billing”.

He said that, in its trial phase, Oracle Legal Case Management (OLCM) was working on ten cases with several City firms, including Speechly Bircham.

OLCM is a joint venture with Oracle Capital Group, which advises wealthy individuals and families from offices in London, Geneva, Nassau, Moscow, Cyprus, Luxembourg and Kazakhstan.

Dr Rapoport, executive director of Oracle LCM, said: “Some lawyers take on cases in areas where their experience is lacking, making up for their shortcomings in long, billable research sessions.

“The large numbers of Eastern European immigrants, who bring with them considerable wealth but a slim understanding of the English language and legal system, are particularly vulnerable and law firms, especially in London, are increasingly targeting them.”

Dr Rapoport said the new service would provide “lawyers to manage the lawyers”.

Currently in Moscow promoting the service, he said he hoped OLCM would be formally launched by the end of this month.

He said the ten cases all involved Russian-speaking clients, mainly from Russia itself, but also from Georgia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan and the disputes ranged from family to landlord and tenant, tax investigations and general litigation.

He said OLCM would charge clients an additional percentage of legal fees, whenever the lawyer charged the client.

Ashley King-Christopher, partner and tax specialist at Speechly Bircham, who is working on cases under the trial scheme, said: “The disconnect between reality and expectation can be famously wide in legal services, particularly when dealing with clients from overseas who are unfamiliar with the English legal system.

“A professional intermediary who can smooth that path is very welcome. Anything that promotes a raising of standards in the legal world must ultimately be a benefit to all of us.”

Yury Gantman, chief executive of Oracle Capital Group, said his firm “acted as a safety net for wealthy Eastern Europeans doing business in London”.

Gantman said: “Our move into legal management services, therefore, is a very natural progression. We are very much looking forward to working with Dr Rapoport who will be bringing his extensive knowledge and experience to this joint venture.”