General News | Dodds Solicitors Leicester

Brian Dodds Memorial Prize for the Best Performance in Criminal Law

Holly Lane — Wed, 13 Aug 2025 11:13:50 +0000

The Partners at Dodds Solicitors LLP are delighted to congratulate Claire Watson for the best performance in the criminal law exams at Leicester University.

She has therefore been awarded the Brian Dodds Memorial Prize for 2025.

This prize was created by this firm in order to recognise the contribution made by our late senior partner to the practice of criminal law in Leicester.

Manjit Obhi Memorial Prize for the Best Performance in Caring and the Law

Holly Lane — Thu, 17 Jul 2025 15:06:04 +0000

The Partners at Dodds Solicitors LLP are delighted to congratulate Emily Ward for the best performance in Caring and the Law at Leicester University and that she has therefore been awarded the Manjit Obhi Memorial Prize for 2025.

This prize has been created by this firm in order to recognise the contribution made by our late senior partner in the Family Care Department. Manjit was a formidable advocate and passionate about helping people.

Steve Morris honoured with Long Service Award!

it support — Wed, 22 May 2024 10:36:12 +0000

Last Friday night, Dodds Family attended annual Leicestershire Law Society Awards.

Congratulations to all the winners but of course a special congratulations to our own legendary Steve Morrisfor being honoured with Long Service Award.

It was great to see him finally being recognised! Of course Steve wouldn’t be Steve in a boring black bow tie! Congratulations Steve, you have inspired many over the years and continue to do so.

Thank you to everyone, who has been involved in making this event such an unforgettable experience.

National Conveyancing Week – Monday 11th to Friday 15th March.

Anna — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 12:27:04 +0000

This week is National Conveyancing Week, arranged by conveyancers to put the focus on conveyancing and the people who do this job, the conveyancers themselves.

As expressed by the organisers of the National Conveyancing Week, conveyancers are the conduit between the home mover, lender, mortgage broker and estate agent; it is a role which is often undervalued and misunderstood. Sadly, that is why more practitioners at the top end are leaving the profession than are joining at the bottom.

Often, conveyancers are portrayed as unnecessarily holding up the process but there are good reasons for the time taken over transactions. Effective conveyancing involves multiple checks on the property to ensure that there are no unpleasant surprises later on for the client when it is too late to get out of the purchase. For instance it is not great finding out after completion that there is a restrictive covenant preventing the further development on the property if that is what the client is planning. This is what conveyancers do; we look at the title to the property which the client wishes to purchase and report to the client to make sure that there will be no unpleasant surprises after completion.

Our main aim, as conveyancers is to serve our clients and to help them avoid any major difficulties with the biggest purchase that most people will make. Here at Dodds we pride ourselves on a reliable high quality service with an emphasis on personalised customer care; we make ourselves available to take your calls, answer your queries and keep you informed about your transaction, whilst conducting all stages of the transaction to the highest standard.

If you need conveyancing done properly, please call us on 0116 262 8596 or email to:

thorolf.christensen@dodds-solicitors.co.uk

denise.higgins@dodds-solicitors.co.uk

patsy.litt@dodds-solicitors.co.uk

and we will be happy to help!

The difference between a solicitor and a barrister in Criminal Law

Anna — Tue, 23 May 2023 11:28:27 +0000

Criminal solicitors meet clients at the very start of the process. They attend the police station and provide advice and assistance to their clients when they are at their most vulnerable. For clients that are charged, solicitors attend to represent them at their first appearance at the Magistrates� Court. They will also represent clients at any further hearings in the Magistrates� Court, including trials.

Most criminal solicitors further qualify as duty solicitors which means that they can assist clients at the police station and at Court when, for example, they do not have a usual solicitor that represents them.

Solicitors will manage a clients� case from start to finish and offer support where needed. Solicitors are qualified to deal with all types of cases and clients. This includes those who are extremely vulnerable, committing less serious offences frequently linked with homelessness, addiction or mental health issues. A good solicitor will often offer support to help a client regarding other matters that go beyond their criminal case.

Some solicitors have �Higher Rights of Audience� which means that they can practice alongside barristers in the Crown Court.

Criminal barristers work with the same vulnerable groups of people and deal with the same kinds of daunting situations.

However, their main role is that of an advocate and they appear mainly in the Crown Court where more serious crimes are dealt with. Solicitors will instruct barristers on a case that needs to progress from the Magistrates� Court either for trial or sentence.

If you require assistance with a criminal case please contact us on 0116 2628596�or email us at crime@dodds-solicitors.co.uk

Court fees

Anna — Tue, 02 May 2023 14:39:11 +0000

When making an application to the Court, a Court fee must be paid, otherwise the application will not be processed by the Family Court.

If you are in receipt of benefits and or a low income you can apply for a Court fee exemption in certain matters.

The Court fees are now as follows:

Divorce Petition – �593.00
Consent Order – �53.00
Financial Remedy Proceedings – �275.00
Children Act Application – �232.00
Enforcement Children Act – �232.00
Any other application – �167.00

The Court will not process any application without the Court fee being paid and or successfully applying for a Court Fee exemption.

For more information please contact our Family department on 0116 262 8596.

Conveyancing Quality Scheme accreditation

Anna — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 11:11:30 +0000

We are proud to announce that�Dodds Solicitors LLP�have now been accredited under the Law Society�s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. This allows us to apply to, and become members of the most major lenders panels. Therefore we will be able to accept instructions from, and provide our usual high level of service in relation to purchases with these Lenders. Please contact our�#conveyancing�#team�for further details and to hear whether we are now able to deal with your purchase.�We are always happy to help with any conveyancing queries you may have.

#law�#conveyancing�#quality�#accreditation�#solicitors�#doddsfamily

Well done to Sukhdev, Kelan & Pravleen!

Anna — Wed, 01 Mar 2023 11:57:49 +0000

#DoddsFamily are delighted to announce the promotion of one of our criminal solicitors Sukhdev Bisla to an Associate. Sukhdev specialises in all areas of crime.

�Pravleen Sian who works in our private family department has recently qualified as a solicitor and specialises in providing advice in relation to matrimonial and children matters.�

�Kelan Castaneda from our care department has been awarded a training contract! Kelan will continue to develop her practice in the care team for a further period of time before gaining experience in other areas within the firm as part of her training.�

�Well done to everyone and thank you for all your hard work!

�If you have any queries regarding crime, family or care matters please do not hesitate to contact our team members.

�You can view full profiles of all our solicitors by clicking on the Meet The Team tab.�

*picture from left Sukhdev, Kelan & Pravleen.

Drink Drive offence

Anna — Mon, 12 Dec 2022 10:42:26 +0000

All of us at Dodd�s Solicitors wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Celebrating Christmas and the New Year is always a very enjoyable and important time for us all.

During this festive time we hopefully all have an opportunity to have some well earned relaxation and downtime, enjoying the end of the year and starting to look forward to the year ahead. Some of us will be spending time with family or friends, eating more than we should and having the odd drink to celebrate the time of year with those close to us and at those Christmas parties! 😀

Unfortunately, this means that this time of year also has the highest rate of drink drive offences. Please be careful when you choose to drive a vehicle, because even if you drive the day after drinking, you could still be over the legal limit.

Our Specialist Crime Department can assist anyone who unfortunately finds themselves arrested for a Drink Drive offence. We can advise you upon the law surrounding drink driving and any potential defences, which could save you losing your licence. With our depth of experience within the road traffic sector, we can represent you in court to ensure you receive the best possible outcome.

Should you require advice or representation please contact us on 01162628596.

Good Divorce Week 28Nov-2nd Dec

Anna — Mon, 28 Nov 2022 15:36:44 +0000

COURT BACKLOGS RUINING LIVES SAYS LOCAL FIRM OFFERING ADVICE DURING GOOD DIVORCE WEEK

Dodds Solicitors LLP from Leicester is supporting Resolution�s Good Divorce Week which is highlighting why the Government must support better advice for separating families
Exclusive research from Resolution lays bare the human suffering and cost caused by family court delays
Dodds Solicitors LLP is offering advice sessions to local people during Good Divorce Week to promote the benefits of early intervention in family matters.

A Leicester based Dodds Solicitors LLP is supporting Good Divorce Week (28 Nov � 2 Dec), an annual awareness campaign run by Resolution, an organisation that represents over 6500 family professionals, which helps people find a better way to divorce.

Divorces are on the increase again with the most recent statistics showing 113,000 divorces in 2021 � up nearly 10% on the previous year � and the impact on wait times is stark. On average it now takes 52 weeks to conclude divorce proceedings.

In addition, official figures show that while private children cases were down by 7% during the last year, they are taking on average six weeks longer to reach a conclusion. And estimates suggest it takes nearly two years to resolve financial matters.

That leaves many families in limbo for over a year. That has a knock-on effect on children�s schooling and family finances.

Resolution surveyed its members on the current court backlogs and found:

20% said court delays caused clients to rely on benefits
34% said they�d referred a client to a counsellor or therapist to help them cope with the stress of ongoing court delays
90% said court backlogs were causing additional and unnecessary stress and pressure for clients

Ashwin Topiwala, Partner, family law specialist said: �Backlogs are wreaking havoc on local families in location. Even couples who want to separate amicably are having their patience and their continued relationship tested to breaking point by long delays. When it comes to sorting out children arrangements and finances after divorce, the situation is even bleaker.

�Children are waiting nearly a year for the courts to determine which parent they live with, what school they go to, how much time they spend with the other parent � putting the whole family�s life on hold. This is simply unacceptable and another reason why getting early professional advice is so important for families.

�We are proud to be offering advice sessions during Good Divorce Week so families get the benefit of early professional advice.�

Juliet Harvey, national chair of Resolution, said: �Under resourcing the family courts system is a false economy inflicting unnecessary pressure on the public purse and unconscionable stress on families at an already stressful time in their lives. A study of the impact of funding legal advice in Scotland found that, every �1 spent by government on legal aid in family cases saw a return of around �5 elsewhere.

�If the government were to focus more on encouraging early advice for separating couples and including information about all out of court options it could ease the pressure on family courts. Resolution members like Dodds Solicitors LLP are doing their best to help families achieve better outcomes and find long-lasting resolutions.�

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

Resolution is a membership association of 6,500 family justice professionals promoting a non-confrontational approach to resolving family issues and campaigning for a fairer family justice system.
Resolution members commit to a Code of Practice that promotes a constructive approach to family issues and considers the needs of the whole family, in particular the best interests of children.
Further updates about Resolution�s work can be found via our official twitter handle: @ResFamilyLaw and on our website: www.resolution.org.uk

For more information please call 0116 201 8566