Here at Thornton Jones we are passionate about Client Care – that is, making sure that all our clients receive an excellent service and leave feeling happy. In 2021, our team came together to discuss how we can enrich our client’s experience and they came up with ‘HAPPY’.
HAPPY stands for Honesty, Approachable, Professional, Proactive, and You Come First. It embodies our everyday approach to client care.
We believe that it’s the people who make us renowned for delivering the best service possible. Our entire team truly is focussed on putting the happiness of our clients first. But what does HAPPY stand for and how will be deliver on our promise?
HAPPY was conceived by our team, the exact people who you, as our clients, will interact with throughout the course of your matter, and indeed throughout your life as and when you require our legal services. And because it’s been created by our team you can be assured that they believe in it and are committed to it.
H stands for Honesty
The legal industry has a reputation for being dishonest, for charging too much, and for ‘ripping people off’. We want to change that view. Like any profession, there is a premium to be paid for the skills and experience that an individual brings. It’s why you pay a mechanic to service your car or a dentist to service your teeth.
But whilst we must charge the appropriate rate, we must also be transparent and honest about the costs, and any future costs, and we must keep you updated on the progress of your matter and how any developments might influence the fees we charge.
The last thing we (and you) want is for an unexpected bill to be handed to you at the end of your matter. That certainly wont make you happy at all!
A stands for Approachable
As Lawyers, we don’t sit in a timber clad boardroom wearing monocles and wigs and presiding over thick red leather textbooks. That can be kept for the movies. We sit in open-plan offices with friendly and funny chit-chat. Other than the jobs we do, we’re just like you!
The impression of Lawyers is a stigma that we need to abolish, and we are doing this by demonstrating just how wonderfully approachable we are.
When you call us, we will be polite, friendly, and courteous, and we will endeavour to help you speak to the right person quickly, and when you do, receive a service that leaves you feeling completely at ease.
P stands for Professional
First and foremost, we are a law firm and we take our professional role very seriously. Whether you are buying your first home or divorcing, our approach will be of the utmost professionalism. We recruit only the best we can find and with decades of experience amongst us, you can be confident that we know what we are doing. We don’t cut corners. We don’t leave tasks unfinished.
P stands for Proactive
If there’s a job to be done, we’ll do it. Time is our most valuable commodity, and leaving tasks unfinished or not acting upon an email or call is just not our style! You have our number, but we have yours too, and we aim to be so proactive that you should never need to contact us for a progress update because we’ll have already updated you! And if there’s no update to give, we can at least let you know what we’re doing to move things forward and to set your expectations on when the next update will be.
Y stands for You Come First
Let’s be blunt. We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you. So it goes without saying that you absolutely come first. As paying clients you expect a high quality service where you are the centre of our focus. You are paying us to do a job for you and this is a responsibility we don’t take on board lightly.
Making you HAPPY is not a marketing gimmick, it’s a passion. And we know that when you are HAPPY, we are HAPPY, so it works both ways!
Of course, we are only human, and like you we might have an ‘off day’, make a bad judgement, or make a mistake. What’s important though, is that both you and we know that all we strive to do is our very best, and when we do get it wrong, we promise to acknowledge our error and to put it right, fast.
