Agatha Christie started it. Read any of her whodunnits up to the moment when a solicitor arrives on the scene, and you instantly know who the crook is.

Consumers are also not particularly keen. A quote from Which? reads: “People complain… time and time again about the second-rate service they receive from solicitors, often during stressful times. Other professions cannot get away with this sort of behaviour, and it is time for the Government to rein in this complaint-riddled industry.”