ABout Us

Who are we?

We are the Solicitors at Patterson Law.

We are experts in road traffic law - thats all we do....We have over twenty years experience between us.

You will find lawyers who deal with general criminal law who claim to understand road traffic law. In our experience they rarely do! They are a jack of all trade and rarely understand the intricacies of road traffic law.

When you practice an area of law every working day you become really good at it. We are exceptional because we are great lawyers and deal only with road traffic offences.

Why are we prepared to give away so much free advice?

We see lots of bad advice on the internet - this annoys us. It's mainly contained in the forums and chat rooms, but also offered by non-road traffic specialist lawyers.

This sort of advice will often get you into more trouble than you are already in. We have to regularly speak to clients who have taken advice from others on the internet and are now at risk of prosecution for perverting the course of justice!!

It's one thing facing a ban and potentially losing your job as a result, but what if you get investigated for perverting the course of justice and face a prison sentence? How are you going to explain that to your family and employer?

We trust you to make the right decisions when you are well informed.

We are not precious about our knowledge.

We are confident enough to know that when you genuinely need a lawyer to help you and the risks are such that you can't afford to go it alone you will ask us to help you.

A relationship built on trust.

We will give you genuine quality legal advice and you can go away and do it yourself or you can ask us to help. It's absolutely up to you.

Go ahead, ask a question....

Ask a question 24/7 and a solicitor will respond by email within 24 hours. What have you got to lose - apart from your licence!

“I am absolutely delighted by the service you provided. From my first contact with you via Roadside Lawyer I have been completely satisfied with everything you have done and I will be recommending you to everyone I meet. This is one of the few occasions when I don’t have an opinion on how a service can be improved because yours is perfect."

Our key lawyers

Emma Patterson - Principal Solicitor

Emma is a recognised expert in her field. She started her career as a legal advisor to the Magistrates in the South West and then London. As a legal advisor she sat in road traffic courts on a daily basis and advised the Magistrates on all aspects of the law.

Emma presented training events to Magistrates at the Judicial Studies Board and advised the magistrates in relation to statutory change..

Emma then moved into private practice and built one of the largest general criminal departments in the South West. She dealt with high profile cases and earned a reputation as an excellent court room advocate and exceptional lawyer. Emma was selected to represent clients facing multi-million pound money laundering charges, murder allegations (including one of the largest murder investigations in the South West) and represented a client during interviews connected with the Twin Towers September 11th terrorist attacks.

Emma believes that you cannot serve your clients well if you dabble in a variety of different areas of law. As a result she decided to concentrate all her efforts on her road traffic clients and her decision has been proved to be right.

Emma is tenacious in her work. She recognises the need not to antagonise the Court or the Crown Prosecution Service, but she will always fight your corner and give you the best possible advice.

"I really can't find the words so i am saying it with chocolate! Thank you Jemma for the compassionate, infallible and breathtakingly professional handling of my road traffic matter."

Jemma Hurrell - Team Leader

Jemma is a fully rounded expert in road traffic offence law, and supervises the day to day case progression issues within the team.

She has been working closely with Emma from the start. She has a "no-nonsense" approach to defending and representing her clients. No stone will be left unturned in her attempts to get you the best possible result.

Jemma is a trainee Legal Executive, and has built her expertise whilst moving up through the ranks in the department.

When defending cases Jemma has immense skills of persuasion, and manages to get most cases withdrawn without trial.  She is determined and focused in trial preparation, instilling confidence in her clients by her approach and attitude. 

When presenting mitigation (if clients want to plead guilty) Jemma will take your instructions and present your case in a particularly sensitive manner, which will attract the compassion of the court, and achieve the most lenient sentence possible.

Louise Prout

Louise has a law degree and has completed her legal practice course. She is an experienced lawyer who has developed a strong expertise in road traffic law. She is renowned for her ability to understand and apply  technical aspects of road traffic law.

Louise is meticulous in her preparations and will keep you informed throughout. Louise cares about her clients and will do her utmost to achieve the best possible result.

Ria Pleass

Ria has a law degree and has completed her legal practice course. She specialises in road traffic law.

Ria is renowned for her ingenuity and tenacity in defending cases. She has considerable powers of persuasion when it comes to persuading the court and the CPS to act in the best interests of her clients. Ria has excellent client care skills and will work conscientiously to fight your corner and get the best result for you.

Are you at risk of a ban from driving? Are you about to accumulate 12 points within a three year period? We can and will help