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Business appointments - October 21, 2008
A Polish national has been awarded associate status with a Fareham law firm.
The promotion is an achievement for Anna Agnieszka Douglass, 30, a native of Poznan who arrived in the UK 10 years ago.
She joined Brutton and Co, based in West Street, six years ago, and is one of the only legal advisers on the south coast to have offered bi-lingual services to fellow Polish migrants.
Specialising in civil property law, she has nonetheless given guidance to residents with employment or family problems, who have nowhere else to turn.
She said she might not be the only Polish legal associate in the South of England, but she 'certainly didn't notice any competition.'
'We had a lady who had been living up north and had a small child with her partner, but they split up,' she said.
'She moved down here, but he was sending letters threatening legal proceedings. She could speak English, but only just, and didn't really understand all the legal jargon. I'm not a family expert, but I sat in with her and filled in all the bits she couldn't quite manage.'
She studied her LLB at Solent University, before going on to win her LPC from London's BPP Law School.
Despite 'patriotic feelings', Anna, who married English husband Antony seven years ago, said she now regards England as home.
Although the Polish clientele make up just a small portion of her business, she said she tried to help whenever she could.
'When I first came here, there was virtually no help for people in terms of explaining how to pay tax or fill in simple forms.
'Now banks are advertising in Polish, and even Hampshire constabulary has leaflets in Polish reminding people which laws you have to obey.
'Hopefully we'll be seeing more and more, but with the credit crunch, the banking crisis and the weakening of the pound many people are now going back.'
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Wednesday 23 May 2012
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