Where now for the UK Society Big Wigs?

dozy

I see top UK JW lawyer Richard Cook is finally having to move out of his JW "grace & favour" house , currently for sale for a cool £2.75 million.

https://solicitors.guru/office/3466-richard-cook-solicitors/

https://ibsaproperty.com/houses/lowood-house/

Richard is a key man , very busy with child abuse and other cases and ( more importantly ) has the ear of the Governing Body.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-33201010

My British Bethel contacts tell me that Richard wasn't too keen on losing his prime London home and the thought of moving out of the city to the wastelands north of Potters Bar and decamping his family filled him with great anguish so the Society are trying to figure out what they can do to keep him on-board as he could earn much more money in the private sector. Should any forum readers wish to help a homeless man , please send your donations to the UK Bethel!

The other Society big wigs ( mainly lawyers and accountants ) living in similar properties also are wondering what the next move will be - the prospect of living in a shoe box studio flat at the new Bethel at Chelmsford doesn't really appeal. The long standing gravy train where these guys lived in luxurious rent free homes in leafy suburbia seems finally to have pulled into the station.

slimboyfat

Wow 😮 nice home on Watchtower’s dime. I wonder what his local congregation thought.

It’s a very interesting aspect of Watchtower’s financial decline: trying not to alienate key allies while withdrawing funds and selling assets. They seem to have been lucky so far that branches and branch staff that have been let go have not turned against Watchtower to any significant extent.

If Watchtower reaches a point where they can’t afford to pay their own lawyers and some of them turn against the organisation it could turn ugly. Saying that, presumably that’s why their lawyers will be the last to lose out. Watchtower would rather sell KHs and Assembly Halls before they would alienate their lawyers.

Vidiot

@ slimboyfat...

Agreed.

I suspect more and more potential assembly venues are turning the WTS down because they're starting to (correctly) view them as toxic clients.

Why wouldn't legal firms start viewing them that way?

GetMeOutofHere

Richard is a nice guy. I knew him for about 6 years. To think that a top lawyer like him was on £80 per MONTH when I knew him 10 years ago. Such a waste.

Phizzy

If the in house lawyers do jump ship, the JW Org will have to start paying some pretty steep legal Bills. Someone like Richard Cook will find it none too easy to slip in to normal Practice, these Legal Eagles that are in house do not seem the brightest of stars in the legal firmament.

Vidiot

@ Phizzy...

The Org had already had a "worldy" legal firm on retainer for some time now.

Can't remember the name, though.

OrphanCrow might know it.

pepperheart

It shows that the watchtower has an ongoing problem with shortage of money since they have been moking cuts since 2012

LV101

Nice digs - is Cook also in private practice or work for WT? I think the majority of WT legal (house counsel team) might have a hard time swimming out there in the real world with the competition. Many can't cut it right out of law school and realize they better find another career. There's always politics -- lol. Guess they'd lose their religion and free board & rent in one fell swoop.

ToesUp

Well, at least if poor Richard wants or has to leave Beth Hell, he will have a law degree to hang somewhere else and make a VERY nice living.

The Beth Hell lites that were laid off a few years ago, have nothing to fall back on. They have to be supported by family and the congregations they get pawned off to. Most have no savings, no home, no education and no skills. Not feeling too bad for Richard.

LV101

Duh - I realized conveying this message to someone else that Cook is not in private practice.

Where now for the UK Society Big Wigs?

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