What is ILA?
Independent legal advice (ILA) is advice provided by a solicitor who is not otherwise involved in the legal work needed to put your mortgage in place.
Why do I need it?
ILA is to protect you from signing any document without a full and frank understanding of the risks and obligations associated with the loan (mortgage). The solicitor conducting the ILA will explain everything to you in simple and non-technical language.
Your ILA solicitor will have to sign a certificate confirming that they provided you with the relevant advice and that you signed the document in front of them without any coercion from other parties.
You’ll often be asked to pay a fee for independent legal advice. This will cover the solicitor’s time with you and the preparation needed to make sure that you fully understand the arrangement.
It’s important to remember that this advice isn’t a formality, but a serious legal requirement to make you aware of your future risks.