What legal information websites can and cannot tell you

A legal information website can explain concepts and help identify questions, but it cannot assess facts it has not been given. Official advice guidance distinguishes general information from finding a specialist to address a particular problem. ^[1]

Check the article's scope before relying on it Look for jurisdiction, publication or review date and the sources supporting the explanation. A page about England and Wales may not answer a Scottish question, and a reform announcement may describe a future change.

Identify assumptions the article makes about the reader, transaction or procedural stage. A consumer guide may not apply to a business purchase; a general contract explanation may not cover a regulated product.

Use the information to prepare a focused enquiry Write down the fact that may make your case different and the decision you need to take. Gather the relevant agreement, notice or order. Avoid treating a generic example as a prediction of the result in your own matter.

Use the jurisdiction check and a written consultation request to turn reading into a useful question. Where a deadline or substantial commitment is involved, verify the actual position before acting on a summary.

Identify the proposition you intend to rely on After reading a guide, write down the particular statement that would affect your next action. It might concern a right to cancel, a response period or a document requirement. Ask whether the page states a general principle, describes an example or explains a specific exception. Those are different forms of information. A broad introduction can help you recognise an issue without supplying every condition needed to act. The reader's task is to locate the proposition that needs checking, rather than treating the entire article as a personal answer.

Consider what the author could not know about your matter. The guide has not seen your agreement, correspondence or relevant order. A phrase such as reasonable notice may depend on facts the page cannot assess. GOV.UK's advice guidance directs people towards suitable specialist help for particular problems. ^[1] Use general reading to prepare that enquiry: identify the fact that may change the answer and the decision you need to make, instead of asking a professional to confirm a conclusion already selected from a convenient paragraph.

Read dates as part of the explanation, not a decoration Look for publication, update and effective dates, and distinguish them. An article updated recently may discuss a reform that has not yet started or a historic dispute governed by earlier rules. Follow the cited official source for the point you intend to use. Check whether it describes a current rule, proposed change or transitional arrangement. A recent date on a website does not by itself establish that every legal proposition has been revised or that the rule applies to an event that occurred years earlier.

For an illustrative contract question, the date of agreement, date of an alleged breach and date of proposed action may each matter differently. Record them before assuming today's summary answers the whole issue. If two pages appear inconsistent, compare their scope and dates before choosing between them. One may address a different type of transaction or procedural stage. An adviser can help resolve the difference when the actual documents and relevant events are available, whereas selecting the more favourable wording may simply preserve the wrong assumption.

Check the reader and jurisdiction assumed by the guide Identify whether the page concerns an individual consumer, a business, an employee or another category. A small business owner may act personally in one transaction and through a company in another. The relevant description should follow the actual arrangement, not the reader's preferred label. Similarly, a guide discussing England and Wales should not automatically be used for Scottish property or a Northern Ireland procedure. Check the geographic and subject boundaries together, including any local rules identified within a shared legal framework.

Read examples for their teaching purpose. A worked scenario may simplify ownership, timing or evidence to explain one principle. Compare each relevant fact with your own situation and note what is missing. Do not interpret a sample outcome as a forecast of what another party or court will decide. The example can help formulate a question, but it cannot establish disputed facts or remove the need to review an actual clause, notice or procedural direction that differs from the assumptions used in the illustration.

Turn useful reading into a bounded enquiry Prepare a short note containing the webpage, the proposition of interest, the facts that may make your case different and the action you are considering. Attach the relevant operative document and identify any deadline. Ask the adviser whether the general explanation applies and what additional information is needed. This is more efficient than forwarding several articles with a request to read everything and tell you what to do, because it shows exactly where general information stops answering the practical question you face.

Keep a dated copy or reference if the page materially informed your enquiry, while using current official guidance for any later verification. Avoid sharing unnecessary personal data in public comment boxes or general website forms. If you receive tailored advice, retain its assumptions and scope rather than treating it as an unlimited endorsement of every statement on the site. Legal information is most useful when it improves understanding and preparation, with the distinction between a general explanation and an assessment of the actual matter kept visible throughout the decision.