For retiring & retired lawyers
Are you a retiring or retired lawyer looking to dispose of your old law books and law reports?
A career's worth of shelving doesn't have to end up in a skip.
Whether you're a retiring solicitor with law books to clear, a retiring barrister with a library to deal with, or looking to sell legal books after retirement once things have settled down, we buy current sets, take outdated editions off your hands too, and arrange free collection around your own timeline — not the other way round. If you're wondering how to sell a law library when retiring, the short answer is a photo and an enquiry — solicitor library clearance and barrister library clearance both work the same way: no rush, no obligation.
Why this comes up at retirement
Thirty years of practice leaves a lot on the shelf.
Retirement — or winding a practice down — is one of the most common reasons a law library needs sorting out. Books that were bought new across a whole career, updated and added to along the way, suddenly need a decision made about them all at once. Most retiring practitioners don't want to spend that time boxing and driving books to a dealer themselves, and don't want them going to landfill either.
We handle both problems at once: a cash offer for anything with resale value, free collection for the lot, and responsible recycling for whatever's genuinely past its working life.
No rush required
Tell us your actual timeline — weeks or months out — and we'll arrange collection to suit, not the soonest slot available.
The whole library, not just the good bits
Current editions are valued and bought. Older or outdated ones are still collected and recycled responsibly.
We do the lifting
Free collection means you don't box, carry, or drive anything anywhere. We come to you.
If you would rather do it gradually yourself — a shelf at a time over a few weeks rather than clearing a study in one afternoon — say so and we will send boxes out free of charge, as many as you need. Either way there is nothing to buy and nothing to carry.
Solicitors and barristers, specifically
The practical difference is worth knowing before you start.
If you're a solicitor
Older reference sets are sometimes a firm asset bought and shared across the practice, rather than personally yours — worth a quick check with a partner or practice manager before arranging collection if you're not the sole owner of the firm. Anything genuinely yours, or the whole library if you have that authority, we buy on the usual terms. More on selling a solicitor's library.
If you're a barrister
A chambers library is typically your own personal professional collection rather than a shared chambers asset, so the decision to sell is usually yours alone. Chambers administrators and clerks are often the easiest point of contact for coordinating a collection time that doesn't disrupt others still in practice there. More on selling a barrister's or chambers library.
What we buy
The sets most careers accumulate.
Halsbury's Laws, All England Law Reports, Chitty, Archbold, and the practitioner texts that go with them — see everything we buy. Not sellable? We also recycle outdated editions free of charge. Retiring from judicial office specifically? We've written a separate guide for judges, since it's a genuinely different situation.
Common questions
About retiring and disposing of your library
What should I do with law books when retiring?
Send a photo of the shelves and get a valuation — that's genuinely the whole first step. If you'd rather sell a solicitor's library than store or dispose of it, we buy complete and partial collections, collect for free, and can pay within an hour of agreeing the figure.
I haven't retired yet, but I know the date — can I book collection in advance?
Yes — tell us your timeline on the enquiry form and we'll arrange collection for whenever suits, not just straight away.
My collection has built up over 30+ years — is that too much?
No — a full career's worth of books is exactly what we're set up for, from a handful of volumes to a whole room.
Some of it is decades out of date — is it still worth an enquiry?
Yes. Current editions are valued and bought; older or outdated ones are still collected and recycled responsibly, free of charge.
Some of it may be a firm asset rather than personally mine — what should I do?
Worth checking with a partner or practice manager first if you're not sure of your authority to dispose of it. We only buy what's genuinely yours or your firm's to sell.
Winding down practice?
Submit an enquiry and let us take care of the shelves.
Four details and we’ll come back with a valuation, usually within 24 hours. Nothing to catalogue or sort first, and no obligation either way.
We’ve got your enquiry.
Your reference is your enquiry. Worth a note — quoting it saves you explaining everything again if you call.
We’ll review what you’ve sent and come back with a valuation, normally within 24 hours. If anything’s unclear we’ll ask — usually just one question.
Got photographs? Send them to info@SellLawBooks.co.uk quoting your reference and we’ll add them to the file.