Complaints

Our promise to you

We would like to think we never give anyone any cause for complaint. We recognise however that we are only human and problems can arise. We promise: -

• we will always take any expression of dissatisfaction seriously;

• we will always try and sort things out honestly and quickly;

• we will always own up if we get things wrong;

• we will always do our best to put things right

Should I say anything?

If anything bothers you, please let us know straight away. You can contact us in writing or by telephone or any other means that you are comfortable with.  Experience tells us that most problems are communication failures. They can usually be sorted out very easily. Always tell us if there is anything that you do not understand.

Note that this could include a complaint about our bill.

And if that does not work?

If we cannot resolve a problem informally we will deal with it as a complaint. This procedure is handled by Frank Calleia. If the complaint involves him, Andrew Brocklehurst will deal with it.

What is the procedure?

We will: -

• acknowledge we have received your complaint within two working days and provide a timetable for dealing with your complaint;

• investigate the matter thoroughly;

• provide a written report on that investigation;

• say whether we accept there is a justified complaint;

• provide reasons if we do not;

• say what remedial action we can take;

• say if any other course of action seems appropriate e.g. referral to another solicitor;

• invite you to come and discuss the matter personally.

The Legal Ombudsman

You are entitled to make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman if we are unable to resolve a complaint about our service or if we do not give our final response to your complaint within eight weeks of you formally lodging it.  They can be contacted at www.legalombudsman.org.uk or by calling 0300 555 0333.  Ordinarily a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman would be after going through our in-house procedure, although there are exceptions.

Time Limits

Ordinarily a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must be within six months of the date of our written response to you.

Our response will include:-

• an explanation that the Legal Ombudsman is available if you remained dissatisfied;

and

• full contact details of the Legal Ombudsman and a warning that your complaint must be referred to the Legal Ombudsman within six months

Ordinarily a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must be within:-

• one year from the matter complained of; or
• one year from when you should reasonably have known there was cause to complain without taking advice from a third party;

whichever is later.

However, the Legal Ombudsman will not accept complaints where the act or date of awareness were before the 6^th October 2010.

The Legal Ombudsman may extend the time limit if he / she considers it fair.

Our bills

There is a right to object to our bill by applying to the court for an assessment of the bill under Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974.

The Legal Ombudsman may not deal with a complaint about a bill if you have applied to the court for assessment of that bill.

If all or part of our bill remains unpaid we may be entitled to charge interest.

A copy of our complaint procedure is available on request.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

We are required to inform you that alternative dispute handling bodies  (such as ProMediate, Brow Farm, Top Road, Frodsham, WA6 6SP, 0203 621 3908 www.promediate.co.uk ) are able to deal with complaints about legal services should both you and we wish to use such a scheme. The Legal Ombudsman scheme is free of charge however there is a fee for using an alternative complain handling body. Given the cost we see no benefit in this given that mediation is not binding on you or us and it would be unusual for us to agree to such a scheme.

Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)

Should your complaint relate to anything other than poor service, then you may choose to report the solicitor or firm to the SRA. The SRA works with lawyers, non-lawyers and firm to ensure that they comply with the SRA principles. The SRA can be contacted at www.sra.org.uk/consumers/problem/report-solicitors by e-mail report’sra.org.uk or Solicitors Regulation Authority, The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham, B1 1RN

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