We are committed to providing a high-quality legal service to our clients. If you have any concerns, please advise us immediately so that we can take steps to resolve any issues.
To assist in defining the process to be followed, we use the following definitions:
FORMAL COMPLAINT
Is a ‘formal’ complaint from a client made to the Principal (either directly by the client or via the Legal Ombudsman (Office for the Legal Complaints) (LeO) and must be dealt with in accordance with SRA procedures. The Principal shall ensure that full cooperation is provided in such instances.
DISSATISFACTION
Is any other substantive expression of dissatisfaction (oral or written) regarding the practice’s services or of its personnel in the conduct of their duties. Such dissatisfaction may indicate potential for improvement in the practice’s processes and will be dealt with informally via ‘in-house’ procedures.
OUR COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE
- If you have a complaint, please first contact the fee earner dealing with your case. If you are not satisfied within 14 days submit the details of your complaint in writing to that fee earner if you have not already done so.
- Upon receipt of a written complaint this will be referred to the fee earner dealing with your matter and a copy will be given to our Principal, Mr Nigel Penzer. We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 2 working days. If the complaint concerns the Principal a copy will be given to the firms consultant. The complaint will be entered in our Central Register.
- We will then investigate your complaint. If we require further information, we will let you know within 14 days of receiving your complaint. We may request you to attend a meeting to discuss your complaint. In any event we shall endeavor to give a full reply within 21 days of having sufficient information from you.
- If you are unable to resolve your complaint with our fee earner or receive no reply your next step is to write direct to our Principal (or in the case of complaint against him or her to the Consultant notified or asking him or her to investigate your complaint.
- Your complaint will then be reviewed again, and you may expect either a request to attend a meeting to discuss your complaint or a full reply within 21 days of receipt of your request.
- At this stage, if you are still not satisfied you can write to the Principal again. We will then arrange to review our decision. This will happen within 21 days.
- You should allow us up to 8 weeks to resolve your complaint. If, after 8 weeks, we have failed to deal with your complaint to your satisfaction, you can involve the Legal Ombudsman.
- If we are unable to resolve your complaint, then you can have the complaints independently looked at by the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman investigates complaints about legal services with Lawyers. The Legal Ombudsman expects complaints to be made to them within 1 year of the date of the act of omission about which you are concerned, or within 1 year of your realizing the concern. You must also refer your concerns to the Legal Ombudsman within 6 months of our final response to you.
- The contact details of the Legal Ombudsman are:-
Legal Ombudsman
P O Box 6167
Slough
SL1 0EH
Tel: 0300 555 0333
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk