Our commitment
Our Firm is committed to providing a high-quality legal service to all its clients. If you feel that we have not provided the quality of service you expected, please let us know and we will carry out an investigation. We will:
- Carry out a thorough investigation of what has happened;
- Try to resolve the situation to your full satisfaction;
- Keep you fully updated on the progress until your complaint is resolved;
- Continually aim to improve our standards of service by listening to your views.
Our complaints procedure
Should you contact us to make a complaint, we will take the following action.
Upon receipt of your complaint, we will pass the details on to our Mr Hugh Pond, Senior Partner who has overall responsibility for complaints.
Mr Pond will commence an investigation by reviewing your matter and speaking to the member of staff who acted for you. He will also record the details of your complaint in our central register.
We will, within three working days of your complaint, send you a written acknowledgement.
If your complaint alleges that we have done something wrong or omitted to do something on your behalf, then we are duty bound to report the matter to our Professional Indemnity Insurers for guidance. In that case, we may have to advise you to seek independent legal advice from another firm of solicitors as there could be a conflict of interest between us.
However, if your complaint is about the level of service provided by us, then Mr Pond will respond to you in as much detail as possible within fourteen days. If you feel that the matter has not been resolved satisfactorily, then we will invite you to a meeting to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint. We would hope to be in a position to meet with you in this way no longer than fourteen days thereafter. Any complaints made where Mr Pond has the conduct of the matter are referred to our Mr Marsh as appropriate; any complaints about Mr Marsh or other staff members are referred to Mr Pond.
If at this stage, it is not possible to resolve the matter to your satisfaction, then please contact us again and we will consider alternative options. This could include making arrangements for another senior person at our firm to review the problem. This would be a person who is unconnected with your matter and who has not been involved in your complaint or inviting you to take part in independent mediation. We will let you know how long this progress takes.
We will then write to you within fourteen days confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining our reasons.
If at this stage, it is not possible to resolve the matter to your satisfaction, then you have the right to complain to the Legal Ombudsman. The contact details for whom are PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ. Mediation exists to deal with complaints about legal services should both you and our firm wish to use such scheme including Pro Media: www.promediate.co.uk
The time limits for the Legal Ombudsman accepting a complaint are:
- Six years from the date of act/omission or
- Three years from when the complainant should have known about the complaint.
The Legal Ombudsman will expect you to have given your solicitor a chance to resolve your complaint before it will get involved. Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a written response from us about your complaint.
For further information, you should contact the Legal Ombudsman at www.legalombudsman.org.uk telephone number: 0300 555 0333 between 9.00 am and 5.00 pm on a working day or email enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk or by post at PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ. If we have to change any of the responsibilities or the timescales set out above, we will write to you explaining the changes and why they are necessary.