Complaints Procedure & Policy

Our aim

We aim to deal promptly, fairly and effectively with any complaint a client may have about any aspect of our service.

Our complaints handling policy

We are committed to providing a high-quality legal service to all our clients. When something goes wrong, we need you to tell us about it. This will help us to improve our service. There is no question of any charge being made for the time taken to resolve a complaint.

How to complain

If you have a complaint, please give the details (by letter, email or telephone) to the Admin Officer who will pass information to the principal. If you have not dealt directly with a partner, please refer the partner named in our engagement letter as the Lawyer responsible for supervising your matter. All complaints received by us are recorded in a central register kept by this firm (the “Central Register”).

Where a quick resolution of your complaint is possible

It is possible that, after investigation, the partner to whom you first notified your complaint can quickly resolve it to your satisfaction, in which case s/he will record in writing to you and to the Central Register, within 7 days of your first contacting us, the agreed manner of resolution. If, however, your complaint is not resolved to your complete satisfaction within 7 days of your first contacting us, you should notify (by letter, email or telephone) the partner first contacted by you that you require your complaint to be investigated by another partner.

What will happen next?

1. Another partner will then investigate your complaint. This will normally involve passing your complaint to our Senior Solicitor who will:

   • send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint (within three days of your requesting an investigation of your complaint by another partner) and enclosing a copy of this procedure; and
   • nominate a partner unconnected with your matter to review your matter file and speak to the member of staff who acted for you.
2. The partner nominated to investigate your complaint will then invite you to a meeting to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint. S/he will do this within 14 days of the Senior Solicitor’s sending you the acknowledgement letter.
3. Within three days of the meeting, the partner who met with you will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions s/he has agreed with you.
4. If you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, the partner nominated to deal with your complaint will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including his/her suggestions for resolving the matter, within 21 days of the Senior Solicitor’s sending you the acknowledgement letter.
5. At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you should (by letter, email or telephone) contact our Senior Director, AJ OFFIAH, and he will review the decision.
6. Our Senior Director will write to you within 14 days of receiving your request for a review, confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining our reasons.
7. If you are still not satisfied, you can then contact the Legal Ombudsman:

   By letter: Legal Ombudsman, PO BOX 6167, Slough SL 1 0EH

   By telephone: callers from UK: 0300 555 0333 / callers from overseas: +44 121 245 3050

   By email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

   The Legal Ombudsman may be prepared to investigate your complaint if you satisfy the relevant criteria.