We aim to provide a 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 standards.
Our complaints procedure
If you have a concern or a complaint that has not been dealt with to your satisfaction by the person handling your case or their supervisor, please contact us as soon as you are aware of the problem so this can be addressed. Please contact Amir Butt, Principal, on 01733 565900. If complaint relates to him, please contact Mrs Tracey Ward on
01733 565900.
What will happen next?
- We will send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint within five days of our receiving the complaint unless we have spoken to you during this period to acknowledge receipt of your complaint.
- We will then investigate your complaint. This will normally involve passing your complaint to the Principal, who will review your matter and speak to the member of staff who acted for you.
- The Principal will then invite you to a meeting to discuss and, it is hoped, resolve your complaint. He will do this within 14 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter or verbal acknowledgement of your complaint.
- Within fourteen days of the meeting, the Principal will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions or proposals he has agreed with you.
- If you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, the Principal will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including his suggestions for resolving the matter, within 21 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter or verbal acknowledgement.
- At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you should contact us again to explain why you remain unhappy with our response and we will review your comments. Depending on the matter we may at this stage arrange for another member of the Management Team to review the decision.
- We 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.
- If we have to change any of the timescales above, we will let you know and explain why.
- If you are still not satisfied, you can then contact the Legal Ombudsman at PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ or call 0300 555 0333 about your complaint. Any complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must be lodged with the Ombudsman within either
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- 6 years from the act or omission taking place; or
- Three years from when you should reasonably have known there was a cause for complaint; or
- Six usually be made within six months of your receiving a final written response from us regarding your complaint.
After either of these time limits, the Ombudsman is not likely to entertain your complaint.
The Legal Ombudsman has provided further guidance on its service at www.legalombudsman.org.uk.
Complaint relating to our behaviour or conduct
If your complaint relates to our behaviour or conduct rather than the service, the complaint will need to be made to the Solicitors Regulations Authority (SRA). This can be done via their website at www.sra.org.uk, in writing to The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham B1 1RN or by telephone 0370 606 2555.
Solicitors Regulations authority or Legal Ombudsman – who to complaint
The Solicitors Regulation Authority could help you if you think a solicitor might be dishonest or you have concerns about their behaviour.
Examples include:
- Shutting down their law firm without telling you.
- Dishonesty or deliberately overcharging you.
- Taking or losing your money.
- Treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic.
The Legal Ombudsman could help you if you are not happy with your solicitor’s work or service and need to put things right.
Examples include:
- Not replying to your emails, letters or calls.
- Losing your documents or giving you unclear advice.
- Charging you an amount you are not happy with.
- Not explaining issues properly so you do not understand.