Complaints Procedure

Scope

All claims, complaints and disputes arising out of or in connection with the Services (“Disputes”) will be resolved pursuant to this paragraph.

Complaints Procedure

A copy of our full complaints procedure is available on request. If you have any complaint or observation (good or bad) about our service, please say so.

• Raise any complaint first with the Fee Earner assigned to your matter, including any complaint about your bill.
• If this does not resolve it satisfactorily, tell the Supervising Director responsible for your case.
• If this does not resolve it satisfactorily contact Kay Cook the Director nominated by the practice to ensure prompt and thorough investigation of any complaint.
• If still unresolved at this stage, you may take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman. Normally, you will have to bring your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within 6 months of receiving a final response from us about your complaint.

Contact details: The address of the Legal Ombudsman is: PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ; telephone, 0300 555 0333; or view their website at www.legalombudsman.org.uk, email enquiries to:  enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Exclusions

We shall not be obliged to comply with the paragraph above in relation to any Dispute in which we seek:-

• an order or award (whether interim or final) restraining you from doing any act or compelling you to do any act; or
• a judgment or award for a liquidated sum to which here is no arguable defence (provided that the exception shall cease to apply and the Dispute may be referred to arbitration on the application of either party if the court decides that you should have permission to defend the claim); or
• the enforcement of any agreement reached or any binding order, award, determination or decision made pursuant to paragraph 28 above,
• nor shall anything in this paragraph inhibit us at any time from serving any form of demand or notice or from commencing or continuing with any bankruptcy, winding up or other insolvency proceedings.

Objecting to our fees

You have the right to object to our bill by raising the issue with us, and if you are not satisfied with our response, by referring it to the Legal Ombudsman. Alternatively you may have a right to apply to the Court for an assessment of the bill under Part III of the Solicitors’ Act 1974. If you exercise a right to have our costs assessed by the Court, you can not refer the issue to the Legal Ombudsman. If the services we have provided relate to proceedings in a Court or tribunal, you may additionally be entitled to have the amount of our fees checked or assessed under Rules of Court or regulations applying to the particular proceedings, or under the inherent jurisdiction of the Court or tribunal.

If all or part of our bill remains unpaid, whilst you dispute it, the firm may be entitled to charge interest.