Complaints Procedure

Our complaints policy

  • We are committed to providing a high-quality legal service to all our clients. Wherever our service is unacceptable, unsatisfactory, or falls below our usual standard then we need you to tell us about it.  This will help us to improve our standards.
  • If you have a complaint, including a complaint about a bill, please contact us with the details.

What will happen next?

  • We will send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint normally within ree days of receiving it, enclosing a copy of this procedure.
  • We will then investigate your complaint. This will normally involve passing your complaint to Phil Bramhall, our Principal, who will review your file.
  • Unless the complaint is accepted and resolved by letter, Phil Bramhall will arrange a meeting with you to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint. He will aim to do this within 14 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter.
  • Within three days of the meeting, Phil Bramhall will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions he has agreed with you.
  • If you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, Phil Bramhall will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including his suggestions for resolving the matter, normally within 21 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter.
  • At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you should contact us again and we will arrange for Phil Bramhall to review his own decision or arrange for review by another local solicitor.
  • We will write to you normally within 21 days of receiving your request for a review, confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining our reasons.
  • If you are still not satisfied and you are an individual, very small business, charity, club or a trust, you can contact the Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH, about your complaint. Any complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must usually be made within six months of the date of our final written response on your complaint but for further information, you should contact the Legal Ombudsman on 0300 555 0333 or at enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk.
  • If your complaint is about a bill, in certain circumstances you may also have the right to object to the bill by applying to the court for an assessment of the bill under Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974. In these circumstances, the Legal Ombudsman may not deal with the complaint.  If all or part of a bill remains unpaid, the firm may be entitled to charge interest.
  • If we have to change any of the timescales above, we will let you know and explain why.
  • Phil Bramhall will personally handle any complaints a client may have.

Assessing and recording complaints

  • All complaints received from clients will be dealt with and recorded in a central complaints file. The data collected from this file will help to improve the business and our client’s experience in general. The data will form the basis of our annual general review.

Definition of a complaint

  • An expression of dissatisfaction.