Complaints

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 standards.

Our complaints procedure

If you have a complaint, please contact Mr. Daniel Kenyon, our Client Care Manager. You can write to him at our address, which is: 2nd Floor, Graeme House, Derby Square, Liverpool, L2 7ZH.

If we have to change any of the responsibilities or the timescales set out below we will let you know and explain why.

What will happen next?

1. Within three days we will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint and asking you to confirm or explain any details. If it seems appropriate we will suggest a meeting at this stage. We will also let you know the name of the person who will be dealing with your complaint. 

2. We will then record your complaint in our central register and open a file for your complaint. We will also investigate your complaint by examining the relevant file.

3. If appropriate we will then invite you to meet Mr. Kenyon 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 14 days after first receiving your complaint. If you would prefer not to meet, or if we cannot arrange this within an agreeable timescale, we will write fully to you setting out our views on the situation and any redress that we would feel to be appropriate.

4. Within three days of any meeting we will write to you to confirm what took place and any suggestions that we have agreed with you. In appropriate cases we could offer an apology, a reduction of any bill or a repayment in relation to any payment received.

5. At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, please let us know. We will then arrange to review our decision. We would generally aim to do this within 10 days. This will happen in one of the following ways:

  • Gary McAteer will review your complaint within 10 days.
  • We will arrange for someone in the firm who has not been involved in your complaint to review it. 
  • We will ask our local law society or another local firm of solicitors to review your complaint. We will let you know how long this process will take.
  1. We will let you know the result of the review within five days of the end of the review. At this time we will write to you confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining our reasons. If you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint, you can ask the;

Legal Ombudsman 

PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ, 

Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk

Tel: 0300 555 0333, 

Email: [email protected]

to consider the complaint. 

For the Legal Ombudsman to deal with your complaint the problem must ordinarily have occurred after 5thOctober 2010.

If the problem occurred on or before 5th October 2010 or you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint, on or before that date, then the Ombudsman will not usually be able to deal with your complaint. 

If you are unsure about these time limits and how they apply to your matter, please contact the Legal Ombudsman’s office, using the contact details shown above, to clarify the position.

Subject to the above Scheme Rules, and the Legal Ombudsman’s discretion to extend the time limits, you will need to bring your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman 

  1. within six months of receiving a final written response from us about your complaint and,
  2. no later than 6 years from when the problem (act or omission) occurred or, 
  3. no later than 3 years from the date, you should reasonably have known that there was cause for complaint. 

Please Note

  1. If your complaint is specifically about our bill, you have the right to object to it and apply for an assessment of it under part III of the Solicitors Act 1974. If you should choose to exercise this right, and the court is assessing our bill, you may be unable to use the Legal Ombudsman service.
  2. If you are complaining as a business client, unless you are a “micro business” (as defined by the European Union), you may not be able to use the Legal Ombudsman scheme, and should check the guidance on Legal Ombudsman’s website.
  3. If you refer your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman as a trustee/personal representative (executor/administrator) or beneficiary of the estate/trust of a person who, before they died, had not referred the complaint to the Legal Ombudsman the period runs from when the deceased should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint; and when the complainant (or the deceased) should reasonably have known there was a cause for complaint will be assessed on the basis of the complainant’s (or deceased’s) own knowledge, disregarding what the complainant (or the deceased) might have been told if he/she had sought advice.
  4. If the ombudsman considers there are exceptional circumstances (e.g. serious illness or you were still within the time limits when you made your initial complaint to them) then he/she may extend any of the above time limits to the extent that he/she considers fair.

If we have to change any of the timescales above, we will let you know and explain why.

Clients are informed in their client care letter to take up any complaint they may have with their fee earner. 

When any member of staff becomes aware of a client complaint they must report it to Mr Daniel Kneyon as soon as ever possible so that the matter can be dealt with as swiftly as possible.

Following a complaint each fee earner must complete a Complaint Form (appendix 14.1) and keep a copy on a separate file for client complaints a copy should also be placed on a central file held in the office by Mr Kenyon. This is to ensure that all complaints have been dealt with quickly and to the client’s satisfaction. This will also show a pattern of standards of care afforded by individual fee earners. Very detailed attendance notes are to be kept regarding complaints and how they are dealt with. It is essential to record not only the nature of the compliant but also how that complaint has been dealt with and agreed action to rectify it.

A complaint does not have to be made in writing. But an oral “moan” or “whinge” would not be classified as a complaint. A complaint is defined as any expression of dissatisfaction however it is expressed I.e. in writing, over the telephone or in person.

All personnel are responsible for identifying complaints as it is conceivable that they may arise at any time and by any method of communication. A written note of the dissatisfaction must be recorded and subsequently placed in the central register of complaints file. As much detail as possible should be recorded especially if the complaint is verbal – whether in person or on the telephone. The individual recording the complaint should mark their notes with both the type of complaint (e.g. legal, administrative, procedural, personal etc.) and also brief details of the effect that the incident has had on the complainant (e.g. anger, frustration, inconvenience etc.).

Mr Kenyon will conduct a review of complaints on an annual basis to identify any trends or training needs and to ensure that any further action identified is addressed. This will be done by a careful examination of the central register and its contents The review and its results will be recorded in writing and retained in the central Complaints File.