Publication of Complaints Procedure

Who is this guidance for?

All Solicitors regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) are required under Rule 2.1 of the SRA Transparency Rules to provide information about:

• Their complaints handling procedure
• Details about how and when a complaint can be made to the Legal Ombudsman
• Details about how and when a complaint can be made to the SRA

The rule requires us to publish information on our website or make it available on request.

We want to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service provided, then you should inform us immediately so that we can do our best to resolve the problem.

What to do to resolve a complaint directly with us

In the first instance, it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your case to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues at this stage. If you would like to make a formal complaint, then you can read our full complaints procedure here. Making a complaint will not in itself prevent us from continuing to act for you as appropriate during the process.

Although all Solicitors must have professional indemnity insurance (in case of errors) we are not able to represent you in making a claim against ourselves. Where a client is claiming compensation for negligent work, they are almost always invited to take independent legal advice. We are not authorised by our insurer to make admissions of liability. Not all complaints are negligence claims. We remain at liberty to handle complaints about the quality of service we provide and we do try and resolve these wherever possible.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)

The SRA can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour, for example, if you are concerned that our treatment of you has broken the law.

What to do if we cannot resolve your complaint

The Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case. The Legal Ombudsman may help if you are unhappy about the work your solicitor did for you or your bill. This service is available to individual clients, small businesses, clubs, associations, trustees (with some limits on value), and certain personal representatives and beneficiaries of estates.

Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

• Within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint
• No more than six years from the date of act/omission; or
• No more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint

If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them:

LeO Contact Details

Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk

Call: 0300 555 0333 (between 9am to 5pm)

Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Write: Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ

The Solicitors Regulation Authority

The SRA can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour. For example, if you are concerned that our treatment of you has broken the law. The SRA website contains guidance as to how to report a Solicitor. You can also report a firm or someone regulated by the SRA for non-payment of professional fees (such as agent or expert fees) if you have a County Court judgment in respect of the fee, and the judgment relates to the practice in connection with providing a legal service.

There are some issues the SRA does not investigate, but they will always consider allegations of dishonesty or discrimination.

SRA Contact Details

Visit: www.sra.org.uk

Call: 0370 606 2555 (between 9am to 5pm)

Email: contactcentre@sra.org.uk

Write: The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham, B1 1RN

Complaints Procedure

At Vanstone Solicitors our aim is to provide the highest standards of client care. A substantial majority of our clients have no complaint and are very pleased with the service we provide. However, we are not complacent and always wish to know if you are unhappy with any aspect of our services.

If You Have a Complaint

If you are unhappy about any aspect of the service you have received or about our charges, the first step is to speak to the person who has been dealing with your matter. Most issues can be resolved quickly and amicably at this stage.

If the issue cannot be resolved to your liking or you wish to deal with someone else, please contact Mazhar Latif, Director, Solicitor on 0161 762 3790 or by email on mazhar@vanstonelaw.co.uk or by post to our office address Vanstone Solicitors, The Vanstone, 40 Parkhills Road, Bury, BL9 9AT.

What will happen next?

We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 5 working days of receiving it, enclosing a copy of this procedure (unless the information has already been provided to you).

We will investigate your complaint. Mazhar Latif will review your file which might include speaking to any other members of staff who have been involved in your matter.

The investigation might also involve inviting you to a meeting to discuss your complaint. We will do this within 14 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter. Within five days of any meeting, we will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions that were agreed with you.

If you do not want a meeting or where we feel that a written response would be most helpful to you, we will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including suggestions for resolving the matter, within 21 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter.

Appealing the decision

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of our investigation, you may contact us again (within 10 days of receiving our final decision) and we will arrange for another firm of solicitors to review the handling of and decision on your complaint (if they are willing to do this).

Or

We may invite you to agree to a process of formal mediation through an independent mediator (if this is available).

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.

Timescales

If it is not possible to deal with your complaint in this timeframe, we will inform you of the delay and the reasons. However, we will do our best to resolve the matter as soon as practicable.

What to Do If We Cannot Resolve Your Complaint

The Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case.

Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

• Within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint;
• No more than six years from the date of act/omission; or
• No more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.

If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them:

Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk

Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9am to 5pm.

Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Write: Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ

The Solicitors Regulation Authority

The SRA can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour. This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money, or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability, or other characteristic.

You can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority at:

The Cube
199 Wharfside Street
Birmingham
B1 1RN
DX 720293 BIRMINGHAM 47
report@sra.org.uk

For further information, please contact the Complaints Director/Solicitor at mazhar@vanstonelaw.co.uk.