Transparency Rules
The aim of Transparency Rules is to make sure consumers have information they need to make an informed choice of legal services provider.
Under Transparency Rules solicitors are required to publish complaints information. This includes our complaints handling procedure, details about how and when a complaint can be made to the Legal Ombudsman and details about how and when a complaint can be made to the Solicitors Regulation Authority. This information is set out below.
Making a complaint will not affect how we handle your case.
Susan Jubb Family Law Complaints Handling Policy
We want to give our clients the best possible service. If you instruct us to act for you and at any point become unhappy or concerned about the service we have provided please let us know immediately so that we can work with you to see how we may resolve the problem to your satisfaction.
If you want to make a more formal complaint please put this in writing marking your letter ‘complaint’.
What will happen next?
- We will send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint within three days of receiving it, enclosing a copy of this procedure. We will let you know who will be dealing with your complaint.
- We will then investigate your complaint.
- We will then invite you to a meeting to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint. This will be done within 14 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter. Within three days of the meeting we will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions we have agreed with you.
- If you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, we will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including our suggestions for resolving the matter, within 21 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter.
- At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you should contact us again for a review and we will arrange for an alternative such as review by another local solicitor or mediation 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.
The time limits above are a guide and may be exceeded in exceptional circumstances. If exceptional circumstances apply we will notify you as soon as it is possible to do so.
If you are still not satisfied, you can then contact the Legal Ombudsman about your complaint. Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us about your complaint or within six years of the act or omission about which you are complaining occurring (or if outside of this period, within three years of when you should reasonably have been aware of it). For further information, you should contact the Legal Ombudsman,
Legal Ombudsman Contact details
Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9am and 5pm
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ
The Legal Ombudsman
You are entitled to raise issues of concern with the Legal Ombudsman in England and Wales. The Legal Ombudsman encourages you to give reasonable time (the period of 8 weeks is suggested) to endeavour to resolve issues by making use of a company’s complaints procedures. The Legal Ombudsman deals with complaints by consumers and very small businesses.
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: This must be done within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint and 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 have tried to resolve the complaint with us first then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman: This must be done within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint and 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.
Legal Ombudsman Contact details
Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9am and 5pm
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ
What to do if you are unhappy with our behaviour :
The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help 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.
Visit their website www.sra.org to see how you can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
I do my best to help you feel comfortable enough with me to raise any fears or questions you may have and to say what is on your mind.