At Legis Chambers, we endeavour to offer good services at all paramount times.
However, should the lay or professional client have a complaint, the barrister concerned will seek to resolve the matter with the client by himself first. If the client still remains unsatisfied with the concerned barrister’s response, the below said complaints procedure should aid in resolving the complaint as effectively and as reasonably as possible.
To avoid any misunderstanding or miscommunication, all formal complaints should be made in writing.
Any formal complaint received in Legis Chambers will be notified to the Head of Chambers, together with copies of all significant supporting correspondence etc.
The concerned barrister shall cease acting on behalf of the complainant immediately once a formal complaint is raised.
1. A complaint is any material expression of dissatisfaction which is about a matter which covers negligence, incompetence or a significant shortfall in levels of service. The complaint should be made in writing to either the relevant barrister or the practice manager.
2. All complaints will be acknowledged, preferably in writing, within 72 hours of receipt, and a copy of this procedure will be included in the acknowledgement.
3. The client will also be advised when a full reply will follow, which would be within 8 weeks. Somtimes extra time may be needed for the response to be finalised. In these cases, the complainant will be informed of the expected length of delay and the reason(s) for the delay.
4. If the complaint relates to the Head of Chambers, it will be dealt with by an independent barrister within the chambers appointed by the practice manager.
5. The existence of this procedure does not prohibit Legis Chambers from dismissing, without further investigation, complaints that are manifestly without merit.
6. If a complainant, having had the matter reviewed by the Head of Chambers, is still unsatisfied, he/she may take his/her complaint to the Legal Ombudsman who can be contacted at :
Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ Tel : 0300 555 0333 Website: www.legalombudsmanorg.uk
In normal circumstances the Ombudsman expects the matter to be referred to his office within six months of the final letter from Legis Chambers regarding the complaint.
If however Legis Chambers does not deal with the complaint within 8 weeks of the initial contact then the matter may be referred directly to the Ombudsman’s office.
Any conversation, whether verbal or written, with regards to the complaint will be dealt with utmost confidentiality and will be disclosed only to the extent that is necessary. Disclosure will be solely to the head of chambers, members of our management committee and to anyone involved in the complaint and its investigation. Such people will include the person who you have complained about and the management committee. In addition to this, the complaint in question and our records will also be available to the Bar Standards Board who is entitled to examine the documents.
The Decision data published by the Legal Ombudsman can be found here.
