Complaints Policy
Complaints policy for clients and third parties
Introduction
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. If at any point you become unhappy with the service we provide to you or you have concerns about your bill, then you should inform us immediately so that we can do our best to resolve the problem for you.
Emma Gaudern, the managing director and complaints manager overseas our complaints process. If the complaint is about Emma Gaudern the complaint will be investigated by one of the directors of the firm.
How do I make a complaint?
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 remain unsatisfied with our response, or if you wish to refer your complaint to the complaints manager, please email the complaints administrator: [email protected] who will pass your complaint to Emma Gaudern.
To help us to understand your complaint, and in order that we do not miss anything, please tell us:
- your full name and contact detail
- what you think we have got wrong
- what you hope to achieve as a result of your complaint, and
- your file reference number (if you have it)
If you require any help in making your complaint we will try to help you.
How will you deal with my complaint?
We will record your complaint centrally.
We will write to you within three working days acknowledging your complaint, enclosing a copy of this policy.
We will investigate your complaint. This will usually involve:
- reviewing your complaint
- speaking with the person who dealt with your matter
- speaking with the person who dealt with your matter
We may also need to ask you for further information or documents. If so, we will ask you to provide the information within a specific period of time.
We will write to you at the end of our investigation to tell you what we have done and what we propose to do to resolve your complaint. We will do this within eight weeks of our acknowledgement of your complaint.
All personal information you provide will be collected, processed and stored in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), please refer to our Privacy Notice for further information which can be provided upon request. A link to this policy can also be found on our website www.emgsolicitors.com.
What if I am not satisfied with the outcome?
If we are unable to resolve your complaint then you can have the complaint independently looked at by the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman investigates complaints about service issues with lawyers.
The Legal Ombudsman expects complaints to be made to them within one year of the date of the act or omission about which you are concerned or within one year of you realising there was a concern. You must also refer your concerns to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of our final response to you. Legal Ombudsman contact details: www.legalombudsman.org.uk, telephone: 0300 555 0333, address: Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority 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. The Solicitors Regulation Authority contact details: email: [email protected], telephone: 0370 606 2555, address: The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham, B1 1RN.
What will it cost?
We will not charge you for handling your complaint.
Please note that if we have issued a bill for work done on the matter, and all or some of the bill is not paid, we may be entitled to charge interest on the amount outstanding.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority and Legal Ombudsman service is free of charge.
This complaints policy was last updated on 26th October 2023.