1. At Ask A Barrister, we strive to provide all of our clients with an excellent service at all times. However, if you are dissatisfied or have a complaint, we ask you to let us know as soon as possible. It is not necessary to involve solicitors in order for you to make your complaint but you are free to do so should you wish.
2. We adhere to the same time limits as the Legal Ombudsman (LeO) and any complaints will therefore be considered pursuant to our Complaints Policy if they are made no later than one year of the act or omission about which you are complaining occurring or one year from when you should have known about or become aware that there were grounds for complaint.
3. The LeO will only deal with complaints from consumers. This means that only complaints from the barrister’s client are within their jurisdiction. Non-clients who are not satisfied with the outcome of our investigation should contact the Bar Standards Board rather than the Legal Ombudsman.
4. Please note that it may not always be possible to investigate a complaint brought by a non- client. This is because our ability to satisfactorily investigate and resolve such matters is limited and complaints of this nature are often better suited to the disciplinary processes maintained by the Bar Standards Board. Therefore, we will make an initial assessment of the complaint and, if we feel that the issues raised cannot be satisfactorily resolved through our complaints process, we will refer the complainant to the Bar Standards Board.
Complaints made by Telephone
5. We ask that any complaint is made in writing (preferably by e-mail), and follow the procedure in paragraph 7 below. However, if you would rather speak initially on the telephone about your complaint, in order to seek an informal resolution, or because you feel you may need help in formulating it then please telephone on 07538 079516. The person you contact will make a note of the details of your complaint and what you would like to be done about it. Your concerns will then be informally discussed with an aim to resolve them. If the matter is resolved the outcome will be recorded. We will check that you are satisfied with the outcome and record that you are satisfied. You may also wish to record the outcome of the telephone discussion in writing.
6. If your complaint is not resolved on the telephone you will be invited to write to us about it so it can be investigated formally.
Complaints made in Writing
7. To enable us to investigate your complaint, please provide us with the following details:
- Your name and address;
- Which member of staff you are complaining about;
- Details of your complaint; and
- What you would like done about it.
8. Please address your letter to Tasaddat Hussain or Amie Higgins, as appropriate.
9. We will, where possible, acknowledge receipt of your complaint within five working days and provide you with details of how your complaint will be dealt with.
10. The person responsible for complaints at Ask A Barrister is Tasaddat Hussain. He will investigate all initial complaints. Amie Higgins will act as a deputy complaints manager and will deal with any complaints about Tasaddat Hussain.
11. The investigation must be completed and the report sent to the complainant within eight weeks of receipt of the written complaint. If there are exceptional circumstances which mean that we cannot complete our investigation within that time, we will notify you accordingly and agree a revised and realistic time frame.
12. Tasaddat Hussain/Amie Higgins will prepare a report to the client which will set out:
- the nature and scope of the investigations carried out in respect of each complaint;
- and the conclusions reached and the reasons for those conclusions.
13. The report will, so far as possible, be drafted using clear and concise language.
14. Where a complaint is found to be justified, in whole or in part, the report will provide proposals for resolution. If Tasaddat Hussain considers it appropriate, the proposals may involve a recommendation of informal resolution.
15. The report will be sent to the client within eight weeks and a copy of the report will be provided to the barrister/member of staff complained against.
Confidentiality
16. All conversations and documents relating to complaints considered under our Complaints Procedure shall be confidential and disclosed only to the extent necessary. They may be disclosed to the complainant, the person complained about, xxx and any other individual with whom enquiries need to be made for the purpose of our investigation. The details of complaint investigations and their outcome may be disclosed to staff only in so far as is necessary to secure resolution of the complaint, and/or the ongoing and continued good management of the business.
Our Policy
17. As part of our commitment to client care, we keep a record of any complaint received and retain all documents and correspondence generated by the complaint for a period of seven years.
Complaints to the Legal Ombudsman
18. The Legal Ombudsman is the independent complaints body for complaints about lawyers. If you are unhappy with the outcome of our investigation and you fall within their jurisdiction you may take up your complaint with the LeO. The LeO is not able to consider your complaint until it has first been investigated by us. Please note the timeframe for referral of complaints to the LeO is set out in paragraph 2 above.
19. You can contact the LeO at:
Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6167
Slough
SL1 0EH
Telephone: 0300 555 0333
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Complaints to the Bar Standards Board
20. If you are not the barrister’s client and are unhappy with the outcome of our investigation then please contact the Bar Standards Board at:
Bar Standards Board Professional Conduct Department
289-293 High Holborn
London
WC1V 7JZ
Telephone: 0207 6111 444
Or visit their website at: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk
Responsibility: Our HOLP is responsible for this policy.
Review: Our HOLP reviews this policy annually to ensure that it is in effective operation.