Complaints Handling Procedure

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 you have a complaint, please contact us with the details. You can write to us by post or email to sue@affinitylaw.co.uk. We would ask that you provide details of your complaint within 28 days of the act or omission complained of if possible.

What will happen next?

1. We will send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint within five days of us receiving the complaint, enclosing a copy of this procedure.
2. We will invite you to a meeting at our office or via Zoom with the Directors to discuss your complaint.
3. We will then investigate your complaint. This will normally involve passing your complaint to our Client Care Officer, who will review your file and speak to the member of staff who acted for you. In this instance, the matter will be dealt with by Sue Roberts.
4. We will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including our suggestion for resolving the matter, within 28 days of sending you the acknowledgment letter.
5. At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you should contact us again and we will arrange a second review of the decision taking into account your comments or, if appropriate, request an independent review by another Solicitor of the decision.
6. We will write to you within six weeks of receiving your request for a review, confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining the reasons.
7. If you are still not satisfied, you can then contact the Legal Ombudsman of PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ about your complaint. For further information, you should contact the Ombudsman (Helpline number: 0300 555 0333) or refer to their website at legalombudsman.org.uk or email enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk.
8. Ordinarily a complaint to the Ombudsman must be made within one year of the date of the act or omission complained of or the date by which ought reasonably to have known that there was an issue, whichever is the later. You should use the firm’s internal complaints procedure first before approaching the Ombudsman. If you do then the time limit is six months from the date of the written response received from us.
9. Alternatively, if your complaint is in relation to the behaviour of a staff member, for example being dishonest or treating you unfairly due to a disability, then you can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority by visiting their website.

If we have to change any of the timescales above, we will let you know and explain why.

More information about our complaints handling procedure is available on request.