COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE
In this Complaint Procedure, the words “we”, “our”, and “us” means Paul Norton and Co Solicitors, a firm with a Sole Practitioner Ernest Paul Norton. The firm is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Our authorisation number is 546551.
Our Complaints Policy
We recognise that mistakes, misunderstandings, delays and other errors can occur. When something goes wrong, we need you to tell us about it. This will help us to improve our standards. We will not charge you for handling your complaint.
What Happens Next?
1. We will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint, enclosing a copy of this procedure, within five working days of our receiving your complaint.
2. We will then investigate your complaint. We have four weeks in total to consider your complaint. We will advise you in our acknowledgement letter of the date upon which we must complete our consideration (the “completion date”).
3. You will then be invited to a meeting to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint. If possible, this meeting should be arranged within five working days of the completion date.
4. Within three working days of the meeting, we will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions or remedies agreed with you. Such solutions or remedies may include but are not limited to • An written apology; • An appropriate and proportionate reduction in our fees; • An appropriate and proportionate refund of our fees.
5. If you do not wish to hold a meeting, or it is not possible to hold one, we will send you a detailed reply to your complaint, including suggestions for resolving the matter within 21 days of the completion date.
6. At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you should contact us again. We may, where appropriate, arrange for another independent solicitor to review your complaint. The terms of any such review, including responsibility for any costs, will be agreed with you in advance.
7. Legal Ombudsman
If you are not satisfied with our final response to your complaint, you may be able to refer the matter to the Legal Ombudsman.
The Legal Ombudsman can help resolve complaints about legal services.
You must refer your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:
- within 6 months of receiving our final written response; and
- no later than:
- 6 years from the date of the act or omission; or
- 3 years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.
The Legal Ombudsman’s contact details are:
Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6806
Wolverhampton
WV1 9WJ
Telephone: 0300 555 0333
Minicom: 0300 555 1777
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Website www.legalombudsman.org.uk.
Solicitors Regulation Authority
The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help if you are concerned about our behaviour.
This could include matters such as dishonesty, discrimination or breaches of professional rules.
You can raise your concerns with the SRA at:
Telephone: 0370 606 2555