​We are committed to providing a good legal service to all our clients. 

If you feel that something has gone wrong, please feel free to tell us about it. This could help us to improve our procedures. You can do this informally for instance by raising the issue with the fee earner who is acting for you. 

If however you do not consider this to be appropriate you can raise a formal complaint. 

 

If you have a complaint: 

a. in the first instance, please contact the fee earner who is dealing with your matter. They will see if they can resolve the issues with you. 

b. If the issues you have raised have still have not been resolved please contact our office manager, Harry Millikin at solicitors@marcheslaw.com. Harry is also our complaints handling manager. Please put full details of your complaint in writing. Harry will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 7 working days of receipt. 

c. We will then have eight weeks to consider your complaint. Harry will look at the details of your complaint, check the file and speak to the fee earner involved to see what steps will need to be taken to resolve it or whether it has already been resolved. 

d. Depending upon the nature of your complaint Harry will determine whether or not it is appropriate to pause or cease acting for you whilst the complaint is being investigated. We would only do this after giving you reasonable notice and after explaining our reasons why we have reached this conclusion. 

e. Harry will send you a reply to your complaint including our suggestions for resolving any issues you have raised (if necessary) within the eight week time frame referred to in c above. 

f. If the issues have not resolved or are still continuing, after the eight week time frame you may complain to the Legal Ombudsman. 

 

Contacting the Legal Ombudsman 

you can contact the Legal Ombudsman at: Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6167 Slough SL1 0EH Office of Legal Ombudsman www.legalombudsman.org.uk Telephone: 0300 555 0333 

Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first by following the procedure set out above. 

If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman: 

a. within six months of receiving our final response to your complaint; and 

b. no more than one year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or 

c. no more than one year from the date when you should reasonably have known that there was cause for complaint. 

For further information, you should contact the Legal Ombudsman on 0300 555 0333 or at enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk 

If however, your complaint is about a breach of the SRA Code of Conduct relating to our behaviour, for example, dishonesty, non-payment of third party professional fees i.e. expert fees, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly, you can report the matter to the SRA for consideration. You can visit the SRA website for information as to how to raise your concerns at https://www.sra.org.uk/