If you have a complaint now

From 6 October 2010 anyone with a complaint about a lawyer registered in England and Wales should come to us – the new Legal Ombudsman.

Before then, the existing complaints handling bodies will be able to help. Who are they?  We have listed them below and explained how things will work during this period of change.

Frequently asked questions

What does the opening of the Legal Ombudsman mean for me?

I have a complaint now – what do I do?

What will happen if I have already made a complaint?

What if the professional body has already investigated my complaint?

Who are the current complaint handling organisations?

How will the Legal Ombudsman be different?

What does the opening of the Legal Ombudsman mean for me?

After 6 October we will have formal powers to resolve complaints about lawyers. It will be a free service.  Our job will be to look at complaints in a fair and independent way – we will not take sides.

When we open, we will be able to resolve complaints about all lawyers registered in England and Wales. This is a change from how it works at the moment – each type of lawyer (solicitors, barristers and others) have separate processes in place.  The aim is to simplify the system and make it more effective.

No complaints will be passed from existing complaints handling bodies to the new Legal Ombudsman.  If you have a complaint at the moment, keep reading for some information that will explain where you can seek some help.

I have a complaint now – what do I do?

If you have a complaint about a lawyer in England and Wales now you should contact one of the following professional bodies, which are known as ‘approved regulators’.

• Legal Complaints Service (LCS) for solicitors. 
• Bar Standards Board (BSB) for barristers.
• Council of Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) for Licensed Conveyancers. 
• Institute of Legal Executives (ILEX) for Legal Executives.  
• Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPreg) for the Patent Attorney and Trade Mark Attorney professions. 
• Association of Law Costs Draftsmen (ALCD) for Law Costs Draftsmen. 
• Master of Faculties for Notaries.
• Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) for probate services.

All these bodies are open and you can contact them directly.  They will stop being about to accept new complaints on 5 October 2010. They have until 31 March 2011 to deal with your complaint. If it is not completed by then it will be passed to the Legal Services Ombudsman (LSO) for conclusion.

What will happen if I have already made a complaint?

If you have already complained to one of the professional bodies (please see the list above or below) your complaint will be determined by them. They have until 31 March 2011 to deal with your complaint. If it is not completed by then it will be passed to the Legal Services Ombudsman (LSO) for conclusion.

What if the professional body has already investigated my complaint?

If your complaint has already been investigated by one of the professional bodies, you cannot ask the new Legal Ombudsman to look at it. If you are not happy with the outcome of the investigation you should contact the Legal Services Ombudsman (LSO) within her timescales.

Office of the Legal Services Ombudsman

3rd Floor
Sunlight House
Quay Street
Manchester M3 3JZ

Lo-call no: 0845 601 0794 (charged at local rates – available nationally)
Email: lso@olso.gsi.gov.uk
Phone: 0161 839 7262

Who are the current complaint handling organisations?

Until 6 October, when we open, you will need to contact the current complaints handling bodies to make a complaint.  We have also listed here the other bodies who regulate lawyers.
With the Legal Services Board as the oversight regulator these bodies regulate lawyers practising in England and Wales.

Solicitors
Law Society
Solicitors Regulation Authority (independent regulatory body of the Law Society)
Legal Complaints Service (independent complaints handling body for the Law Society)  

Barristers
Bar Council
Bar Standards Board (independent regulatory arm of the Bar Council)

Legal Executives
Institute of Legal Executives
ILEX Professional Standards Board (independent regulatory arm of the Institute of Legal Executives)

Licensed Conveyancers
Council for Licensed Conveyancers (regulatory body for Licensed Conveyancers)

Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys
Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys
Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys
Intellectual Property Regulation Board

Law Costs Draftsmen
Association of Law Costs Draftsmen

Notaries
Master of the Faculties

How will the Legal Ombudsman be different?

After 6 October we will have formal powers to resolve complaints about lawyers. It will be a free service.  Our job will be to look at complaints in a fair and independent way – we will not take sides.

When we open, we will be able to resolve complaints about all lawyers registered in England and Wales. This is a change from how it works at the moment – each type of lawyer (solicitors, barristers and others) have separate processes in place.  The aim is to simplify the system and make it more effective.

No complaints will be passed from existing complaints handling bodies to the new Legal Ombudsman.  If you have a complaint at the moment, keep reading for some information that will explain where you can seek some help.