Barrass Whiting LLP – Complaints Procedure

1. We hope that you will be happy with all aspects of our service. However, in the unfortunate event that you wish to make a complaint (including any complaint about bills and charges), please inform us immediately so that we can do our best to try and resolve it for you.
2. You should first raise the matter with the partner who is your main contact (as explained in our letter of engagement).
3. If they are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you prefer to have the complaint considered by someone else within the firm, you should contact another partner (whose details will also be in the letter of engagement) by writing to them at Barrass Whiting LLP, The Deep Business Centre, Hull, HU1 4BG. This partner is referred to below as the Complaints Partner. To help us to understand your complaint it would be helpful if you would please tell the Complaints Partner:
   • your full name and contact details
   • details of what you think we have done wrong
   • your preferred outcome to your complaint
4. We will write to you, usually within two working days of receipt, acknowledging your complaint and enclosing a copy of this procedure.
5. We will investigate your complaint and in doing so we may need to ask you for further information or documents. To help us investigate promptly, we will ask you to provide any further information or documents we need within a specific period.
6. We may invite you to a meeting or to arrange a telephone call to discuss your complaint further, but you may decline if you do not wish to participate or if you are unable to meet or speak with us.
7. We will keep you updated on the progress of your complaint, and we will write to you at the end of our investigation to tell you the outcome and how we intend to resolve your complaint. We have a period of 8 weeks in which to provide a formal response to your complaint but, where possible, we will aim to do this earlier.
8. We hope that you will first allow us the opportunity to try and resolve your complaint amicably using the above procedure. However, if we are unable to resolve your complaint then you can have the complaint looked at independently by the Legal Ombudsman.
9. Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:
   • Within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint; and
   • No more than six years from the date of act/omission you are complaining about; or
   • No more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.
   • The Legal Ombudsman can be contacted at:
     Legal Ombudsman
     PO Box 6806
     Wolverhampton
     WV1 9WJ
     enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
     www.legalombudsman.org.uk
     Tel 0300 555 0333
     You should be aware that the Legal Ombudsman cannot normally consider a complaint if it is not referred to them within six months of the date of the final response which we issue to you or within six years of the act/ omission.
10. The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help if you are concerned about our behaviour. Visit their website to see how you can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (www.sra.org.uk ).