Our Policy
We are committed to providing the very highest quality of legal service to all of our clients. If something goes wrong, please tell us about it so that we can resolve the matter.
How to make a complaint
If you are unhappy with the service that you have received or the costs that you have been charged, you can raise your concerns immediately with the Cambridge Legal team. You were supplied with contact details when you first instructed us.
If you want your complaint to be formally investigated, please set out your complaint in writing including:
● Your full name and contact details;
● Details of where you believe Cambridge Legal Practice Limited failed to act appropriately; and
● What you hope to achieve as a result of your complaint.
Any complaints should be sent to: Legal and Regulatory Compliance Manager, Cambridge Legal Practice Limited, 9 Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 1GE.
OR Email: enquiries@cambridgelegal.co.uk
Complaints About Costs
If your concern relates to a bill, then you have the right to apply to the court for an assessment of the bill under Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974. Please note that the Legal Ombudsman may decide not to consider any complaint you may have about a bill which has already been referred to the court for assessment.
What will happen next?
We will send you a written acknowledgement of your complaint within 3 working days or as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter.
If appropriate, you may be invited to a meeting to discuss, and hopefully resolve, your complaint.
Once our investigation is complete, we will send you a detailed reply to your complaint setting out any suggestions for resolving the matter. In any event we will send you an outcome no later than 8 weeks after receiving your complaint.
If you are unhappy with our findings, you may have a right to refer your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman or Solicitors Regulation Authority. Further details of the Legal Ombudsman and Solicitors Regulation Authority are set out below.
Costs
We will not charge you for handling a complaint.
The Legal Ombudsman and Solicitors Regulation Authority service is also free of charge.
Please note that where you do not pay a bill we may be entitled to charge interest on any amount outstanding.
The Legal Ombudsman
The Legal Ombudsman is an independent organisation with powers to resolve complaints about legal services when issues have not been resolved between an individual and their lawyer.
In order to make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman you must:
● be a member of the public or a very small business, charity, club or trust; and
● make your complaint within six months of our final decision, or
● within one year of the act or omission which you are complaining about (or within one year of becoming aware of it).
You can contact The Legal Ombudsman:
● by telephone: 0300 555 0333;
● by post at PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ;
● by email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk.
The Legal Ombudsman will not normally accept a complaint for investigation unless eight weeks have passed since you first raised your complaint with us. This is to allow us the opportunity to deal with your concerns.
You may make a complaint at any time within six months of our final decision about your complaint. If you do not refer your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within that six month period, then your complaint may not be accepted by the Ombudsman.
You may also lose your right to refer a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman if more than six years have passed since the event(s) about which you want to complain, or if more than three years have passed since you should have realised that you had a possible complaint.
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU ACT PROMPTLY IF YOU THINK YOU ARE ENTITLED TO REFER A COMPLAINT TO THE LEGAL OMBUDSMAN.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority
If your concern relates to our conduct you may wish to make a complaint to The Solicitors Regulation Authority.
You can contact the Solicitors Regulation Authority:
By post at SRA Report, The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham, B1 1RN or DX 720293 BIRMINGHAM 47;
By telephone: 0370 606 2555;
By email: reports@sra.org.uk