Lincs Law Employment Solicitors are committed to providing a high-quality legal service and to dealing with all our clients and third parties fairly. However, we acknowledge that we may not always get things right, so if something has gone wrong we need you to tell us.

What Is A “Complaint”?

We use a common definition of a complaint, namely:

“An expression of dissatisfaction about our service, whether expressed orally or in writing, where a response from us would be reasonably required or expected”

How Do I Make A Complaint?

You should contact our Complaints Manager, Steven Ratcliffe, in writing.  His contact details are:

Steven Ratcliffe, Director
Lincs Law Employment Solicitors
Greetwell Place
2 Lime Kiln Way
Lincoln
Lincolnshire
LN2 4US

Email: Steven.Ratcliffe@lincslaw.com

To help us understand your complaint, and in order that we do not miss anything, please tell us:

• Your full name and contact details.
• What do you think we have got wrong? 
• What do you hope to achieve as a result of your complaint?
• Your case/file reference number (if you have it).

We will record and assess your complaint as soon as possible. 

If we consider it to be a valid complaint (see the definition above), we will write to you within 5 working days acknowledging your complaint and providing a link to a copy of this policy. If we do not consider it to be a valid complaint, we will inform you in writing giving reasons for our view.

We will then investigate your complaint. This investigation will usually be undertaken by our Complaints Manager. If the complaint is about the Complaints Manager, it will be investigated by our Managing Director, Sally Hubbard. Her address details are the same as set out in above and her email is sally.hubbard@lincslaw.com

The investigation will involve:

• Reviewing your complaint
• Reviewing your file and any other relevant documents
• Speaking with the person(s) who dealt with your matter

We may also need to ask you for further information or documentation. If so, we will ask you to provide this within a specific and reasonable time period.  If necessary, we may also ask you to a meeting to discuss your complaint.  You do not have to attend such a meeting if you do not wish to or are unable to do so.

We aim to complete the investigation within 15 working days of the date of our letter acknowledging your complaint.

We will write to you at the end of our investigation to tell you what we have done,  If your complaint is upheld, we will explain what we propose to do to resolve your matter.

What If I Am Not Satisfied With The Outcome(s)?

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of your complaint, you can ask the Legal Ombudsman (LeO) to intervene.  They can review your complaint independently. The LeO can be contacted as follows:

By post: Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH
By telephone: 0300 555 0333
By email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Your complaint to LeO must be made:

• within 6 months of receiving our final response to your complaint; and,
• no more than 1 year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or
• no more than 1 year from the date when you should reasonably have known that there was cause for complaint.

Further details are available on the LeO website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk. 

What Will It Cost To Complain?

We will not charge you for handling your complaint.

However, please note that, if we have issued a invoice for work done on the matter the complaint relates to and all or some of the invoice is not paid, we may be entitled to charge interest on the amount outstanding whilst we deal with your complaint.  In addition, the LeO may not deal with a complaint about your bill if you have already applied for it to be assessed by a court.  The LeO service is free of charge.

What To Do If You Are Unhappy With Our Behaviour?

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) can help if you are concerned about our behaviour.  This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic.  Visit their website to see how you can raise your concerns with the SRA: https://sra.org.uk/consumers/problems/report-solicitor.page