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| 9 KBW COMPLAINTS PROCEDURES |
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Chambers Complaints Procedures
1. Our aim is to give you a good service at all times. However if you have a complaint you are invited to let us know as soon as possible. It is not necessary to involve Solicitors in order to make your complaint but you are free to do so should you wish
Complaints made by Telephone
2. You may wish to make a complaint in writing and, if so, please follow the procedure in paragraph 7 below. However, if you would rather speak on the telephone about your complaint then please telephone the barrister concerned or the Senior Clerk Christine Eadie.
If the complaint is about the Senior Clerk telephone the Head of Chambers Mr Azhar or ask to speak to a Member of the Management Committee. The person you contact will make a note of the details of your complaint and what you would like done about it. S/he will discuss your concerns with you and aim to resolve them. If the matter is resolved s/he will record the outcome, check that you are satisfied with the outcome and record that you are satisfied. You may also wish to record the outcome of the telephone discussion in writing.
3. If your complaint is not resolved on the telephone you will be invited to write to us about it within the next 14 days so it can be investigated formally.
Complaints made in Writing
4. Please give the following details: your name and address, which member(s) of chambers you are complaining about; the detail of the complaint; and what you would like done about it. Please address your letter to the Senior Clerk, Christine Eadie at Lower Ground South, 9 King’s Bench Walk, Temple London EC4Y 7DX
5. Our chambers has a panel headed by the Head of Chambers and made up of experienced members of chambers and a senior member of staff, which considers any written complaint. Within 14 days of your letter being received the head of the panel or her/his deputy in her/his absence will appoint a member of the panel to investigate it. If your complaint is against the head of the panel it will be investigated by the next most senior member of the panel. In any case, the person appointed will be someone other than the person you are complaining about.
6. The person appointed to investigate will write to you as soon as possible to let you know s/he has been appointed and that s/he will reply to your complaint within 14 days. If s/he finds later that s/he is not going to be able to reply within 14 days s/he will set a new date for her/his reply and inform you. Her/his reply will set out:
- The nature and scope of her/his investigation;
- Her/his conclusion on each complaint and the basis for her/his conclusion; and
- If s/he finds that you are justified in your complaint, her/his proposals for resolving the complaint.
Confidentiality
7. All conversations and documents relating to the complaint will be treated as confidential and will be disclosed only to the extent that is necessary. Disclosure will be to the Head of Chambers, members of our management committee and to anyone involved in the complaint and its investigation. Such people will include the barrister member or staff who you have complained about, the head or relevant senior member of the panel and the person who investigates the complaint.
Our Policy
8. As part of our commitment to client care we make a written record of any complaint. Our management committee inspects the record regularly with a view to improving services.
Complaints to the Legal Services Ombudsman
9. If you are unhappy with the outcome of the investigation and you fall within their jurisdiction you may take up your complaint with the Legal Ombudsman the independent
10. Please note that the Legal Ombudsman, the independent complaints body for service complaints about lawyers, has a twelve month time limit in which a complaint must be raised from the date of the act or omission complained of from when the complainant should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint without taking advice from a third party. The Ombudsman can extend the time limit in exceptional circumstances. Chambers must therefore have regard to that timeframe when deciding whether they are able to investigate your complaint. Chambers will not therefore usually deal with complaints that fall outside of the twelve month time limit.
11. The Ombudsman will also only deal with complaints from consumers. This means that only complaints from the barrister’s client are within their jurisdiction. Non clients who are not satisfied with the outcome of the Chambers investigation should contact the Bar Standards Board rather than the Legal Ombudsman.
12. It should be noted that it may not always be possible to investigate a complaint brought by a non-client. This is because the ability of Chambers to satisfactorily investigate and resolve such matters is limited and complaints of this nature are often better suited to the disciplinary processes maintained by the Bar Standards Board. Therefore Chambers will make an initial assessment of the complaint and if they feel that the issues raised cannot be satisfactorily resolved through the Chambers complaints process they will refer you to the Bar Standards Board
13. You can contact the Legal Ombudsman:
By telephone: 0300 555 1777
By email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Via the website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
By post: PO Box 15870, Birmingham, B30 9EB
14. If you are not the barristers client and are unhappy with the outcome of our investigation then please contact the Bar Standards Board at:
Bar Standards Board
Professional Conduct Department
289-293 High Holborn
London
WC1V 7JZ
Telephone number 0207 6111 444
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Chambers of A M Azhar
9 King's Bench Walk
Temple
London
EC4Y 7DX
Tel : 020 7353 9564
Fax: 020 7353 7943
Out of hours:
07940491479
07775333053
DX: 118 Chancery Lane
Senior Clerk:
Christine Eadie
e-mail now
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