Dissatisfied with your solicitor?

The Law Society of Northern Ireland is responsible for ensuring that all solicitors observe proper standards of conduct and service when they are dealing with their clients and deal professionally with other solicitors. If you feel you have a complaint about the way your solicitor has dealt with you, you should immediately either speak or write to the solicitor or the senior partner in the firm setting out your concerns. If you are not happy with the response you receive, then make a written complaint to the Society. You can contact us at Law Society House, 98 Victoria Street, Belfast BT1 3JZ.

The Society has a complaints form which sets out the type of information the Society requires in order to pursue a complaint for you. You may obtain assistance from family friends or any of the local advice centres in drafting a complaint. Just ensure that the complaint itself is signed by you as your solicitor has a duty to keep your business confidential and must be certain that any complaint has your full authority. Please note that the staff of the Society cannot see you in person, so remember to write rather than call at Law Society House.

What the Law Society of Northern Ireland Can Do to Help You?

When we receive your completed form we will analyse it to make sure that the complaint is one with which we can deal. In order for us to look into a complaint it must be about the service you have received from your solicitor, or about his or her behaviour according to the professional rules governing solicitors, or both. Examples of the type of issues which the Society may consider are:-(

a) delay in answering your letters or enquiries, or in dealing with your case;

(b) failure to deal with your money properly;

(c) acting in the same case for you and for others where your interests are in conflict with theirs;

(d) dishonesty; (e) failure to hand over your papers if you have asked for them and do not owe your solicitor any money;

(f) inadequate professional service;

(g) overcharging, although the Society would usually need some evidence of attempting to overcharge (See our leaflet 'Unhappy about your bill?). To investigate your complaint, we first obtain your solicitor's reply to it. We then decide what action if any needs to be taken. The whole procedure is supervised by a Committee which includes lay members. So far as is possible the Society tries to resolve misunderstandings and restore lines of communication between you and your solicitor. At the conclusion of an investigation the Society may:-

1. find that the solicitor has been guilty of unprofessional conduct or other misconduct and may impose an internal censure on the solicitor;

2. prosecute the solicitor before the Solicitors' Disciplinary Tribunal in the most serious cases. The Tribunal, which is an independent statutory body separate from the Law Society, may fine a solicitor or restrict or remove his right to practice;

3. if the solicitor has given an inadequate professional service, exercise its statutory powers to impose certain sanctions which include:-
( i) determining the costs to which the solicitor is entitled having regard to the difficulties involved in the case;
(ii) directing the solicitor to take such steps as the Society thinks is necessary to complete your business;
(iii) directing the solicitor to secure rectification of any error or omission and to take any other action which the Society thinks is necessary in your interests.

The Society however, cannot order your solicitor to pay compensation to you. If that is what you are seeking, because you believe your solicitor acted negligently, then you will have to consider the other legal remedies available to you. Generally speaking, negligence is a mistake by the solicitor which causes the client actual financial loss. The law may entitle you to receive compensation, but you need the services of a solicitor to pursue the matter through the courts and the Society cannot help you to do so.

What the Law Society Cannot Do Is:

1. give legal advice;
2. compel a solicitor to take your case if he does not want to;
3. tell your solicitor how to handle your case;
4. pursue a claim for compensation for professional negligence;
5. investigate a complaint made by you against a solicitor when you are not the client (although we can look at a complaint made on your behalf by your own solicitor about another solicitor' conduct);
6. investigate complaints against judges, magistrates or barristers;
7. investigate complaints against solicitors who are not doing legal work. Where your complaint involves both the solicitor's professional conduct and allegations of negligence, the Society takes the view that the negligence claim should be concluded before the complaint about conduct is pursued. Frequently the facts which give rise to negligence are the same as those which give rise to the complaint to the Society and if the negligence claim is resolved successfully in your favour it may not always be appropriate or necessary to subsequently pursue the complaint of unprofessional conduct.

The Solicitors' Disciplinary Tribunal

This is a disciplinary body independent of the Law Society and includes lay members. It was set up by Parliament as a part of the High Court and has the powers to strike a solicitor off the roll of solicitors,