Finish the job!

In divorce and related work, a curiously large proportion of complaints reaching the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors (OSS) result from matters not being finalised once agreement has been achieved on ancillary issues.

Once the hard work has been done, it is as if the solicitor becomes blas about tying up the loose ends and gets on with more pressing demands on his time.

This dismissive approach could prove expensive for the client or, indeed, prove advantageous, but in either eventuality the standard of service has not been up to scratch.

A recent example before the OSS concerned solicitors instructed by a wife in her divorce.

The firm dealt with the financial aspects of the matter, agreement was eventually reached with the husband and a consent order drawn up.

15 months later, the wife wished to vary the agreement.

The firm advised they did not think an application to vary the consent order would be successful.

The client, disregarding this advice, made her own application and was given a hearing date.

It was only when she attended on the court date she discovered the consent order had never been filed at court and so did not exist.

The solicitors, responding to the client's complaint, admitted they had not consulted the file when advising on varying the consent order but said the non-filing could be to her advantage.

The firm also admitted that when advising on a CSA matter they did so in the belief that there was a court order in force.

The firm could give no explanation as to why the order had not been filed and acknowledged the errors in their service.

The OSS pointed out it could not deal with quality of advice complaints, but agreed with the complainant that the service she had received fell short of the standards she could have reasonably expected.

The solicitor's costs were reduced by 100 and they were ordered to pay 250 compensation.

On appeal by the complainant, the compliance and supervision committee increased the compensation to 400. Every case before the compliance and supervision committee is decided on its individual facts.

These case studies are for illustration only and should not be treated as precedents.

Lawyerline.Facing a complaint? Need advice on how to handle it? Get in touch with Mike Frith at LAWYERLINE, the support service offered by the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors, tel: 0870 606 2588.