Good Practice

CONDUCT AND SERVICE

The dangers of written complaints

Firms frequently require complaints from clients to be put in writing.

Almost always, the reason given is that the solicitor wants to be sure what he is dealing with.

However, that approach presents distinct dangers.

Clients often resent the requirement, because they are not happy at putting things in writing.

They perceive the whole procedure as being legalistic and something in which they are at a disadvantage.

They often get the idea that the solicitor wants them to put the complaint in writing only so that he can have an advantage over them by dealing with matters on his own terms.

However, another good reason for not requiring complaints to be made in writing is that clients frequently perceive their complaints wrongly.

They then express them wrongly, which encourages the solicitor to be dismissive about them.

This does nothing to sort out the problem and succeeds only in exacerbating it.

If complaints are put in writing, it is essential to answer them all, not merely those you want to answer, which the client will presume are the only ones for which you think you have an answer.

A complaint came to the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors where the client had tried to phone the senior partner, whose name he had been given as the person with whom he should raise any concerns.

The senior partner's reaction was to refuse to speak to the client, instructing his secretary to tell him he was too busy to see him and that if he had a complaint, he should write in with it.

The client did so.

When asked why he had adopted this attitude, the senior partner said it was the firm's policy, so the complaint could be discussed with the fee-earner before the response.

This would not have not been so bad, had the senior partner spoken to the complainant and explained the reasoning behind the request.

As it was, all it achieved was to upset the client even more.

Insult was added to injury when the senior partner wrote to the client saying he did not intend to deal with all the matters in the letter, but only those he considered were significant.

Thus several issues the client considered to be of significance were not addressed.

Small wonder that the client's next step was to take the matter to the OSS.

The senior partner was required to deal with all the complaints, whether or not he thought them important.

This resulted not only in his having to spend more time dealing with the complaints, but also in the firm having to pay compensation to the client - who was, by that time, its former client.

Every case before the adjudication panel is decided on its individual facts.

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

LawyerlineFacing a service complaint? Need advice on how to handle it? Contact Mike Frith at LAWYERLINE, the support service offered by the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors, tel: 0870 606 2588.

RISK MANAGEMENT

Countdown to renewal

With the 1 September renewal date a few months away, now is the time for law firms to start thinking about renewing their professional indemnity insurance.

How a law firm approaches the task of renewing its insurance is one of the most frequently overlooked factors when trying to keep insurance premiums as low as possible.

It is not enough simply to institute good risk management procedures within the firm, and then sit back and leave the actual application for insurance until a few weeks before the renewal cut-off date.

A practice needs to make the effort to convince insurers that its risk is an attractive business proposition, and this takes time.

Here are some ways for a practice to help itself when applying for PI insurance cover:

l Make sure your proposal is presented clearly, without any obvious gaps.

Insurers are only human and a well-presented proposal will be considered far more favourably than a poor proposal - whatever the merits of your practice.

l Ensure that you are keeping a comprehensive and up-to-date synopsis of claims notified since 1 September last year, so that these can be explained quickly and clearly to any prospective insurer.

l Remember to read and to answer all questions on the insurance proposal form.

Even if you think that some of the questions are not relevant, the underwriters have included them for a reason, and will consider them to be important.

l When answering all the questions on the insurance proposal form, attach any additional information where requested and complete any supplementary questionnaires.

l Decide whether you need any additional insurance, such as deductible infill insurance, excess layer insurance or additional run-off protection before you approach an insurer.

l Ensure that all employees and partners within the firm have notified any claims or circumstances that might have arisen since 1 September 2001.

These relate to your current insurance and everything should be formally notified within the specified time frame against the current policy - so that there is no confusion if you change insurer this year.

l Take additional photocopies of your submission.

Send an extra one to your broker and keep a hard copy for yourself.

l Start the renewal process early to give your insurer plenty of time to consider your case properly.

There is no chance of reduced premiums being available for last-minute applications, and you run the risk that your practice will be uninsured on 1 September.

l Try to provide insurers with a synopsis of the culture of the firm and its future ambitions, especially in relation to reducing its risk exposure.

Finally, the best advice we can give is to use a recognised broker.

A broker knows exactly what an insurer is looking for, and can help to ensure that the whole process of renewal happens in an efficient and timely fashion.

This column was prepared by the Alexander Forbes Professions risk management team.

QUESTION OF ETHICS

Q I specialise in sports law.

I act as an agent for football's governing body, FIFA, through my current firm, but I want to leave and set up my own company.

The company would not be a solicitors' practice.

I understand that I would not be required to take out professional indemnity insurance.

A The Solicitors' Indemnity Insurance Rules would only apply if your company is a solicitors' incorporated practice.

However, the Law Society has negotiated an exemption for practising solicitors from the requirement for FIFA agents to deposit a substantial bond before they can act as agents.

The exemption has been allowed because a solicitors' practice is required to have professional indemnity insurance and the practice is regulated by the Law Society.

You may therefore wish to rethink the position, and possibly set up your new company as an incorporated practice with designation as a Law Society-recognised body.

Please note

The Solicitors' Publicity Code 2001 replaced the Solicitors' Publicity Code 1990 on 16 November 2001.

It also repealed practice rule 11 (Names used by a firm).

The new code requires all firms to put 'regulated by the Law Society' on their notepaper.

Practitioners can postpone this until 1 January 2003 but only if they continue to comply with the 1990 code and the old practice rule 11.

Question of ethics is compiled by the Law Society's professional ethics guidance team.

Send questions for publication to Austin O'Malley, the Law Society, Ipsley Court, Berrington Close, Redditch B98 0TD; DX 19114 Redditch; tel: 020 7242 1222.