The Law Society has threatened the government and the new solicitor complaints handling body with legal action following their decision not to automatically reassign staff from the Legal Complaints Service (LCS) to the new Office for Legal Complaints (OLC).

The functions of the LCS are to be transferred by law to the OLC late in 2010. The LCS employs 320 staff in Leamington Spa and 51 staff in London to handle complaints against solicitors.

The Society said that its threat was necessary to ‘protect the interests of its staff at the LCS’ and ensure that the government ‘honour its commitments’. It accused the government of making a U-turn on the matter.

The Society argues that LCS staff should be reassigned under transfer of undertaking, protection and employment (TUPE) laws. It called on the OLC not to fill any posts in the organisation until the issue is resolved.

Law Society chief executive Des Hudson said: ‘We do not believe that the OLC’s proposed approach to staffing the new organisation is fair to existing complaints-handling staff nor will it secure value for money for the professions that fund the OLC. To press ahead in this way in reckless disregard of the minister’s commitment is unacceptable.

‘Despite intensive talks with the OLC and Ministry of Justice, the proposed process ignores the fact that TUPE may apply to the transfer and the minister’s undertaking that TUPE principles will apply to staff in the LCS and other similar bodies when it came to staffing the OLC. That undertaking was first made to the president of the Law Society in December 2005, repeated in the House of Commons during passage of the Legal Services Act and confirmed subsequently in response to a recent parliamentary question.’

Justice minister Bridget Prentice said: ‘Around 350 new jobs will be created once the Office for Legal Complaints begins operation in late 2010. I do not want to lose the skills and experience built up in [the] old legal complaints-handling and ombudsman system, so staff already working in that system will be given first opportunity to apply for jobs at the new body in Birmingham.’