The Law Society has reacted cautiously to the Legal Services Ombudsman’s idea of introducing a Charter Mark scheme for solicitors.

Ombudsman Zahida Manzoor also warned that the Legal Complaints Service’s (LCS) current proposals to publish complaints records ‘could potentially lead to some solicitors paying compensation irrespective of the merits of the case to avoid publication and the resulting negative publicity’.

Manzoor called on Chancery Lane to take a ‘more holistic approach to improving service standards’, through a combination of a Charter Mark system, work to improve client care and full publication of all solicitors’ complaints records – as opposed to the LCS’s plan only to publish decisions reached via adjudication, which represent just 4% of complaints dealt with. Though supporting the idea in principle, Manzoor was concerned about the limited amount of information this would provide.

She said the Charter Mark – a government-awarded recognition of excellent customer service – has been used successfully in other fields as a tool to improve standards.

‘Law firms achieving Charter Mark status would be recognised for excellence, demonstrating to consumers the high level of service that could be expected,’ she said.

Law Society President Andrew Holroyd said it was not clear that a Charter Mark is the best way of improving client care, ‘but we are looking at all options. The Society has published guidance on client care and complaints handling, and will be rolling out a national training programme in this area from September’.

LCS chief executive Deborah Evans welcomed the idea but was concerned that only good firms would seek recognition. There needed to be an element of compulsion to bring into line firms which perform badly, she explained.

The Charter Mark was this month replaced by a new ­Customer Service Excellence standard.