If something has gone wrong,
we want to know.

Last updated: July 2026

Telling us there is a problem

We would rather hear that something has gone wrong than have you sit at home frustrated about it. Sometimes it is a call that was not returned, or a letter that did not make sense, or a bill that came as a surprise. Whatever it is, telling us gives us a chance to put it right — and it tells us something we need to know about how we are running the firm.

Complaining costs you nothing. It will not affect how we handle your matter, and it will not change the way we treat you. Every complaint is taken seriously, looked at properly, and answered.

If the problem is a small one, the quickest route is usually to raise it with the person handling your matter — a lot of things can be sorted out in a single conversation. But you do not have to do that first. If you would rather not speak to them, or you have already tried and it has not been put right, you can make a formal complaint using the details below.

How to complain to us

You can complain in whichever way suits you best. There is no form to fill in and no particular wording you need to use.

Complaints at this firm are handled by Talat Jabin, Head of Firm & Solicitor (SRA number 25341). You can ask for her by name when you get in touch, and you can check her record on the Law Society’s Find a Solicitor register.

So that we can look into it properly, it helps if you can tell us:

• your name, and the best way to reach you;
• which matter it relates to, and any reference you have;
• what has gone wrong, in your own words;
• and what you would like us to do to put it right.

If any of that is difficult to pull together, do not let it stop you — send us what you have and we will come back to you if we need anything else. If you need us to communicate with you in a particular way, or you would like someone else to raise the complaint on your behalf, just tell us and we will make it work.

What happens next

Our process is straightforward, and there are three stages to it.

1. We acknowledge it

We write to you to confirm we have received your complaint, tell you who is looking into it, and set out our understanding of what has gone wrong — so that you can correct us straight away if we have misunderstood something. [Acknowledgement timescale to be confirmed]

2. We investigate it

We review the file, speak to the people involved and look at what actually happened against what should have happened. If we need more information from you, we will ask. If it would help to talk it through — in person or over the phone — we are happy to do that.

3. We give you our final response

We write to you with our conclusions: what we found, whether we think something went wrong, and what we propose to do about it. If we got something wrong, we will say so and tell you how we intend to put it right. If we do not agree with your complaint, we will explain why, in plain English.

Taking it further: the Legal Ombudsman

If you are not happy with our final response, or we have not given you one within eight weeks, you can ask the Legal Ombudsman to look at your complaint. The Legal Ombudsman is independent of us and of the profession, and the service is free to you.

The time limits, and why they matter

There are deadlines for going to the Legal Ombudsman, and they are worth reading carefully, because they run from more than one date. You need to bring your complaint to the Ombudsman:

• within six months of receiving our final response to your complaint; and
• within one year of the problem happening; or one year from when you found out about it.

If your complaint does not meet these time limits, the Ombudsman may not be able to investigate it. So if you are unhappy with our final response, please do not leave it sitting on the side — and if you are unsure whether you are still in time, contact the Ombudsman and ask.

Complaining to the SRA

There are two different kinds of complaint, and they go to two different places.

The Legal Ombudsman deals with service: the work we did for you and how we did it — delays, poor communication, costs you were not warned about, work that fell short. That is the route described above.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority — the SRA — is our regulator. It deals with behaviour and conduct: whether a firm or a solicitor has breached the professional rules they are bound by. That covers concerns such as dishonesty, taking or losing money that is not theirs, discrimination, or treating someone unfairly because of who they are. Those are matters for the SRA, not the Ombudsman.

If you have a concern of that kind about this firm or about anyone in it, you can report it to the SRA. You do not have to complain to us first, and you can go to the SRA whether or not you have been a client of ours. You can find out how to report a concern, and what the SRA can and cannot deal with, on their website:

If you are not sure which of the two your concern is, raise it with us or with either body — nobody expects you to know where the line falls, and they will point you in the right direction.

Our SRA number

Jefferson Clarke Limited is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Our SRA number is 8012711, and the SRA's digital badge will be shown on this website too, so that you can check our regulatory record for yourself.