Complaints Policy

Enquiry form

Our aim is to give you a good service at all times. However, if you have a complaint we ask you to let us know as soon as possible. It is not necessary to involve solicitors in order to make your complaint but you are free to do so should you wish.

Please note that Chambers will only consider complaints that are raised within six months of the act or omission complained of.

Complaints

If you have a complaint, please send your complaint in writing

in a letter to St John’s Chambers, 101 Victoria Street, Bristol, BS1 6PU, or by email to us using [email protected].

Please provide the following details:

Your name and address;
Which member(s) of Chambers you are complaining about;
The detail of the complaint; and
What you would like done about.

We will where possible, acknowledge receipt of your complaint within two working days and provide you with details of how your complaint will be dealt with.
Our Chambers has a panel comprising of the Chief Executive, Practice Managers, and the Manager, Business Support, as well as experienced members of Chambers which considers any written Within 20 working days of your letter being received, the Manager, Business Support, will investigate the matter or appoint a senior member of Chambers to investigate it. The person appointed will be someone other than the person you are complaining about.
The Manager, Business Support will write to you as soon as possible to let you know who will be investigating your complaint and that they will reply to your complaint within 20 working If the Manager, Business Support finds later that they are not going to be able to reply within 20 working days they will set a new date to reply and inform you.
Chambers reply to your complaint will set out:
- The nature and scope of the investigation;
- Their conclusion on each complaint and the basis for their conclusion; and
- If the investigator finds that you are justified in your complaint, their proposals for resolving the

Confidentiality

All conversations and documents relating to the complaint will be treated as confidential and will be disclosed only to the extent that is Disclosure will be to the head of chambers, members of our management committee and to anyone involved in the complaint and its investigation. Such people will include the barrister member or staff who you have complained about, the head or relevant senior member of the panel and the person who investigates the complaint. The Bar Standards Board is entitled to inspect the documents and seek information about the complaint when discharging its auditing and monitoring functions.

Our Policy

As part of our commitment to client care we make a written record of any complaint and retain all documents and correspondence generated by the complaint for a period of six Our Management Board inspects an anonymised record regularly with a view to improving services.

We hope that you will use our complaints procedure. However, if you would rather not do so, or if you are unhappy with the outcome from using it, you may take up your complaint with the Legal Ombudsman Scheme or the Bar Standards Boad at any time.

Alternative complaints bodies (such as Small Claims Mediation The Law Society exist which are competent to deal with complaints about legal services should both you and your barrister wish to use such a scheme.

Complaints of misconduct

Any complaints of misconduct (that is, breach of the Code of Conduct) should be made to the BSB as the Legal Ombudsman will not entertain that aspect of any complaints. If any misconduct issue arises during the investigation of a complaint by the Ombudsman, the Ombudsman will refer the misconduct issue to the BSB.

Bar Standards Board

289-293 High Holborn London WC1V 7HZ

Tel: 020 7611 1444

Fax: 020 7831 9217

Website: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

Complaints to the Legal Ombudsman Scheme

Please note a complainant must refer a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within one year from the act/omission being complained about, or b) one year from the dates when the complainant should have realised that there was cause for complaint AND within six months of the final response from our complaints process.

Please see the Legal Ombudsman’s website for more details.

Since 6 October 2010, service (not misconduct) complaints by individuals and some non-commercial bodies against barristers must be made to and considered by the Legal Ombudsman, and not to and by the Bar Standards Complaint’s Committee. This includes complaints about matters occurring prior to 6 October 2010.

Legal Ombudsman,

PO Box 6167

Slough, SL1 0EH

Tel: 0300 555 0333 (Please note all calls will be recorded)

www.legalombudsman.org.uk

Reviewed and updated April 2025.