Legal advice

[SiempreDot]

Re-posting this here for more traffic.

I really need some advice if anyone can help.

My ex partner got in touch with me via his solicitor for a proposal for contact. I approached a solicitor and put down a counter proposal. My solicitor then sent this to ex's solicitor and I was under the impression that I was waiting for his consideration.

However, during a brief chat with my ex yesterday he mentioned he'd filed an application for court. When I asked why, he said his solicitor never heard back from mine.

I've been really trying to keep this out of court so I'm pretty distraught this has happened and trying to find out what's gone on, particularly as solicitors are not cheap at all.

My solicitor assures me the letter was sent, and I've asked for her to send me a screen shot of the email that went out. If it shows the right email address etc, then it would suggest that somehow my ex's solicitor has overlooked this and not communicated it to him.

What I want to know, is if it's my ex's solicitors fault, can I still file a complaint? The implications of that mistake are not insubstantial.

Conversely, if it turns out to be my solicitors fault, what should I do then?

Any advice appreciated.

[SlightlyMisplacedSingleDad]

All solicitors are regulated by The Law Society, and have to comply with professional standards. This is a link to the guidance on complaining about a solicitor:

www.lawsociety.org.uk/for-the-public/using-a-solicitor/complaints/

As you would expect, a complaint should be raised directly with the solicitor in the first instance, before being escalated to the professional body. If it turns out to be your ex's solicitor at fault, then he will be better placed to make a complaint than you will. I that instance, I would suggest that your solicitor presses his for a response on your counter-proposal. The application to court can be withdrawn at any time. You may wish to speak to your solicitor to ask them to raise the question of your additional costs with your ex's solicitor - they may be able to extract some money from the other solicitor to cover your additional costs if the alternative is a complaint to their professional body.