Crap solicitor, complain?

[AprilRae91]

We are selling and buying, we chose a local solicitor my estate agent recommended. We have had delays and issues throughout the whole conveyancing process, which has been handled by a paralegal who has been in the job less than a year.

Surveys/ searches weren’t done for months until I chased them, they didn’t pass on any documentation to us until I asked, and the paralegal kept getting mixed up about what had been requested (gas safe cert, HEATAS etc). I had a number of emails just ignored. The buyer also needed some documentation which wasn’t requested from me for months. It got the point where the seller and buyer started messaging me directly (had sellers number from viewing and I know my buyer) to confirm anything, as both their solicitors said that they’ve had a nightmare with mine not replying to anything.

The paralegal rang me last Monday (1week ago) to say the exchange and move date was confirmed for Wednesday so I booked removals. I’ve just got a message from the seller to say they had no confirmation of this and to ask if we can actually move on Wednesday?

Anyway I really don’t want to have to pay the full fee (about 3k) as I feel they have been incompetent and we haven’t gotten the service we expected, I feel like I’ve done half the job myself. It’s been really stressful, the process has taken 5 months and I’m now 9 months pregnant. Does anybody know how I would go about complaining and requesting a review of the fees, or if it’s even worth trying?

Thanks for any advice.

Just wanted to add I did send an email to the solicitor who owns the practice about a month ago, listing the problems we’d had, but he didn’t reply.

I can't add anything constructive except to say I have had the same experience for every sale/ purchase I have made. Now coming close to the end of a transaction that the solicitor seems to have tried to sabotage every step of the way

I was in Conveyancing for years, common practice to get paralegals to deal with the transactions, its cheaper.
That paralegal is probably dealing with hundreds of cases and being paid a pittance compared to the more qualified colleagues.
When you are referred by an estate agent, the solicitors pay a huge sum of your bill as a referral fee back to the estate agent.

Too late now, but from what I read you are saying the paralegal phoned you to exchange on x day with completion on x day, very odd. Exchange happens when everyone is ready, no one books the day in for it, even when dates have been discussed re completion, you will always get a phone call once everyone is ready to exchange to triple check you still want that date. The exchange itself is a set of phone calls amd normally does not take long (depending on the length of the chain involved).

I would make a formal complaint to the estate agent and the solicitors practice, push the estate agent to do something and mention that they must be getting paid a referral fee, might spurn them on.
If the solicitors do not come back to you, I would take it up with the Law Society.

The law society do not deal with complaints, the SRA are the regulatory body and the complaint should go to the legal ombudsman having exhausted the firm's own complaints procedure.

I would definitely complain, firstly to the solicitors, giving them 10 working days to respond, then, if no useful response, to the Law Society. Make a list of the key points that have gone wrong and ask for a response to each. Also complain to the estate agents who recommended them.

When I was divorced I complained to my solicitor about the service I received and asked for my fees to be ‘taxed’ under the Scottish system. This means an independent solicitor hears the complaints and makes recommendations. It was fairly stressful but I succeeded in having a substantial sum removed from my bill.

So it can be done. There are excellent solicitors but, as in any walk of life, some poor ones too and clients shouldn’t have to suffer further at what is already a tough time in their life.

As I said the law society DO NOT deal with complaints.

www.lawsociety.org.uk/public/for-public-visitors/using-a-solicitor/complain-about-a-solicitor

Is it a crap solicitor, or has everyone else involved in the transaction taken time to respond to requests - the solicitors on either side of your transaction, the other third parties acting on yours, your buyers and your sellers transaction, i.e. the lenders, the land registry, the council, the freeholder/management company, the search agent etc etc.

Unfortunately, there are many moving parts in a conveyancing transaction (think spinning plates) and it is all at the mercy of the slowest link in the chain. Rest assured your "paralegal" is being closely supervised, how else are they going to learn?

Just an update- we are moving today. We thought it might not happen. We were in a situation where we had to transfer deposit funds to the solicitor by 3pm to ensure it went through in time today. But the paralegal told us she couldn’t give us a figure yet because she hadn’t had my mortgage redemption statement through.

She made out the lender was delayed on sending it. So I called my lender and got a redemption statement directly (in 20 mins) and emailed it to her. Interestingly they told me they can provide them a month in advance so the solicitor shouldn’t have had a problem getting it ready we’ll in advance.

My partner was sat in the bank waiting for an hour until she emailed the final amount and bank details over at 2:45 so just in time.

For clarity this was yesterday ^

In same situation with selling and buying and my god it’s dragging on. Also feel like you have to constantly chase things and there is so much miscommunication.

They’ve taken their fees out directly so I queasiness would need to seek a refund if I’m not happy to pay the full amount.

GUESS WE (not queasiness)

So pleased you made it OP. I too took my estate agent's recommendation for a conveyancing solicitor and found it a disaster. Wrong information, lost documents that I had brought in personally and even the wrong amount on the contracts! Hope the new house is lovely despite this aggro (and good luck complaining).

@Frecklespy I’m convinced it’s my solicitor as nothing seemed to be done until I’ve chased it, and I’ve had so many instances of receiving no response and my buyer and seller coming to me to ask what’s happening as their representatives were annoyed. I’ve never had this before when moving. But the issue is proving it as they can just come up with excuses and blame somebody else?

Thanks @Igmum! Just hoping baby doesn’t decide to make an appearance today as I’m full term, waddling around trying to finish packing.

good luck with the move

What you describe is completely normal btw ... or at least it's always been the same experience with everyone I know. Only tip is to save money next time by not taking an estate agent recommendation - you pay more that way

Glad it worked out OP. Paralegal probably in over their depth dealing with too much with too little experience.

Unfortunately people don’t value their conveyancing solicitors anymore so there’s been a race to the bottom in the industry on fees. Pay peanuts - get monkeys. That’s why there’s such junior staff dealing with a high caseload. The £3k must have included SDLT?

Good luck April and baby April