Efforts to help the legal sector better understand the role of the Legal Ombudsman (LeO) and provide insight into their decisions are to be redoubled under a ‘renewed commitment to using statutory powers to publish final decisions where it is in the public interest to do so.’
The Legal Ombudsman, established in the wake of the Legal Services Acts 2007, has committed to increasing the transparency of complaints about legal services and promoting the learning to be drawn from these.
LeO said it acknowledged most legal services are delivered to an ‘expected standard’, adding it’s casework can highlight when things have gone wrong.
“A key element of LeO’s role as an ombudsman scheme is to share learning from our insights and support the delivery of high-quality legal services.”
said Chief Ombudsman Paul McFadden.
Now LeO says it intends to use its statutory powers to publish decisions in the public interest, an approach which brings it in line with other ombudsman schemes and also supports a sector-wide ambition to support informed consumer choice and encourage higher standards of service across the sector.
“Our renewed commitment to publishing decisions in the public interest increases the transparency of the complaints system and reflects the critical importance of complaints in supporting improvement and high standards in how legal services are delivered.”
“While most legal services are delivered professionally and competently, there are times when things go seriously wrong – and when they do, transparency matters. Publishing decisions in these cases not only helps to protect consumers, it also reinforces standards and ensures accountability.”
Complaints are under scrutiny with the Legal Services Consumer Panel (LSCP) critical of legal services in a survey conducted earlier this year which identified 46% of the Legal Ombudsman’s (LeO) investigations found poor complaints handling processes by firms. It says there is an ‘urgent need for enhanced accountability and responsiveness when it comes to complaints’ with one in five consumers saying they did not take any action even though they were dissatisfied with the service they received – a cohort LCSP describe as ‘silent sufferers’ whose lawyers ‘are not aware of their dissatisfaction, meaning their ability to respond positively and improve their service is lost.’
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is also seeking views on how firms can improve transparency around complaints and bring it more in line with guidance on transparency in price and service: prominently displayed, clear and jargon-free, and published in a place that is easy to locate either on a website or readily available on request in another format.
“When things do go wrong, the way solicitor firms deal with complaints is a key indicator of service quality for consumers and of whether they can have trust and confidence in their provider. Solicitors shouldn’t be afraid of encouraging complaints – they are an opportunity to identify areas for improvement and ways to deliver more effectively for clients. Our research suggests that there’s no negative connotations around firms being so open about their complaints process.”
said SRA Chief Executive Paul Philip.
LeO say the cases that meet criteria approved for publication by the Office for Legal Complaints’ Public Interest Decisions Committee will be published on the LeO website website quarterly and will remain available for 12 months.
