We are committed to providing high quality legal advice and client care.
However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service provided, please inform us immediately so that we can do our best to resolve the problem. 

In the first instance, it may be helpful to contact the person who is handling your matter. If you still have queries or concerns, please contact Robert O’Hara who is the Client Care Partner to whom any final issues can be reported.  

 Formal complaint procedure 

The following outlines our recommended procedure for making a formal complaint. Please note that making a complaint will not affect how we handle your case. 

  1. A formal complaint should be addressed to our head of practice ​Robert O’Hara who can be contacted in writing at O’Hara Solicitors, 69-71 London Road, Waterlooville, Hampshire, PO7 7EX or by email ​at [email protected]. Please set out the details of the complaint.
  2. We will acknowledge your complaint within seven working days of receipt.
  3. Our head of practice will show your complaint to the person responsible for your matter and ask them to conduct a complete review of the file and to respond in writing. They will also interview any members of staff involved in your matter.
  4. You will receive a written response to your complaint within 14 days from the date the complaint is first received. This response will set out the result of our investigation, any proposed resolution and, if relevant, any procedural changes we will make to ensure the situation does not arise again. 


Advanced Complaint Procedure

If the above steps do not provide a solution, we will invite you in with all managing partners of the firm to meet either virtually or in person to go through the file together. If this does not provide a suitable solution, we will advance to taking the complaint further (see below.)

Taking the complaint further 

We are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and complaints and redress mechanisms are provided through them and the Legal Ombudsman. 

 If we are unable to resolve any such concerns to your satisfaction you are entitled to make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman at www.legalombudsman.org.uk or P.O. Box 6806 Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ. 

 The Legal Ombudsman investigates complaints about service issues with lawyers. They expect complaints to be made to them within one year of the date of the act or omission about which you are concerned, or within one year of you realising there was a concern. You must also refer your concerns to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of our final response to you. 

 The Legal Ombudsman may consider complaints made after these deadlines if it is fair and reasonable for them to do so. They may decide not to pursue a complaint if: 

  • there was no significant loss, distress, inconvenience, or detriment; 
  • the size or complexity of the complaint, or your behaviour, results in the complaint requiring a disproportionate use of resources; 
  • there has been undue delay in bringing the complaint; 
  • you have already accepted a reasonable offer we made. 

 Complaints about a client’s rights under the General Data Protection Regulation must be submitted to the Information Commissioner’s Office at www.ico.org.uk. 

Any disputes or legal issues arising from our Client Care and Terms of Business will be determined by the law of England and Wales and considered exclusively by the English and Welsh courts.