Legal, regulatory & cyber security information

This website contains general information based on English law. Although we aim to ensure that the content is accurate and up-to-date, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made as to its accuracy or completeness or appropriateness to particular circumstances. The information on this website should not therefore be relied on. Users should always seek appropriate legal advice from a suitably qualified lawyer before taking, or avoiding taking, any action. The contents of this website should not be construed as legal or other professional advice and Willans LLP will not accept liability for any loss, howsoever caused, arising directly or indirectly from reliance on the information on this website.

We use cookies on our site to enable Google Analytics, a web analytics tool that helps us understand how visitors engage with our website. We may collect information about your computer, such as your operating system and browser type, in order to create reports – please read our cookie policy if you’d like detailed information. Google Analytics collects statistical data anonymously, reporting website trends without identifying individual visitors. If you wish, you can opt out of Google Analytics without affecting how you visit our site. For advice on opting across all websites you use, visit this Google page. If you have any questions about the way in which Willans handles data collected from you on this website, please contact law@willans.co.uk.

We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information. Our privacy notice describes how we collect and use personal information about you, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). It applies to all clients, prospective clients and business contacts about whom we hold personal information. We may update this notice at any time.

We always aim to give our clients’ transparent and clear, upfront advice on the estimated cost of our advice. It isn’t always possible to give a fixed fee as there can be too many factors depending on the nature of the advice. Naturally, you’d like to know what the cost is likely to be for the advice that we give you and we will keep you abreast of our fee estimate as we go along so you won’t have any nasty surprises.

As an SRA authorised firm we are required to publish price information for certain services. This information can be found on the relevant service pages:

• Conveyancing (residential)
• Probate
• Employment tribunals (businesses or individuals)
• Debt recovery (businesses or individuals)

All material (including without limitation photographs) on this website is, unless clearly indicated to the contrary, the copyright of Willans LLP and may not be reproduced in any format or in any circumstances without the prior written consent of an authorised person within Willans LLP.

Users may access and download the contents of these pages and store a copy on a temporary basis for the sole purpose of viewing the pages. Permanent storage, copying or re-distribution of these pages is prohibited. We will consent to appropriate links to our website only with prior permission from the web administrator.

If you are unhappy with any aspect of our services, please call us on 01242 514000 in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with how we handle your complaint, you may be entitled to ask the Legal Ombudsman (‘LeO’) to consider the matter (larger business clients do not have the right to have their complaint reviewed by LeO). If you are a consumer and we have made a contract with you by electronic means you may be entitled to use an EU online dispute resolution service to assist with any contractual dispute you may have with us. Our full complaints procedure can be accessed here.

We are an equal opportunities employer and are committed to promoting equality and diversity in all our dealings with employees, clients and third parties.

A summary of the equality and diversity data relating to people working at Willans LLP, as required by and submitted to the SRA, is available to view here.

It is your responsibility to check with the lawyer acting for you (by phone or post) that you are using our correct bank details in order to avoid error, delay or fraud. We will not be held responsible for any ​liability arising out of funds being sent by any party to an incorrect bank account.

General hoax emails may suggest that you have been named as a beneficiary in someone’s will and that you must send your personal details in order to claim your ‘inheritance’. They may ask you to make contact via phone numbers, fax numbers or email addresses that are different from ours. You can check our contact details on our website.

What to do if we cannot resolve your complaint

The Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case.  The Legal Ombudsman is not able to accept complaints from larger businesses.

Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

• within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint

and

• within one year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or
• within one year from the date when you should have realised that there was cause for complaint.

If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them.

Contact details:
Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9.00 to 17.00.
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Address: Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH

What to do if you are unhappy with our professional conduct

If you are concerned that this firm, or an individual employee or representative of this firm, has acted in a way that is in breach of any of the professional conduct Principles set by our regulator, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), you should raise your concerns directly with the SRA. Details of the Principles and how to contact the SRA can be found here.

What to do if you are unhappy with how we are processing personal data about you

If you are concerned about how we are processing personal data about you, you may raise a complaint in accordance with our data protection complaints procedure, and ultimately you can refer your complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (www.ico.org.uk) if you remain dissatisfied.

What to do if you are unhappy with mediation services we have provided

If you are concerned about mediation services we have provided (i.e. where we have provided a mediator for a dispute you are involved in), you may raise a complaint in accordance with our mediation complaints procedure, and ultimately you may be able to refer your complaint to the Civil Mediation Council if it relates to serious professional misconduct.

If you are unhappy about how we have represented you in a mediation (i.e. where we were not acting as mediator) then the appropriate procedure is our general complaints procedure above.