Chambers is committed to maintaining the high standards set by the Bar Council's Barmark guidance and quality standards. All staff administer chambers according to the practice management for the bar guidelines. The quality of individual service provided by members of chambers is regularly monitored by the Chambers Management Committee who maintain the high standards and quality control required by the Bar Council.
Equal Opportunities
Chambers is committed to equal opportunities, practice and procedures. These standards apply from staffing to the appointment of tenants with the administration of mini-pupillages and acceptance of instructions. Chambers maintains full compliance with paragraph 305.1 of the Bar Code of Conduct:
305.1. A barrister must not in relation to any other person (including a client or another barrister or a pupil or an employee or a student member of an Inn of Court) discriminate directly or indirectly because of race, colour, ethnic or national origin, nationality, citizenship, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, age, religion or belief.
Complaints Procedure
What should I do if I have a complaint against my Barrister?
Complaints about the outcome of any particular case will generally not form the basis for a complaint. Your barrister will be able to advise you as to whether there may be grounds to appeal a particular decision.
If however, you have a complaint about the conduct of your barrister or the way in which they conducted your case, please put your complaint in writing to the individual barrister concerned. A barrister is required to deal with all complaints courteously, promptly and in a manner that addresses the issues raised by the complaint. If you feel that writing to the individual would be inappropriate given the nature of the complaint, then please address your complaint to us using the Contact Us tab above, or in writing, to:
The Head of Chambers
43 Temple Row Chambers
43 Temple Row
Birmingham
B2 5LS
The nature and speed of any response will depend upon the precise circumstances. For example, if your complaint is that the barrister has been negligent, he or she is required to inform his or her insurers and those insurers may need to be consulted about the response.
If you are unhappy with the response or not satisfied with the way in which your complaint was considered then you may contact The Bar Standards Board (BSB), the regulator for barristers. They investigate complaints against barristers and take action against those who break the rules of the code of conduct. They do this in the interests of the public and to maintain the good name and standards of the profession. There is no charge for making a complaint to them.
The Bar Standards Board can be contacted at:
Complaints and Investigations Department,
Bar Standards Board
289-293 High Holborn
London WC1V 7HZ
Main Switchboard: 020 7611 1444
Fax: 020 7611 1342
If you are not satisfied with the way in which The Bar Standards Board considered your complaint, you may contact the Legal Services Ombudsman to investigate how they handled it. The Ombudsman is not a lawyer. If the Ombudsman thinks that the complaint was not investigated properly, he can recommend that the complaint be reconsidered or that the BSB and/or the barrister pay compensation.
The Ombudsman’s address is:
The Legal Services Ombudsman
3rd Floor
Sunlight House
Quay Street
Manchester M3 3JZ.
E-mail. enquiries.lso@oslo.gsi.gov.uk
Lo-call number: 0845 6010794 (charged at local rates and available nationally)