Complaints to LSRA down 9% in latest report
The legal-services watchdog received fewer complaints about solicitors and barristers over the past six months, its latest figures show.
The Legal Services Regulatory Authority (LSRA) said that it received 914 complaints in the period covering 7 March to 4 September this year – a drop of 9% compared with the previous six months.
A total of 1,021 complaints were closed in that time.
During the reporting period, the regulator told legal practitioners to pay a total of €68,700 in compensation to clients and to waive or refund a further €34,713 in legal professional fees charged.
Legal practitioners were also directed to pay €7,750 towards the costs incurred by the LSRA in investigating complaints.
Litigation costs
The LSRA's latest report includes a focused examination of complaints about litigation costs, fees, and settlements.
This report identifies recurring issues that include:
- Failures to provide clients with a section 150 costs notice at the outset or to update it when costs change,
- Misunderstandings about 'no foal, no fee' arrangements, which the LSRA says do not mean a client will have no costs, and
- Deductions made from settlement awards without the client’s written consent.
LSRA chief executive Niamh Muldoon said that consumers should expect solicitors to be upfront about legal costs from the outset.
"Additionally, solicitors should clearly explain the expected fees and any reason why the fees might change throughout the lifetime of the client’s file," she added.
"The bill at the end may be costly, but there should be a rationale for the costs and no surprises," Muldoon stated.
Costs complaints less common
A breakdown of complaints received in the latest six-month period shows that 875 related to solicitors and 39 to barristers, reflecting the higher number of solicitors and their greater level of contact with consumers.
A total of 674 complaints (74%) involved a single ground, while 447 (49%) concerned alleged misconduct only, and a further 214 (23%) related only to inadequate legal services.
Complaints about excessive costs only were less common at 13 (1%), although excessive costs featured in a further 115 complaints.
Mixed complaints involving more than one ground accounted for 240 (26%) of complaints.
Mediation
Of the 1,021 complaints closed during the period, only nine (1%) complaints of alleged misconduct were referred by the LSRA’s Complaints Committee to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (LPDT).
There were 260 complaints (25%) settled with the assistance of the LSRA – including 13 resolved with the help of mediators.
The regulator upheld 89 complaints (9%) were but dismissed 104 complaints (10%), while 481 (47%) were deemed to be inadmissible after a statutory assessment.
High Court
The report shows that the regulator issued 26 pre-action letters seeking compliance with a determination within a set timeframe.
Enforcement proceedings were then issued in three complaints seeking orders from the High Court directing compliance.
In total, the LSRA obtained five orders from the President of the High Court, some of which related to applications that had been issued in the previous reporting period.