Scottish Legal Complaints Commission Reviews 

Response from Scottish complaints is beyond shocking and shows a complete disregard to any complaint. No accountability . No response ever from the Head. How and why are the staff even employed in my case?

Utterly shocking’ completed a complaint form in October and here we are start of February and no reply! Not fit for purpose is how this sham should be described. They had the audacity to send me a satisfaction survey! Satisfied with what? You haven’t replied!!!!!

I can see that the SLCC are accumulating a resounding one star rating, and I hope this in some way encourages them to look more carefully at their purpose.
In short, after half a year of waiting, the SLCC responded by saying that there is nothing to see here. After their investigation they are content with the excuse offered by the solicitors firm involved. They don't feel the need to verify that with me, the person who has presumably been deemed too gullible in giving a life savings in the persute of legal assistance.
The excuse offered was that I, the client, signed a court agreement, so the fact that the agreement transpired to be worthless, was entirely my fault. Now, it seems to me that I could have achieved that without a solicitor.
I will be trying to persuade my MP or anyone with government influence to take a look at the purpose of the SLCC. Is it to create a belief that the morally complexed legal profession are being wisely scrutinised and held to account .. or as is fashionable in the modern Trump world, should it be 'defunded'.

I am absolutely appalled and lost for words at the SLCC's decision making to be frank.

To think that they believe that the service provided to me by BTO solicitors is acceptable is totally beyond me and to overrule initial decisions after I appealed the original outcome which had already been reviewed and upheld (I take it through the same process) seems at best unethical and unfair.

It does beg the question of the overall independence of this process.

To raise this complaint formally was a big decision for me as its certainly not an easy thing to navigate, the process is stacked against the ordinary person and is designed to discourage and defeat anyone who is not a lawyer, thus protecting those within the profession at all costs.

That said, this was never about the money for me it was about holding BTO to account for extremely poor professional standards and you have singularly failed to support me.

This ruling not only lets them off the hook but gives them carte blanche to carry on doing as they like.

I would strongly suggest you take the time to review their trust pilot reviews and you will see this is by no means an isolated incident. What needs to happen to make a change to the current processes and put the customer first.

Continuing that theme your own 88% of 1 star reviews would suggest that you also have to look at your internal processes as you are clearly not open to listening to what the customer needs and wants.

I am very satisfied and happy with the service overall. While the time factor could be improved, I am pleased with Angela and the assistance she provided.

Lawyers investigating other lawyers only results in an inevitable conclusion ... lawyers 1 complainer 0. A complete farce from start to finish.

Professional support and advice received. I did not realise that the SLCC existed. If I had known before now, I would not have hesitated in contacting them. I really was in need of help and support and this is exactly what I was given from the SLCC. Getting the SLCC involved made the firm of solicitors I was using, sit up, listen, address my complaints and come up with a satisfactory resolution. Nearly 2 years I had been chasing the firm of solicitors, getting the SLCC involved was the best decision. Thank you so much.

Totally biased idiots! Just take the solicitor’s word as gospel. The so called investigators couldn’t investigate their way out of a paper bag! as far as I can make out they have no legal training and probably worked in the complaints department of Asda or Tesco. I complained about two different solicitors (Scott Alexander, Montrose total incompetence & Harper McLeod, Glasgow lied to a sheriff). I supplied irrefutable written evidence of my complaints but both cases not upheld, eh? How come? I requested a FOI of the minutes of the decision committee’s meeting so I can see what was discussed and how on earth they arrived at that decision - guess what? They don’t take minutes and even if they did they’d be exempt from an FOI! I guess it’s much easier to just rubber stamp the so called investigator’s recommendation if no minutes taken! This lot need to be disbanded and replaced with a fully independent ombudsman ASAP!

SLCC demonstrated that they will leave no stone unturned in order to reach the right judgement and hold the legal firm to account where justified on behalf of the public. Their communication was truly outstanding throughout the duration of the case. A highly credible and professional organisation.

TLDR Temper your expectations of obtaining any justice from the SLCC.

You are far better making a claim against the 'Master Policy" Insurer (MPI) (although you can lodge claims with both the SLCC and the MPI). Solicitors must notify the MPI Insurers of any complaint that gives rise to a claim. So first make a formal complaint to the solicitor and get the solicitor to confirm they have notified the MPI. The MPI should contact you, if not seek their contact details from the solicitor and chase them up yourself.

As for the SLCC - my experience was that the SLCC failed to follow their own policy in respect of evaluating loss then refused to say why. The Court of Session has stated that the SLCC must give adequate reasons for their decisions that leave the complainer in no doubt about how the SLCC arrived at their decisions, but the SLCC repeatedly failed to give me any reasons let alone adequate reasons.

Like other reviewers found, the SLCC displays an inherent bias in it's decision making. They appear scared (or at least wholly reluctant) to make decisions against solicitors. The SLCC appears to make decisions as if the solicitor you complained of is standing behind them looking over their shoulder. To that point, it is notable that the SLCC's employees' wages are paid by a levy from solicitors, thereby the SLCC's employees' livelihoods depends on solicitors. It is therefore perhaps not surprising that the SLCC staff are biased, but it means that you cannot expect, and you will not receive, a truly independent decision for your complaint.

I found that the SLCC consistently ignore the plain facts that implicate the solicitor in wrongdoing, so the SLCC's decisions—and the illogical and perverse reasoning used to justify them—are often egregious. They have a remarkable capacity for inept decision-making and you will likely also find that their staff appear to strain every sinew to avoid finding against the solicitor.

The Case Investigator’s recommendations are particularly woeful - they demonstrate a level of incompetence that is difficult to comprehend; one would reasonably expect a higher standard from a school leaver.

The real benefit of making a complaint to the SLCC is that the solicitor has to pay a complaint levy if the Determination Committee makes a decision (so once you receive the Case Investigator's Report seek a sum in settlement from the solicitor as the solicitor will likely want to avoid paying the levy (the Complaint Levy ranges from £1,000-£7,000).

Note: see s14(2) of the Legal Profession and Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 2007 - An SLCC decision does not prevent you from also raising court proceedings against the solicitor to recover your loss, only that any award the SLCC make may be taken into account by the court (to avoid you receiving compensation twice for the same issue / loss).

Absolutely useless, waste of time. Never ever looked at the full evidence

The help and guidance I received from SLCC was excellent.

They made this process so much easier to understand and deal with. The outcome  was much better than I expected. SLCC were able to get me 10% of my fees back plus compensation for stress and inconvenience from a less than satisfactory solicitor. The solicitor dragged my divorce on for nearly 4 years, turning a fairly simple matter into a very costly one. I cannot thank my case officer, Patrick enough for all the support and for bringing this to a speedy conclusion.

I wouldn't even give this ombudsman 1 star. Do not waste your time people. In fact I know it to be corrupt. You can have numerous pieces of evidence it counts for nothing. The solictor from his side doesn't need to supply jack all. In fact some of the so called investigators at the SLCC are actually friends on social media with other solicitors who you are complaining about ! Solicitors are not afraid at all if you go to ombudsman as they know they are covered. It's a shocking state of affair.

JONES WHYTE LLP
Company number SO306337
27 Feb 2024 First Gazette notice for compulsory strike-off.
Search above company number.
Quote below
"The Registrar of Companies give notice that unless cause is shown to the contrary, that Limited Liability Partnership will be stuck off the register and dissolved not less than 2 months from the date shown above.
Upon the Limited Liability Partnerships dissolution, all property and rights vested in, or held in trust for, the Limited Liability Partnership are deemed to be bona vacantia and will belong to the crown." End Quote.

Have tried to contact Jones Whyte for any information, but they do not respond and just hang up my calls. Stephanie Claire Hutton (Ex McClures now director at Jones Whyte)

No doubt that Jones Whyte will complain to Trustpilot and Trustpilot will remove this honest and truthful review.
Please be aware and look at company house for more information.
Also see Facebook "VICTIMS OF MCCLURES SOLICITORS" Jones Whyte now own all asset of McClures.
Date of experience: 27 February 2024

No doubt the SLCC will say nothing and find nothing.
UPADTE NUMBER 1.


Trustpilot
Hi T ruth
Jones Whyte would love to understand your experience better, so they’ve asked for more details about your review—like an order number or email.

If we don’t hear from you within 3 days, your review may be taken offline.

UPDATE NUMBER 2

No flagging activity on Trustpilot site, but review has been taken down.

UPDATE NUMVER 3.
This is the UK Government that is taking this action against Jones Whyte, but Trustpilot has taken this review down from Jones Whyte reviews. It is the TRUTH.

Still waiting for a decision from SLCC after nearly a year
RAC appoint Gildeas solicitors for a non fault accident. 3rd party admits liability. RAC/Gildeas solicitors fail to settle anything then sue me, their client, for their costs!! Court case. LOSE. Appeal LOSE. Hugely out of pocket after five days in court for an accident that wasn’t my fault, and admitted by 3rd party.
SLCC says it’s ok for Gildeas to pursue costs and ignore court decision and appeal against solicitors.
SLCC’s fee paying solicitors are never wrong and allowed to do what they want. Scottish Government must investigate insurance racket and shut down SLCC if it fails to prevent disgusting tactics by solicitors.

Like all the reviews left on here for the slcc this organisation is utterly corrupt, discriminatory and incompetent. It's a forgone conclusion they will protect there own which is what they do. Do not bother expecting decent law abiding people to adjudicate solicitors misbehaving it simply won't happen. Basically they can get away with anything they want because they control everything and they know it. You are left with take it to the court of appeals if you don't agree with all the costs that will entail. Don't forget they will be using tax payers funds to litigate against you and you will have to fund your own defense. So you are paying them to fight you in court. So next time you require the services of a solicitor and they try to reassure you that there governed by the Law Society remember it means absolutely nothing. Every potential conveyance could be flawed, every contract could be flawed, every divorce flawed. You have no recourse for justice with this sorry failing incompetent organisation whatsoever.

What is the point of this organisation???

Having read the other reviews it is clear I am not alone.

It is a very slow and laborious process to raise a complaint and to finalise the details of the complaint. The agent assigned to deal with the complaint continually changed the language we used and changed the wording of the complaint, making it sound remarkably benign. I spent a great deal of time drafting and wording the complaint, and seen no reason why it should be changed.

From my experience, it would seem that when a complaint is logged with the SLCC they take the stance that the solicitor has done nothing wrong and the complainant is left to provide all the evidence before the investigation starts.

No wonder our solicitor was unconcerned that we were referring our complaint to the SLCC. It's a complete waste of time.

Update
Total corrupt organisation gave them all the written statements from the Secretary of State for Scotland and a number of law books but they still sided with the local authorities solicitor stay well away from this corrupt organisation as if no one contacts them then they might go out of business you have no chance look at the number of bad reviews not one review has been given a 5 start

If you have a problem with a lawyer/law firm I would advise you dont take your case to SLCC as they are corrupt and are only their to protect lawyers and law firms, General members of the public need to provide writen or photographic evidence for a complaint to be upheld by them but lawyers and law firms only need to make a verbil statment and that is excepted as fact by SLCC The firm of W&AS Bruce lied continualy to SLCC they offered no actual evidence yes SLCC still choose to beleive what they say and ignore the written and photographic evidence, I even asked SLCC 3 times why when a general member of the public makes a complaint they have to have written or photographic evidence for the complaint to be upheld but a lawyer/law firm can just make a verbal statement and this is excepted as fact, They would not get away with just making statements in a court of law so why do SLCC just except their statements as fact with no proper evidence and surprise surprise I am still waiting on a reply to my question ??

Once SLCC has made a decision on your case, no matter how absurd or illogical that decision is, no matter how many pieces of evidence effectively ignored or not requested, no matter how incompetently handled, no matter how many lies they have believed from the solicitors in question, then SLCC will refuse to review or re-open the case even in light of substantial fresh evidence and tell you to go to some Court. If you persist in your complaints they might threaten you with some unreasonable behaviour policy they've drafted to give themselves a license to ignore you and fail to act in the public interest even more. If you want to complain about a legal professional on the Scottish Disciplinary Tribunal panel, which is the panel that would eventually consider a case SLCC might bring, they effectively tell you to go to SLCC. While at the same time these two organisations claim to be independent yet this is an example of interdependence since the SDT doesn't seem to make its own internal investigation into its panel members. SLCC cannot answer straightforward questions to the public such as is it a prima facie case of misconduct if a solicitor has been responsible for or fails to put an end to something found unlawful by a Court, as one example.