We value our good relationships with our clients. As a firm we are committed to providing high-quality, professional IP advice and services. Therefore, when a client tells us that something has gone wrong, we take every step possible to ensure a thorough investigation to establish the full position so that, if at all possible, we can put it right and resolve it to the client’s satisfaction.
We hope that you never have reason to complain about our service or your bill. If, however, any problems or issues do arise, we would very much like to work with you to resolve them informally and quickly. Please raise any such issues initially with the attorney or solicitor with whom you have been dealing, as such a conversation can often reveal, as with any relationship, misunderstandings which can be easily addressed. If that person is not the partner responsible for your affairs, and if satisfaction has not been obtained, the matter should then be raised with that partner.
If for any reason this is not possible, or if such an informal discussion does not resolve the issue to your satisfaction, please write to our Group General Counsel by email or letter by way of a formal complaint, so that we can fully understand the precise details.
The Group General Counsel’s contact details are:
Andrew Argyle, Group General Counsel, Potter Clarkson LLP, Chapel Quarter, Mount Street, Nottingham NG1 6HQ; email: andrew.argyle@potterclarkson.com
All complaints, whether informal or formal, are dealt with promptly, fairly, objectively and free of charge.
Our Group General Counsel shall, with those involved within the Firm, investigate the complaint in accordance with this complaints procedure. We shall endeavour to ensure that you receive a response by the third working day after receipt of the complaint. This response will either be substantive or by way of an informative acknowledgement and update indicating the steps being taken and, where possible, the expected timescale. In the event that the investigation takes longer than three working days, we shall keep you regularly updated on progress as much as possible. We shall notify you of the outcome promptly and in plain and appropriate language. We aim to resolve any complaint to your satisfaction within the eight-week period stipulated by our regulator.
If your complaint remains unresolved after this period, and we shall explain to you why we cannot settle the complaint, and the complaint concerns professional misconduct, you may contact the appropriate regulator:
- The Intellectual Property Regulation Board, known as IPReg, (https://ipreg.org.uk/), which regulates the conduct of our Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys in the UK, as well as Potter Clarkson LLP and all its group companies, under the Legal Services Act 2007.
- The Solicitors Regulation Authority, known as the SRA, in respect of our UK Solicitors (https://www.sra.org.uk/)
- Svenska Patentombudsföreningen (SPOF) in respect of our Authorised Swedish Patent Attorneys (spof.se).
- Regarding Potter Clarkson A/S, complaints about our Danish patent agent’s conduct or fees may be made to The Danish Bar and Law Society (Advokatsamfundet), while complaints about non-compliance with ADIPA’s ethical rules may be made to ADIPA (Association of Danish Intellectual Property Attorneys).
Alternatively, if the complaint alleges poor service and you are an individual, a personal representative of a person’s estate, a residual beneficiary of a person’s estate, a micro-enterprise, an association, club, charity or trustee, and if we do not resolve your complaint within eight weeks, or you are not satisfied with the outcome of our internal complaints procedure, then you may be entitled to complain to the Legal Ombudsman.
Details of the Legal Ombudsman, who can use its services and the relevant procedure, can be found at www.legalombudsman.org.uk.
Additional contact details are:
- Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk.
- Post to: The Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ.
- Telephone: 0300 555 0333.
Please note that the Legal Ombudsman states the following timelines regarding a complaint to them.
Ordinarily, you can ask the Legal Ombudsman to look at your complaint if it meets all three of the steps below:
- the problem, or when you found out about it, happened after 5 October 2010;
- you are referring your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman no later than one year either from when the problem, act or omission complained about occurred, or from when you should reasonably have become aware of the problem; and
- you are referring your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman no later than six months from our final response.
To close, all professional services firms receive complaints from time to time and for a variety of reasons. We would always prefer that you raise any concerns with us, however minor, so that we have the opportunity to address them promptly and, where appropriate, use your feedback to improve the service we provide to all of our clients.