CRIMINAL DEFENCE SOLICITORS 

We are a firm who have been awarded a Contract from the Legal Aid Agency to undertake Criminal Defence work offering Legal Aid assistance to our clients if they qualify. This means, subject to satisfying certain criteria, you may qualify to receive legal representation at no cost or a reduced cost to you at the Magistrates or Crown Court. Please contact us and we will undertake a free initial assessment on whether you qualify.

 

However, all representation at any Police Station PACE interview is free irrespective of income.

 

The Solicitors Regulation Authority require us to comply with certain regulations concerning information provided to potential clients who wish to be represented in matters.

 

The Transparency Rules relate to cases that can only be tried in the Magistrates Court which are dealt with in one hearing. These are summary only driving offences under Part I of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and section 89 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984.

 

If you case is not one covered by these regulations and you do not qualify for legal aid then please do contact us and we will discuss with you and put into writing a written estimate of our fees.

 

In any case where a defendant enters a guilty plea for a summary offence, the amount of work is significantly reduced. We therefore charge a fee starting from £300 upto £1000 plus VAT to deal with the entire case through to conclusion. You can also request an initial free consultation where after discussing the matter, we will be able to provide a far more accurate figure once we have establish the nature of the allegations and what level of subsequent work maybe required. No work will be undertaken until you have been advised of the fees due. Additional fees may be due if additional work is required but we will advise you as to fees on an ongoing basis.

 

This fee includes: 

• considering evidence

• taking your instructions

• providing advice on likely sentence and the sentencing guidelines

• Attendance and representation at a single hearing at the Magistrates Court which may involve a Plea and Sentence hearing followed by an advice on appeal

 

This fee does not include: 

• instruction of any expert witnesses

• taking statements from any witnesses

• advice and assistance in relation to a special reasons hearing

• Disbursements such as mileage, parking, and the use of public transport

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Complaints Information

 

We hope that you will be satisfied with the efficiency and effectiveness with which we deal with your case.  We are a firm, which tries to give a personal service to our clients.  In the event that you are dissatisfied with any aspect of our service, which includes a complaint about our firm’s bill, please mention it at once to the Fee Earner concerned.  You may also have a right to object to the bill by applying to the Court for an assessment of the bill under Part 3 of the Solicitors Act 1974, however if all or part of the bill remains unpaid the firm may be entitled to charge interest and we will of course notify you of this under separate cover should this apply in your case.

 

If difficulties remain, please contact the Complaints Manager, Mr H Suthi who will do his best to resolve your problem and will in any event write to you formally, within 7 days to acknowledge the complaint.  If it is Mr Suthi who is dealing with your case then any complaint should be directed to Mr A Johal.

 

Our firm has a complaints procedure, a copy of which is available on request. Our firm’s aims to deal with any written complaint that is made by a Partner of this firm, and that your complaint will receive an initial written response within 21 days.

 

At the conclusion of our firm’s complaint process, if you are not satisfied with our handling of the complaint you can complain to the Legal Ombudsman. Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us about your complaint or within six years of the act or omission about which you are complaining occurring (or if outside of this period, within three years of when you should reasonably have been aware of it).

 

You can contact the Legal Ombudsman on: 0300 555 0333 or e-mail them at: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk or in writing at PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH.  Alternatively, a complaint can also be made to our Regulatory Body, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (“SRA”). The SRA can be contacted on 0370 6062555 or via email to contactcentre@sra.org.uk. The SRA is responsible for regulating solicitors in England and Wales. Their purpose is to protect the public by ensuring that solicitors meet high standards and by acting when risks are identified.

 

We hope that you will find these details helpful and we will be more than happy to assist you if there is any further information that you require.