About Bratby Law
Professional regulatory information
This page explains how Bratby Law is regulated, the terms on which we act, how we charge and how to complain if something goes wrong.
How we are regulated and how we work
Regulator
Regulatory status
Bratby Law Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA number 801942). We are bound by the SRA Standards and Regulations, including the Code of Conduct for Solicitors, the Code of Conduct for Firms and the SRA Accounts Rules.
Insurance
Professional indemnity insurance
We hold professional indemnity insurance that meets the SRA Indemnity Insurance Rules. Details of our insurer and the territorial cover of the policy are available on request.
Client money
We do not hold client money
We do not receive or hold money on behalf of clients. The only payments we take are for our own invoices.
Terms
Terms of business
Our standard terms of business set out the general terms on which we act, including our duties to you, billing, and the rights and responsibilities of each side. They apply to every engagement unless we agree otherwise in writing.
We confirm each new instruction in an engagement letter that sets out the scope of work, the fee and any agreed changes to the standard terms. Our terms also explain how we use AI.
Fees
Pricing
We price most work as a fixed fee or a retainer, agreed in the engagement letter before work starts. A first call is to scope the work, and we do not give advice free of charge.
The SRA Transparency Rules require firms that offer certain services to publish price information (rules 1.3 and 1.4). We do not offer any of those services.
Data protection
Privacy
Our privacy notice explains how we collect, use and protect personal data, and how to complain about our use of it.
Identity checks and anti-money laundering
We are subject to the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017. Before we start work on a new instruction, the law requires us to verify the identity of our client and, where relevant, of the beneficial owners of an organisation we act for.
We will tell you at the start of an engagement what we need. We use a secure third-party identity verification service to run the checks electronically, and they are usually needed only once. We cannot begin substantive work until they are complete.
If we know or suspect that a transaction involves the proceeds of crime or terrorist financing, we may have to report it to the National Crime Agency. The law may then prevent us from telling you that we have made a report, or from explaining any delay it causes.
Complaints
If you are unhappy with our service, please tell us first so that we can try to put it right.
How to make a complaint
Write to Rob Bratby at rob@bratby.law, setting out your complaint and the outcome you want. We will acknowledge your complaint within two working days, investigate it within five working days and aim to resolve it within ten working days of our acknowledgement. If we cannot resolve it, we will invite you to take part in mediation.
Service complaints
The Legal Ombudsman
If we cannot resolve your complaint, you may be able to refer it to the Legal Ombudsman, which deals with complaints about the service lawyers provide. It can consider complaints from individuals; from micro-enterprises (broadly, businesses with fewer than 10 employees and a turnover or balance sheet of no more than €2 million); and from charities, clubs, associations and trusts with an annual income or net assets below £1 million.
You must normally give us eight weeks to resolve your complaint first. You must then refer it to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of our final response, and within one year of the problem happening or of when you found out about it.
| Contact | Details |
|---|---|
| Telephone | 0300 555 0333 |
| Relay UK | 18001 0300 555 0333 |
| From overseas | +44 121 245 3050 |
| enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk | |
| Post | Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6167, Slough SL1 0EH |
| Website | www.legalombudsman.org.uk |
Conduct concerns
The Solicitors Regulation Authority
If you are concerned about our professional conduct, for example dishonesty or unfair treatment because of your age, disability or another characteristic, you can report it to the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The SRA cannot award compensation or deal with complaints about poor service, which go to the Legal Ombudsman.
| Contact | Details |
|---|---|
| Telephone | 0370 606 2555 |
| From overseas | +44 121 820 2250 |
| Post | Solicitors Regulation Authority, The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham B1 1RN |
| Website | www.sra.org.uk |