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The article on the annual report from the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors (The Lawyer, 16 December 1997) and the figures cited show, on the face of it, cause for much concern. I wonder how many of the 'complaints' that are registered are really justified?
I recently saw the voluminous correspondence between the OSS and a solicitor, not in this practice, where the OSS had been involved in the neurotic ramblings of a woman who objected to the actions of the solicitor representing the man against whom she had made a series of unpleasant and wholly unsupported accusations.
The solicitor in question had responded on behalf of his client in a robust but by no means rude manner, quite properly in my opinion, rejecting the allegations.
I believe the OSS will reject the complaint, but it will go into the records as a 'complaint'. It's the 'in' thing to complain about solicitors, because 'if you threaten to complain you may get some money, even if the complaint is unjustified' as one of my more 'delightful' clients, unconnected with the matter referred to above, cheerfully told me.
Gerald Funnell
Funnell & Perring, Hastings.
