Slee Blackwell is the trading name of Slee Blackwell Solicitors LLP, a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales with registration number OC404335 whose registered office is 10 Cross Street, Barnstaple, Devon. It also has offices in Taunton, Braunton, South Molton, Exeter, Tiverton and Bideford. The VAT number of Slee Blackwell Solicitors LLP is 144 1269 85 Slee Blackwell Solicitors LLP is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority with SRA number 00628016. On this website, and in all other contexts, the term ‘partner’ is used to refer to a member of Slee Blackwell Solicitors LLP or any employee or consultant with equivalent standing and qualification. A full list of the Members of Slee Blackwell Solicitors LLP is available for inspection at the registered office. Prior to May 2016, Slee Blackwell carried on business as a general partnership under the Partnership Act 1890. Nothing on this website or in any material referred to should be construed as indicating that Slee Blackwell Solicitors LLP is an unlimited liability business or general partnership. The professional indemnity insurers of Slee Blackwell Solicitors LLP are Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AG.Policy No GBF001098150

Disclaimer

We have made every reasonable effort to ensure that the material contained on this site was accurate and up-to-date on the date that it was posted. However, please be aware that the law is forever developing and the current legal position may have changed since the material was written. The material here is therefore merely intended to provide general information. Nothing on this site constitutes legal advice or creates a solicitor/client relationship. Users should seek professional legal guidance before acting or relying on the contents. We disclaim all liability for loss and/or damage that may result from the use of information contained on this site. Any links to third party websites are for the user’s information. The contents of those sites are not endorsed by us and we disclaim all liability for loss and/or damage incurred as a result of using such links. By using this website you are agreeing to the terms of this disclaimer.

Copyright

The copyright and contents of this website belong to Slee Blackwell Solicitors and we reserve all rights. You may download, print and copy extracts from this website for personal use only but no right, title or interest transfers to you from such downloading. Copying any part of this website for any other use without our prior written permission remains prohibited

Investment services

We are not authorised by the Financial Services Authority. However, we are included on the register maintained by the Financial Services Authority so that we can carry on insurance mediation activity, which is broadly the advising on, selling and administration of insurance contracts. This part of our business, including arrangements for complaints or redress if something goes wrong, is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The register can be accessed via the Financial Services Authority website.

Sometime conveyancing, family, probate or company work involves investments. We are not authorised by the Financial Services Authority and so may refer you to someone who is authorised to provide any necessary advice. However, we can provide certain limited services in relation to investments, provided they are closely linked with the legal services we are providing you, as regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

The Law Society is a designated professional body for the purpose of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 but responsibility for regulation and complaints handling has been separated from the Law Society’ representative functions. The Solicitors Regulation Authority is the independent regulatory body of the Law Society and the Legal Ombudsman is the independent complaints handling body of the Law Society.

Complaints

We are committed to providing a high-quality service to our clients.  This includes a commitment to putting things right when they go wrong. 

Our complaints partner is BRETT LAWRENCE . You can contact him by post at 2 Lime Court Pathfields Business Park South Molton EX36 3HL , or by e-mail at [email protected] . It is helpful if you put your concerns into writing, but if you would prefer not to, or if you would find it difficult to do so, he/she can be contacted by phone at 01769 575 981

If you have special needs which we should take into account due to language or disability, please let us know.

To explain to you how long our process might take we have included our target times for each stage of the process. Where, for any reason, it is not possible to observe any of these limits we will let you know and explain why.

If you do not agree with the outcome of our complaints process, or we fail to investigate it within 8 weeks, then you can have the complaint independently looked at by the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman investigates complaints about service issues with lawyers. Complaints to the Legal Ombudsman must usually be made within six months of our final response to your complaint.

The Legal Ombudsman expects complaints to be made to them within one year of the date of the act or omission about which you are concerned or within one year of you realising there was a concern. You must also refer your concerns to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of our final response to you.

The address is PO Box 6167, Slough SL1 0EH. Telephone 0300 555 0333 or email [email protected]

You may alternatively contact the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) if you have concerns as to whether we have breached any of their professional rules for solicitors. These will be found at www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/standards-regulations/principles and the SRA can be contacted at The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham B1 1RN, or by email to  [email protected].

Client monies & interest

Slee Blackwell will accept and hold client monies only to the extent necessary to undertake professional services for you or to hold money on account of anticipated costs and expenses, including our own. All client monies held by us will be deposited in our general client account or in an individual designated client account with our bankers. All monies are held and the accounts operated in strict accordance with the SRA Accounts Rules 2019 We are required to pay you a fair sum in lieu of interest on any balance (s) we hold on your behalf in our general client account. This is subject to a de minimis amount of £250 per annum. Interest is calculated on the balance (s) held over the whole period for which cleared funds are held, and is paid at a rate not less than the rate of interest payable on the relevant amount or amounts if placed on deposit on similar terms by a member of the public at the bank where the money is held. Our Interest Policy is based on the principles of the Solicitors Accounts Rules 2019. Interest and will be paid by us without deduction of tax. It is your responsibility to declare sums so received for tax purposes. Interest will added to your account on an annual basis on 31st March each year and paid to you at the conclusion of the matter.

If you agree to instruct us outside of our offices

If we have not met you in person, you have the right to cancel your instructions to us with 14 days of the date of our letter without charge. Please contact your lawyer detailed in your documentation if you wish to cancel your instructions in this way. If you want us to start work on your matter immediately, then please return your signed Case Fact Sheet. However, if we do start work and then you change you mind and cancel your instructions within the 14 day cooling-off period, we are able to charge you for any work we have already done. Once the 14 days have passed, we will carry on with your matter and our normal charging arrangements will apply.

Conditional fee and damages-based agreements

If you are proposing to fund your case under a conditional fee agreement or damages-based agreement we will need to assess the viability and prospects of the case before agreeing to accept it on those terms. We will endeavour to carry out our assessment as quickly as possible. A decision can usually be made within seven days. However in more complex cases it may be necessary for investigations to be carried out and should this be necessary then we will give you an indication of the likely timescale. You should also set out what (if any) cost this will lead to for the consumer. In most cases we make no charge for considering a case for this type of funding. If a charge is to be made then we will discuss this with you in advance and will only proceed if you are in agreement. The success fee charged under this type of funding arrangement will vary from case to case and will be discussed with you before you enter into the agreement.

Equality and diversity

The firm is committed to promoting equality and diversity in all of its dealings with you, third parties and employees. A copy of our equality and diversity policy is available from our Practice Manager.

A breakdown of our staff is contained here.