Complaints Handling Procedure

1. We will endeavour to send you a written acknowledgement of your complaint within three business days of receiving it, providing a copy of this procedure and setting out the timetable we expect to follow in attempting to resolve your complaint. We will fully document the complaint and our handling of it.

2. Iain Russell will then objectively investigate your complaint. We will keep you informed of its progress; how often we update you will depend on its nature and complexity. Where we can resolve your complaint quickly, few or no interim updates may be needed. If we find that your complaint is justified, we will offer proposals for resolving the matter. This may include: an apology; correcting any errors; reconsidering or waiving fees; and/or offering a financial settlement.

3. He will then invite you to a meeting to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint. He will endeavour to do so within ten business days of sending you the written acknowledgement.

4. Within five business days of the meeting, he will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions he has agreed with you. If we offer you a remedy and you accept it, we will implement it promptly.

5. If you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, we will endeavour to send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including our suggestions for resolving the matter, within twenty business days of sending you the written acknowledgement. If we offer you a remedy and you accept it, we will implement it promptly. In any event, we aim to resolve every complaint as soon as possible and no later than eight weeks after receiving it. If we have not resolved your complaint to your satisfaction within eight weeks, or if our procedure has been exhausted, you may be able to refer it to the Legal Ombudsman as described in paragraph 7 below.

6. At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, we may also offer you the opportunity to involve an independent mediator to assist with resolving the complaint. We will always advise you of your right to raise your concerns with the appropriate regulatory body (usually the Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPReg) or the European Patent Institute (epi) for misconduct, and/or the Legal Ombudsman for poor service) and we will assist you in contacting the relevant body and will cooperate fully in their investigation.

7. If after our investigation and response you are still not satisfied with the quality of service offered, the Legal Services Act has set up the Legal Ombudsman to deal with complaints of poor service. Ordinarily, you must also refer a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within one year of the act or omission concerned or from when you should reasonably have known you had cause for complaint and generally within six months of our final response. We will confirm the relevant deadline in our response to a complaint made to us. Please note that the Legal Ombudsman generally handles complaints only from individuals, small businesses, charities, clubs and associations, trusts, and personal representatives or beneficiaries of an estate. You can contact the Legal Ombudsman at PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH; or by telephone on 0300 555 0333; via the website www.legalombudsman.org.uk or by email at [email protected].

8. Alternatively, if the complaint concerns a matter of professional misconduct rather than poor service, if you remain dissatisfied you can contact the Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPReg) at 20 Little Britain, London, EC1A 7DH about your complaint or in some cases (mainly complaints between professionals) the European Patent Institute (epi). Any complaint to the IPReg must usually be made within 12 months of the date of the professional misconduct alleged or your discovery of it but for further information, you should contact the IPReg on 020 7353 4373 or via their website www.ipreg.org.uk or by email to [email protected].