Terms and Conditions

Please read these terms and conditions carefully. Together with our privacy policy, they govern our relationship with you regarding this website.

We may change these terms and conditions or our privacy policy at any time by updating this page. You should check this page from time to time to review these terms and conditions to ensure you are happy with any changes. Using or accessing this website indicates your acceptance of these terms and conditions. If you do not accept these terms and conditions, please do not continue to use this website.

Information about us

Keoghs LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales (registered number OC 321124) which is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under SRA number 573546.

Shoreside Law is a trading name of Keoghs LLP. Wherever you see the words Shoreside Law or Shoreside in this or associated website(s) it means Keoghs LLP. Shoreside Law Ltd no longer operates and has been subject to cessation in accordance with SRA cessation procedures.

A list of the names of our partners is available for inspection at our registered office, 5th Floor 20 Gracechurch Street London EC3V 0BG. We use the word "partner" to refer to a member of the LLP.

All services in Scotland are delivered under Keoghs Scotland LLP; a limited liability partnership registered in Scotland (registered number SO305857) which is authorised and regulated by the Law Society of Scotland and trading from its registered office address, Keoghs Scotland LLP, The Forsyth Building, 5 Renfield St, Glasgow, G2 5EZ.

A full list of members is open for inspection at the registered office. Keoghs Scotland LLP utilises the trading name Keoghs under licence from Keoghs LLP.

All services in Northern Ireland are delivered under Keoghs Northern Ireland LLP; a limited liability partnership registered in Northern Ireland (registered number NC001575) which is authorised and regulated by the Law Society of Northern Ireland and trading from its registered office address, Keoghs Northern Ireland LLP, 7th Floor, City Exchange Belfast, 11-13 Gloucester Street, Belfast, BT1 4LS.

You can contact us by email at info@keoghs.co.uk or by telephone on 01204 677000.

The website to which these terms and conditions apply and for which we are responsible is www.keoghs.co.uk.

Professional Indemnity Insurance

In accordance with our regulatory obligations, we confirm Keoghs LLP has professional indemnity insurance in place in excess of the compulsory minimum level for users of our services in England and Wales; whilst Keoghs Scotland LLP and Keoghs Northern Ireland LLP both hold professional indemnity insurance in place in excess of the minimum level of users of our services in Scotland and Northern Ireland respectively. Details will be provided in response to any qualifying enquiry.

This insurance applies to all jurisdictions that Keoghs LLP operate in.

Your use of this website and our intellectual property rights

We have made this website available to you for your own personal non-commercial use. We may modify, withdraw or deny access to this website at any time.

This website and all the materials contained in it are protected by intellectual property rights, including copyright, and either belong to us or are licensed to us to use. Materials include, but are not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance, graphics and documents on the website, as well as other content such as articles, updates and other text.

You may not copy, redistribute, republish or otherwise make the materials on this website available to anyone else without our consent in writing.

You may print or download materials from this website only for your own personal use provided that:

· no materials are modified in any way

· no graphics are used separately from accompanying text

· our copyright and trademark notices appear in all copies and you acknowledge this website as the source of the material

Registration, passwords and responsibilities

Certain parts of this website require registration. You are solely responsible for the confidentiality and use of and access to the website using your username or password. You agree to immediately notify Keoghs LLP if you become aware of any loss or theft of any username or password, or any unauthorised use of a username, password, or any other login details. Keoghs LLP reserves the right to monitor and record activity on this website.

Our liability to you

These terms and conditions do not exclude our liability (if any) to you for:

· personal injury or death resulting from our negligence

· fraud

· any matter which it would be illegal for us to exclude or to attempt to exclude our liability

We do not guarantee that this website will be compatible with all or any hardware and software which you may use. We do not guarantee that this website will be available all the time or at any specific time. We reserve the right to withdraw or modify this website at any time.

We are only liable to you for losses which you suffer as a result of a breach of these terms and conditions by us. We are not responsible to you for any losses which you may incur which were not a foreseeable consequence of us breaching these terms and conditions, for example if you and we could not have contemplated those losses before or when you access this website. Our liability to you shall not in any circumstances include any business losses that you may incur, including but not limited to lost data, lost profits or business interruption.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, you may have entered into a separate agreement with us that may set out our liability to you; in such circumstances the liability as set out in such agreement(s) shall prevail.

Information on this website

The information contained on this website is given for general information and does not constitute advice on any specific legal matter. Whilst we try to ensure the information contained on the website is accurate and up to date, we cannot be responsible for any inaccuracies in the information. Nothing in these pages should be construed as legal advice. By using this website you confirm that you have not relied on any such content. If you require advice on any specific legal problem or matter, please contact one of our qualified solicitors on 01204 677000.

Linking

We may link to other websites which are not within our control. These links are included to provide further information and are not intended to signify that we endorse such website(s) and/or content. We have no responsibility for the content of the linked website. It is your responsibility to check the terms and conditions and privacy policy on any other website which you visit.

You may not link to this website from another website without our consent in writing.

Contracting online

Nothing on this website is intended to be nor should be construed as an offer to enter into a contractual relationship with you or anyone else, except for these terms and conditions which govern the relationship between us in relation to your use of the website.

If you make a contract with a third party who is named or referred to on this website, it is your responsibility to ensure that you are satisfied with the terms of that contract and to take legal advice if necessary.

Governing Law and Jurisdiction

The formation, existence, construction, performance, validity and all aspects whatsoever of these terms and conditions or of any term of these terms and conditions will be governed by the law of England.

The English courts will have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any disputes which may arise out of or in connection with these terms and conditions or use of the website.

Keoghs’ Complaints Handling Procedure

We are committed to providing a high-quality service to our clients and to dealing with everyone fairly and equally. We understand that we may not always get it right and when something does go wrong we would like you to tell us about it. This will help us to improve our standards. We will respond to any concerns you may have and do everything we can to resolve your complaint quickly and efficiently.

If you are unhappy with the service you have received, in the first instance please contact the person responsible for handling your matter, or their supervisor. Contact details will be contained in our terms of business letter sent to you at the outset.

The senior person with overall responsibility for complaints handling at Keoghs is James Heath, who is the Compliance Officer for Legal Practice (“COLP”). James can be contacted by email at report@keoghs.co.uk.

How do I make a complaint?

If you have a complaint please contact us as soon as possible. You can do this by:

· writing to us at 2 The Parklands, Bolton BL6 4SE;

· emailing the person you have been dealing with, their Team Leader or report@keoghs.co.uk; or

· telephoning the person you have been dealing with, their Team Leader or a member of the Quality, Risk and Compliance Team on 01204 677000.

When making your complaint please provide us with the following information to enable us to deal with the matter promptly:

· your full name, contact details and (where relevant) the reference number for the matter;

· what you are dissatisfied about; and

· what you would like us to do to put things right.

What will happen next?

We will acknowledge your complaint, either by telephone, email or in writing within two working days of receipt;

Your complaint will be reviewed by someone not involved in the original matter which led to the complaint. This will normally be a Team Leader or Business Unit Director;

We may need to carry out a detailed review of your case, which might involve us having to ask you for additional information;

We will provide you with our final decision within 28 days of receipt of your complaint.

Complaints: Escalation to Regulators

If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you are not satisfied with our final decision you may refer your complaint to the appropriate regulator for dispute resolution, namely:

England & Wales: The Legal Ombudsman (www.legalombudsman.org.uk)

You can contact the Legal Ombudsman by:

Post at PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH

Telephone on 0300 555 0333

Email at enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Please note that not all clients or complainants will be entitled to have their complaint considered by the Legal Ombudsman, as the service is only available to members of the public, small businesses, charities, clubs and trusts. If you are in any doubt please contact the Legal Ombudsman direct using the contact details provided.

You are also able to make a complaint to the Solicitors Regulation Authority if you believe Keoghs has breached an SRA Principle.

You are able to make this complaint by filling in the report form, which can be found:

SRA | Reporting an individual or firm | Solicitors Regulation Authority

This form can then be sent via email to report@sra.org.uk or via post to:

Solicitors Regulation Authority

The Cube

199 Wharfside Street

Birmingham

B1 1RN

Scotland: The Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (www.scottishlegalcomplaints.org.uk)

The contact details are:

The Stamp Office

10 - 14 Waterloo Place

EDINBURGH

EH1 3EG

Telephone: 0131 201 2130

Fax: 0131 201 2131

Email: enquiries@scottishlegalcomplaints.org.uk

Under the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission Rules, there are strict time limits as to when they can accept complaints. The time limits which apply depend on what type of complaint you are making. You should submit your complaint to them as soon as possible and they will then categorise it. The time limits changed on 1st April 2017 – check the Frequently Asked Questions section on their website for details.

Northern Ireland: The Law Society of Northern Ireland (www.lawsoc-ni.org/making-a-complaint)

The contact details are:

96 Victoria St,
Belfast,
County Antrim,
BT1 3GN

Telephone: 028 9023 1614

Fax: 028 9023 2606

Email: complaints@lawsoc-ni.org

The Law Society of Northern Ireland Legal Complaints Commission state that your complaint “MUST be made within six months of completion of your business or within six months of you discovering a cause for concern, whichever is later. Once we have investigated your complaint and if you are still not happy, then you have a further six months to refer the matter to the Law Society.”

Alternative complaint mediation bodies exist who are competent to deal with complaints about legal services. One alternative complaint mediation provider is Small Claims Mediation. Their website address is: www.small-claims-mediation.co.uk. However, in order to refer a complaint to an alternative mediation provider, both parties must agree to use such a scheme.