“Heartening” complaints figures but no complacency

 

The Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC) has issued its annual report for 2015-16.

The report shows that 22 out of a total of 1,132 complaints received during the year were against advocates, and that two out of 408 complaints accepted as eligible were against advocates.

Commenting on the report, Angela Grahame, QC, Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, said: “Complaints against advocates remain a tiny proportion of complaints to the SLCC. When one considers the number of advocates and the amount of work they do on a daily basis, it is heartening to find only two complaints were deemed eligible for consideration by the SLCC.

“Complacency can never be allowed, however, and the Faculty continues to work closely with the SLCC on improving our own procedures and assisting the SLCC where possible.

“We are committed to providing an extremely high level of service to the public and would wish to reassure them of our continuous efforts to maintain and improve standards. With this in mind, the Faculty has now introduced a quality assurance scheme for all members, which leads the way among lawyers in the UK.”