§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department who arbitrates in instances where the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors is unable to agree with the Legal Services Ombudsman in respect of complaints dealt with by both bodies. [20849]
§ Mr. StreeterThere is no provision for arbitration in such cases. However, the Legal Services Ombudsman has confirmed that, in practice, the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors complies with all his recommendations to pay compensation to a compliant. In cases where the ombudsman recommends that a compliant be reconsidered, recommendations will have been complied with once the Office has formally reconsidered the complaint. The ombudsman cannot direct the office to arrive at a particular decision.
§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (1) if he will make a statement on the composition of the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors; [20850]
(2) what criteria the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors employs in determining complaints referred to it; how many complaints it has received to date; how many complaints have been referred to the Legal Services Ombudsman; and in respect of how many of these the ombudsman has found in favour of the plaintiff. [20852]
§ Mr. StreeterThe composition of the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors and the handling of complaints are matters for the Law Society and the office.
During 1996, the Legal Services Ombudsman reported on 1,282 cases dealt with by the office and its predecessor, the Solicitors Complaints Bureau. In 389— 30 per cent.— of those reports, there was a finding favourable to the complainant in that the ombudsman made a 624W recommendation in their favour or recorded a formal criticism of the professional bodies handling of the original complaint.