Terms of Business

DARBY & DARBY SOLICITORS 

Tudor Chambers 

Fore Street 

St Marychurch 

Torquay 

TQ1 4PR 

(SRA registration no.: 61431) 

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS 

The following Terms are our standard terms across all of our areas of work. The following terms are available to you from your Fee Earner and through our website. Your continued instruction of our Firm amounts to acceptance of the following Terms.

1. We aim to 

1. Provide you with the best possible service and legal advice, delivered in compliance with Regulations which govern the method of our practice.  We will not be liable in respect of matters upon which you have not specifically asked us to advise.  

2. Keep you advised of progress, on legal issues involved and about costs at regular intervals.  We will always consider the likely cost of your matter and the risks involved and advise you whether it is worth continuing or not. 

3. Deal with the entire matter as quickly as possible and achieve your objectives as far as possible.  

4. Continue to act for you until you tell us in writing that you do not wish us to continue or we tell you in writing that we cannot or will not continue to act for you. If we terminate instructions, we will notify you in writing and give reasons where we can. If you or we decide that we should stop acting for you, you will pay our charges up until that point.  Our charges are calculated on an hourly basis as set out in these Terms and Conditions  We can keep all your papers and documents while there is still money owed to us for fees and expenses. 

5. Under certain circumstances we may be required to work on your matter even though our instructions have ceased. 

6. While we are instructed by you we will not act against you for any other client. 

2. We ask you to 

1. Provide us with full, accurate and true up to date information upon which we will rely.  All information you provide us is confidential.  We will not disclose any information to a third party unless we have your written consent, other than in the usual course of your representation (e.g. corresponding with other Solicitors pursuant to your instructions). 

2. Let us know if other Solicitors have at any time been involved in your matter. 

3. Understand that problems or delays may be due to circumstances beyond our control. 

4. Provide us with such information as may be necessary for us to comply with our legal obligations imposed upon us under Money Laundering Regulations 

5. Contact us if you require any up to date information about your matter. 

6. Respect our professional rules and obligations. 

3. Our Bills 

1. Our charges are either fixed or estimated, details of which will be in our covering letter. 

2. Payment of bills is due within 14 days.  We can charge interest on overdue bills.  If a bill is overdue, we may decline to act any further and the full value of the work done will be charged.  Please raise queries on bills quickly.  You have the right to have the final bill officially assessed.  Should you be concerned about the amount of any account, please do not hesitate to contact our Mr Ben Darby. 

3. If we hold any monies on your behalf or receive any commissions as a result of dealing with your affairs we will inform you. 

4. From time to time we will send you accounts for work done.  If we are holding money on your behalf, for whatever purpose, we may use it towards settlement of any outstanding account for fees or disbursements.  We will of course notify you of money so used. 

4. Monies held on your behalf in Client Account 

1. During the period of your instructions we may hold money on your behalf in our Client Account.  We will maintain a ledger of all monies received, held and spent on your behalf. 

2. If we hold monies for a significant period of time then it is possible that interest will accrue on them.  Any such interest will be at the rate paid on our Client Current Account by our Bank.  We will account to you for any interest, in excess of £20, accrued on monies held.  This in accordance with our policy and our Regulators guidance on providing a fair and reasonable account to Clients.  Interest under £20 will not be paid on monies held as the cost of calculating the same will outweigh the benefit to you. 

5. Our Fees (plus VAT and Disbursements) 

1. Our fees are based on the cost of time that we spend on your matter as recorded on our computer system and your file which might include seeing you or other persons, telephone calls, reading, considering and preparing documents, research of your case, going to Court, travelling time and waiting time.  We are also allowed to charge an additional charge where a matter is very complex, urgent or vital to you.  The value of the matter to you is of course taken into account.  Our hourly rates have to be reviewed periodically to reflect increases in overhead costs and inflation.  Bills delivered will attract VAT at the prevailing rate. 

2. Our standard fee rates are:  

3. Where an estimate of fees or fixed fee has been given, and your matter becomes more complex then extra fees may become payable.  If an increased or additional fixed fee is not agreed between us then the extra work (work not anticipated at the point of the original estimate) will be charged at our standard fee rates at 5 (b) above. 

4. In all Conveyancing matters we may give you a written estimate of our costs and this will be in place of our standard fee rates. 

5. In all Litigation matters, if you lose your Court case, you will usually be ordered to pay your opponent’s legal costs as well as your own.  It may be that if you win your opponent may not be able to pay all or even part of your legal costs.  In this situation you would be responsible to meet any short fall. 

6. You will be personally responsible for payment of our fees, VAT and for reimbursement of any expenses we incur on your behalf irrespective of whether somebody else is ordered to pay them at the end of your case.  

7. If you are legally aided you are responsible for our fees, expenses and VAT before your Legal Aid Certificate is issued and also after it is discharged. 

8. While we will do our best to give you an accurate estimate of costs of your matter it can often be very difficult to be certain how much it will cost.  Any monies you pay us on account of fees or expenses do not indicate the likely costs involved.  

9. From time to time we may need to instruct Barristers or other persons of professional standing in relation to your matter.  If this proves necessary we will always seek your authority first and let you know who we are going to instruct and estimate the cost of instructing that person.   

10. We reserve our right to exercise a lien in respect of unpaid fees, VAT and disbursements (to hold your file in the event of an unpaid bill or outstanding balance). 

6. Right to cancel – Distance Selling   

If you have instructed us remotely without meeting one of our team or attending our Offices, you have the right to cancel this contract within 14 days of your initial instruction without giving any reason. 

To exercise the right to cancel, you must inform us by contacting the Fee Earner dealing with your matter, or Ben Darby (Managing Partner) ben@darbylaw.co.uk of your decision to cancel this contract by a clear statement in writing via letter or e-mail.  

To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right to cancel before the cancellation period has expired. 

1. Effects of cancellation 

    

   If you cancel this contract, we will reimburse to you any payments received from you on account of our fees. 

    

   We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to cancel this contract. 

    

   We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of the reimbursement. 

2. Commencing work within the 14 day cancellation period 

    

   If you sign and accept our terms of business within the cancellation period we will take that as your request for us to commence work before allowing the period of 14 days to pass.   

7. Problems/Complaints 

1. While we endeavour to provide an excellent service to our clients, problems can from time to time arise.  If you feel you have a problem please contact us immediately as we want to deal with it for you.  

2. We would ask you to raise your concerns with the individual that is dealing with the matter on your behalf. This can often resolve any misunderstandings. If you are still concerned please do raise your concerns with our Managing Partner Mr Ben Darby on 01803 313 656 or alternatively via email at ben@darbylaw.co.uk. 

3. We are committed to providing high quality legal advice and client care.  If you are unhappy about any aspect of the service you have received from us or the charges we have made for our services then please contact Ben Darby.  We have a complaint handling policy which details how we handle complaints, a copy of which is available upon request.  

4. If you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint you can ask the Legal Ombudsman at Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6167 Slough SL1 0EH or via www.legalombudsman.org.uk or on 0300 555 0333 or email enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk to consider the complaint.   

    

   You will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us about your complaint. 

    

   The time limits for referring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman are no later than:  

   (i) one year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or

   (ii) one year from the date when the complainant should have realised that there was cause for complaint.

8. Regulatory Compliance

1. Proof of your identity and residential address 

    

   We are under a legal duty to verify your identity and your residential address before we can proceed with your instructions.  In order for us to meet that legal duty we will ask you at the outset to complete and return to us a Client Details Form. 

    

   Following the receipt of the completed Client Details Form we will complete and submit your details onto a third party ‘verification’ App known as Thirdfort. 

    

   Thirdfort will then forward an electronic link to you through which you will be able to submit your verification details. 

    

   If you are unable to submit your information through this app then we will require you to provide us with physical evidence. To evidence your identity we will require you to produce either a valid passport or a photo ID driving license.  To evidence your residential address we will require you to provide us with either a recent utility bill (no more than three months old) or a current bank statement detailing your residential address. 

    

   Although we understand that you may wish to protect your identity we would stress that this is a legal obligation and without verification we will have to decline to act for you. 

    

2. Source of wealth and source of funds 

    

   If you are instructing us in relation to a transactional matter, for example you are seeking to  purchase a property, we are under a legal duty to verify how you will fund the transaction.  We will ask you to provide us with evidence relating to how the funds were acquired (source of Wealth) and the location of the funds that will be used to complete your transaction. 

    

   If you are souring funds from a third party (other than a financial institution) we are also required to verify that third party, their source of wealth and where the funds will be coming from. 

    

   If you are unable to supply the evidence required to enable us to comply with our legal duty then we reserve the right to decline acting on your behalf. 

    

3. Cash 

    

   It is the Firms Policy not to accept cash. 

    

9. Financial Services 

1. Sometimes conveyancing/ family/ probate/ wills/ litigation and company work involves investments.  We are not authorised by the Financial Conduct 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 to you, as we are regulated by Solicitors Regulation Authority. 

2. If you have any problem with the service we have provided for you then please let us know.  We will try to resolve any problem quickly and operate an internal complaints handling system to help us to resolve the problem between ourselves.  If for any reason we are unable to resolve the problem between us, then complaints and redress mechanisms are provided through the Solicitors Regulatory Authority and the Legal Complaints Service. 

3. The Law Society is the designated professional body for the purposes of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 but responsibility for regulation and complaints handling had been separated from the Law Society’s representative functions.  The Solicitors Regulation Authority is the independent regulatory body of the Law Society and the legal Complaints Service is the independent complaints handling body of the Law Society.  

10. Mortgage Fraud 

You need to be aware that if we are acting for you and your lender, we have a duty to fully reveal to your lender all relevant facts about the transaction.  This includes (this is not an exhaustive list):  

1. any differences between your mortgage application and information we receive during the transaction.  

2. any cash back payments or discount schemes that a seller is giving you. 

3. any third party contributions used to fund your purchase. 

11. Tax Advice 

Any work that we do for you may involve tax implications or necessitate the consideration of tax planning strategies.  We may not be qualified to advise you on tax implications of a transaction that you are instruct us to carry out, or the likelihood of them arising.  If you have any concerns in this respect, please raise them with us immediately.  If we can undertake the research necessary to resolve the issue, we will do so and advise you accordingly.  If we cannot, we may be able to identify a source of assistance for you.  

12. Email 

Vital and important instructions should be confirmed to us by post.  Email communications cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error free and may be lost or delayed.  If you do decide to contact us by email we do not accept liability for any losses suffered as a result.  Please let us know if you do not wish us to contact you by email.   

13. Data Protection – How we use your data and your Rights 

Darby & Darby Solicitors are registered with the Information Commissioners Office under Registration number Z2138820. 

During the course of your transaction/matter it is inevitable that we will receive, hold and share personal data.  The data we receive is used primarily for the provision of legal services to you and for related purposes including: updating and enhancing client records; analysis to help us manage our practice; statutory returns; and legal and regulatory compliance.  The following paragraphs outline our data and data privacy policy: 

1. How we receive your data 

    

   You are our main source of your data.  We will ask you for personal information including your name, address, date of birth as well as financial information including bank details, national insurance number.  We will also receive data, on your behalf and depending on the nature of your instruction to this Firm, from 3^rd parties such as a Mortgage Company, Estate Agents, Courts, Solicitors acting on the other side. 

    

2. Why we hold and use your data 

    

   To enable us to progress your matter we utilise the data we receive.  We only use that data to: 

    

   (i)     fulfil our Contract – completing your instructions in this matter. 

   (ii)     comply with a Legal Duty – such as external audit or a disclosure to HMRC, a Court or the Land Registry (for example). 

   (iii)     Our own legitimate interest – we check for Conflicts between existing and prospective clients to ensure that no dispute arises. 

   (iv)    In accordance with your consent – we will ask you for consent to us releasing your data in accordance with these terms of business. 

    

3. How we store your data 

    

   Your data is retained in either paper and/or electronic format.  Paper copies of your data will be retained on your personal file.  Electronic data is stored within our Legal Software Case Management system.  Only the staff of Darby & Darby will have access to your physical and electronic files.  Their access is password protected and encrypted. 

    

4. When we share your data 

    

   Internally your data is available to all Partners and Staff at Darby & Darby.  Their access to your data is limited for their use in the furtherance of your matter. 

    

   Externally, we will use your data to advance your matter.  It would be impossible to actively provide legal services without the ability to share your data, where necessary or relevant.  It is for this reason we seek your specific consent. 

    

   We DO NOT share your data with 3^rd parties outside the scope of your consent or the purposes of advancing your instructions.   

    

   We may from time to time send you information which we think might be of interest to you. If you do not wish to receive that information please notify our office in writing. 

    

5. Your Rights 

    

   Under the GDPR legislation you are entitled to: 

   (a) Be informed of this Policy 

   (b) Access your data  

   (c) Seek rectification of any errors in your data 

   (d) Seek destruction of your data 

   (e) Withdraw your previous consent for us to use your data 

   (f) Object to the use of your data 

   (g) Request transfer of your data (where possible/practicable) 

   (h) Complain to the regulator at https://ico.org.uk 

    

   To request any of the above to be actioned you can send a “Subject Action Request” in writing to the person responsible at this Firm namely Ben Darby.  Your Subject Action Request should be sent for Ben Darby’s attention at the Torquay Office or to his email ben@darbylaw.co.uk. 

    

   We endeavour to deal with all complaints and concerns direct with you as swiftly as possible. Should you not be satisfied with our response you can complain to the Information Commissioner.   

    

   Further details can be found at https://ico.org.uk. 

    

6. Destruction of your data 

    

   In the absence of an earlier successful Subject Access Request from you to destroy your data your paper file of papers will be destroyed after a period in archived storage which will be notified to you at the end of your matter.  It is intended that electronic data we hold will be stored on our computer system to assist with future audit processes and to mitigate the risk of Conflicts of Interests arising in future matters. 

    

14. Cybercrime 

As a Firm that holds Client Money, we may be a target for cybercrime.  We take this risk very seriously and do all that we can to ensure that you money is safe and secure with us. 

If you need to transfer funds to us, please quote your file reference and use the Firms Bank Account the details for which will have been provided to you within our Client Care Letter. 

If at any point during our engagement you receive communication purporting to be someone from within or outside of this firm indicating that our account details have changed, please contact our accounts team immediately. You must not under any circumstances make payment into the account until you have spoken with us.  

If we have cause to ask you for your bank details, please do not provide these within an email.  Bank details must be provided to us either in person, by post or by telephone. 

15. Vetting of Files and Confidentiality 

Solicitors are under a professional and legal duty to keep the affairs of clients confidential. During the course of your transaction we will have to disclose certain details to third parties (eg: Mortgage Company, Estate Agents, Solicitors, Barristers etc..) to further your instructions.  Save for these aforementioned routine disclosures there are three further scenarios that we bring to your attention at this stage:- 

1. Legislation on money laundering and terrorist financing has placed Solicitors under a legal duty in certain circumstances to disclose information to the National Crime Agency (“NCA”).  Where a solicitor knows or suspects that a transaction on behalf of a client involves money laundering disclosure will be made to NCA.  If this happens, we may not be able to inform you that disclosure has been made or of the reason for it. 

2. We may be required to produce all or part of your file to assessors, the Law Society, Solicitors Regulatory Authority or similar, as part of an audit or quality check 

3. Concerns and/or disclosure to a relevant authority (for example Social Services and Police) in accordance with Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults Policy where there are concerns that an individual who may be seemed a Vulnerable Adult and is at risk of, or the victim of, abuse.  Abuse in the policy is not limited to physical, mental or psychological and includes financial abuse (or the risk of exposure to such abuse). 

16. Limiting Liability 

Our Liability to you for breach of your instructions shall be limited to £4,000,000, unless we expressly state a higher amount in the letter accompanying these terms of business.  We will not be liable for any consequential, special, indirect or exemplary damages, costs or losses or any damages, costs or losses attributable to lost profits or opportunities.   

We can only limit our liability to the extent the law allows.  In particular, we cannot limit our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence. 

17. Applicable Law 

Any disputes or legal issue arising from our terms of business will be determined by the law of England and Wales, and considered exclusively by the English and Welsh Courts. 

18. Storage of Papers and Documents 

After completing the work, we are entitled to keep all your papers and documents while there is money owing to us for charges and expenses.  In addition, we will keep your file of papers for you in storage for a period of six years.  After that period storage is on the clear understanding that we have the right to destroy your file after such period as we consider reasonable or make a charge for storage if we ask you to and you fail to do so.   

19. Equality & Diversity 

This firm is committed to promoting equality and diversity in all of its dealing with clients, third parties and employees.  Please contact us for further information about our equality and diversity policy.