Warning - do not use wolstenholmes solicitors

keiran

I am pleased that Mark Hunter, MP, is to meet Jack Straw in connection with all this.

I am so grateful/delighted that I managed to complete my sale just before the SRA intervention. All I had to deal with was incompetence and a delayed sale. All my sympathies and best wishes to all those who face considerably more difficulties due to this sad saga.

I continue to believe that the biggest culprits/ failure in this is the Solicitors' Regulation Authority. I have sent the email below to Mark Hunter and would be grateful if all who feel the same way could also press for a high level investigation with corrective action

Thanks in advance


""Wolstenholmes Solicitors and the functions of the Solicitors' Regulation Authority‏
From:Sent:06 January 2010 15:02:59To: hunterm@parliament.uk
.ExternalClass .ecxhmmessage P{padding:0px;}.ExternalClass body.ecxhmmessage{font-size:10pt;font-family:Verdana;}Dear Mr Hunter,

I understand you have kindly become interested in the issue of the failure of Wolstenholmes within your constituency, and are to meet Mr Straw in this regard.

I was unfortunately involved in this saga as a seller of a property. Thankfully, we did manage to complete just before the firm closed and I suffered "only" incompetence and a delayed sale. I can only imagine the horrors facing those whose chains have collapsed, who have lost their dream homes, have significant monies and documents "in limbo" and who have to start the conveyancing process afresh.

I wonder whether you may be able to ask specifically into the actions/failures of the SRA in connection with all this?

My understanding is that they were aware of streams of information from concerned solicitors as well as disgruntled clients for a year.

They quite simply failed to act to protect consumers

I tried to ask them what was happening for most of Nov/Dec, and they simply stated that as far as they knew Wolstenholmes was still operating
They were even saying this after 18 Dec 09, by which date Wolstenholmes itself had advised clients that their Birmingham office would be closed.

Whenever I enquired, they would simply tell me to speak to the Legal Complaints Service, which of course knew even less than they (the SRA) did.

In fact I believe that the inaction/incompetence of the SRA is the biggest failure in this long and sad episode

Whilst there will always be incompetent and dishonest individuals/firms, the regulator should show considerably more awareness and competence if they are to fulfil the functions demanded of it by the public and, indeed, even to justify its very (expensive) existence

The SRA has failed miserably in its roles as shown by this embarrassing episode, and (in common with all regulators I think) has sided, supported and identified with the very organisations it should be regulating, against the interests of the innocent consumer.

I do hope that a high level and detailed review of the actions of the SRA in this saga will lead to numerous sackings, an extensive change in the terms of reference of the SRA and a new organisation which places consumers' (and not solicitors') protection at its heart.

The public has little trust in lawyers at the best of times. When salt is rubbed into the wound by an incompetent, expensive and biased SRA it diminishes further


Thank you for addressing these issues


Yours sincerely,


""

anxious_24

i have sent them email asking procedure wether my solicitor can send document proof and they will send them to her or wether sending back to dwf but i havent had anyresponse yet since sending it , asked solicitor to request both and already phoned dwf and gave details yesterday he said could still be possible to complete end january albeit depending on getting file back soon ,but worth getting in touch he told us ref to make sure goes to right area

anxious_24

the request form goes to right area where my file would be located because we know stirling law has my file now !

Horrified_Solicitor

keiran wrote: »

I continue to believe that the biggest culprits/ failure in this is the Solicitors' Regulation Authority. I have sent the email below to Mark Hunter and would be grateful if all who feel the same way could also press for a high level investigation with corrective action

Thanks in advance



I wonder whether you may be able to ask specifically into the actions/failures of the SRA in connection with all this?

My understanding is that they were aware of streams of information from concerned solicitors as well as disgruntled clients for a year.

They quite simply failed to act to protect consumers

I tried to ask them what was happening for most of Nov/Dec, and they simply stated that as far as they knew Wolstenholmes was still operating
They were even saying this after 18 Dec 09, by which date Wolstenholmes itself had advised clients that their Birmingham office would be closed.

Whenever I enquired, they would simply tell me to speak to the Legal Complaints Service, which of course knew even less than they (the SRA) did.

In fact I believe that the inaction/incompetence of the SRA is the biggest failure in this long and sad episode





""

One problem is that the SRA is very reluctant to look as if it is behaving in a racist way by closing down ethnic minority firms. It's been getting a lot of stick in the past over it, as a quick Google will reveal. They'd be particularly cautious if they think one of the partners is in line to be an MP and want some pretty hard evidence before intervening, which of course means closing the firm down completely.

It's far easier to make the decision to close down a practice where the sole practitioner is only ever seen on a park bench swigging meths.

keiran

pl don't bring ethnic minority/race issues into this!
Many of the staff (including partners) were white

Regardless of race, an incompetent or dishonest firm should be investigated

On the contrary, allowing this sort of thing to carry on and escalate would cause MORE concerns about race!!

mjmal51

"

keiran wrote: »

I am pleased that Mark Hunter, MP, is to meet Jack Straw in connection with all this.

I am so grateful/delighted that I managed to complete my sale just before the SRA intervention. All I had to deal with was incompetence and a delayed sale. All my sympathies and best wishes to all those who face considerably more difficulties due to this sad saga.

I continue to believe that the biggest culprits/ failure in this is the Solicitors' Regulation Authority. I have sent the email below to Mark Hunter and would be grateful if all who feel the same way could also press for a high level investigation with corrective action"


I contacted Mark as a constituent before the intervention, spoke with him this morning and also e mailed him regarding the SRA with the hope that action is taken to prevent this happening again in the future.
MPs quite rightly give priority to people in their area so by all means copy Mark in on an e mail but address the issue with your own MP primarily.
http://www.parliament.uk/mpslordsandoffices/mps_and_lords/alms.cfm
The more people in postions of influence are made aware the better.

keiran

The SRA not investigating is actually a huge insult to all the hard working, competent and honest ethnic minority members!!!

shocked_solicitor

mjmal51 wrote: »

The fact is that it was illegal for WH to send the files to Stirling Law in the first place and they are complicit by accepting them. The SRA have instructed Stirling to send all WH files to DWF, it is very dodgy for them to be e mailing people for permission to take over the files.

don't forget that Stirling is the phoenix firm of Chartbridge - Victoria Sharp was an employee of Chartbridge, then Megsons Law and now Stirling - see her letter posted above. The same as the assistant solicitor Abbe (as listed on the Law Society website under the Stirling Law entry) - trading addresses for all three so called firms are the same too!! The relevance is that one of the suspended solicitors from Wolstenholmes (HM) was a member/partner of Chartbridge with a man called Schofield who is an undischarged bankrupt with a condition on his practicing certificate (public record on insolvency website and the SRA website) and that they illegally transferred client files - does anyone really want people like this undertaking their legal work???

shocked_solicitor

mjmal51 wrote: »

The fact is that it was illegal for WH to send the files to Stirling Law in the first place and they are complicit by accepting them. The SRA have instructed Stirling to send all WH files to DWF, it is very dodgy for them to be e mailing people for permission to take over the files.

anxious_24 wrote: »

the request form goes to right area where my file would be located because we know stirling law has my file now !

if they have your file why not collect it or arrange for a local taxi firm to collect it - you would have to send a signed form authorising the person to collect the file to Stirling and also to the taxi or courier firm so that they have evidence that they are supposed to collect it - it can then be delivered directly to DWF - that is the only way you can guarantee the file getting there in time. I would speak to DWF about it first the make sure they are happy with this being done - it is your file after all not Stirlings and they have no right to hold on to it.

keiran

Thanks mjmal51

I thought my MP would not be interested as the firm was elsewhere, but I will write to him

I found this very useful website from where you can email all your representatives !!!

http://www.writetothem.com/