1. Our Service
We aim to provide an efficient and professional legal service. Once instructed we will act promptly and efficiently and keep you informed of progress. Most of our business comes to us on a referral basis. If this is your first dealing with us, or indeed your first experience with a Solicitor, we want it to be a good one. We believe that this is more likely to happen if you are clear about the service we offer. Unless otherwise agreed in writing, these are the Terms and Conditions that will apply while we are working for you. Please read them carefully and we will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
2. Instructions
As our client, it is your responsibility to provide accurate and complete instructions. We cannot be responsible if you fail to provide precise, complete and up to date instructions. You must notify us if you subsequently become aware of any statements which are incorrect. We rely on the accuracy of your instructions and do not seek further verification for acting on the basis of those instructions. We rely on you to provide us with such information as may be reasonably required. It is your responsibility to let us know if matters become more urgent and need to be dealt with more quickly than first outlined.
3. Progress Updates
We may need to engage with third parties or seek documents that are relevant to your case. We will keep you informed of any developments as they arise and will maintain contact with you by phone or in writing so that you know and understand the work we are doing on your behalf. You are welcome to enquire about progress at any time. Information can take time to collate. We will try to deal with matters as quickly as possible. It is important that you give us instructions when we need them. If you do not do this, we cannot progress your case. This may affect the outcome and in some situations, it may no longer be possible for us to act for you.
4. Assumptions while acting on your behalf
When you give us instructions, you give us your consent to carry out work and to take various actions on your behalf. This may involve holding information for our records, including “sensitive data” such as:
• your Personal Public Service (PPS) number, Medical Reports and Medical Records;
• obtaining information from third parties to help us with your case, without seeking your specific permission in advance;
• using information technology (IT) including email, to guarantee the best quality and most efficient service;
• employing Barristers and other experts such as Doctors and Engineers on your behalf.
When our work is completed or if you instruct us to discontinue working for you, we may still need to process your personal data in order to comply with our legal obligation. The protection of your personal data is very important to us. You can find out more about how we process your data and your rights in our Data Privacy Policy which is on our website www.foleyturnbull.ie.
We will retain experts only, with your permission. It is your responsibility to pay the expenses and fees of any third-party advisors retained on your behalf.
We will select professionals who, we believe, to be competent but we are not responsible for the negligence of anyone we retain on your behalf.
We are a Solicitors Practice and we are not responsible for providing taxation, accounting, financial or investment advice. We do not have expertise in Regulatory matters and are not responsible for advising you in relation to these aspects. We are qualified to advise on matters of Irish Law and cannot provide legal advice in respect of any other jurisdiction. We cannot be obliged to provide or accept liability for advice beyond the specific scope of instructions given.
5. Communication
You can contact us by letter, email or phone. A copy of all correspondence sent and received is maintained on your file. We have a strict email policy and there are strict controls on our post. All incoming post is stamped on receipt and dealt with within a strict timeline. Our Case Management System provides a record of every call received. We aim to reply to correspondence within 3 working days. We respond to telephone calls in the same working day, if possible and if not, by the following day. We will ensure that your query is dealt with as quickly as possible.
6. Our Office
We have designed our office to afford our clients privacy in our interview rooms and a comfortable setting in our waiting area. We are always looking at ways to improve and welcome any suggestions from you. We will do our utmost to avoid delaying you for your scheduled appointments. Delays can however be inevitable and we ask for your patience and understanding.
7. Our Staff
All of our staff are highly trained and are focused on client care. We hope you enjoy and experience staff that have your care as a priority and who enjoy the work that they do on your behalf. Each Solicitor in our Firm has been admitted to the Roll of Solicitors and hold a current Practising Certificate. All of our Solicitors are subject to continuing professional development and all of our staff undergo ongoing training.
8. Fees and Payment
Legal fees are now regulated by Section 150 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 (the “Act”). We will send to you a notice of the costs or the basis thereof, as soon as we take instructions in accordance with the provisions of the Act.
Our payment terms are 30 days from the date of the Invoice. Our fees are exclusive of VAT at the relevant rate and outlays. Any prepayments or monies on account may be used for your Invoices and we reserve the right to deduct any such payments.
We usually invoice when the matter has been concluded but we reserve the right to raise interim invoices from time to time. In the event of any excess payment being made, we will account to you for any balance at the conclusion of your case.
Any notice of change in the Firm’s Bank details (especially by email) should be treated as a fraudulent request and verified prior to making a transfer.
9. Dissatisfaction with Costs
We try to be upfront and transparent about costs from the outset. If however there is a dispute about an invoice, we will try to resolve the matter with you by agreement. If the matter cannot be resolved, we may have to stop acting for you.
If you are not happy with the Bill issued, you have the right to make a complaint to the Law Society of Ireland or the Taxing Master of the High Court.
10. Client Funds and Interest on Monies held on Account
Any monies we hold on your behalf will be held strictly in accordance with the Solicitors’ Accounts Regulations. By instructing us, you agree that any monies held will be held in any Bank approved by the Central Bank of Ireland. We do not place individual client monies in interest bearing accounts. We cannot take any additional responsibility around the protection of your money. You agree that we are not responsible for any loss or reduction in the value of the money because the Bank in which the money is held, becomes insolvent and cannot repay the funds deposited, due to liquidity or whatever reason. Any payment made out is in Euro, unless you instruct us and we agree in writing otherwise. We do not take responsibility for any conversion or loss arising by virtue of a change to any other currency.
In the event that the bank charges us interest on monies, including yours, which are held in our client account, such interest proportionately relevant to your amount held in that account will be charged to you.
11. Identity and Anti Money Laundering
We are obliged to comply with Anti Money Laundering (AML) Regulations. We have an up to date Anti-Money Laundering procedure in place to comply with the Regulations which we can furnish to you upon request. To comply with the Regulations, we will need to verify your identity on foot of your passport or driving licence and obtain proof of your address by way of a recent Bank Statement or a Utility Bill. We will also need evidence of your PPS Number. In certain circumstances, we may need to verify the source of your funds.
12. Conflict of Interest
We have a procedure in place to ensure that we identify any conflict of interest at an early stage. If during the course of your case, we become aware of a conflict or a potential conflict, we will advise you. If such a conflict or question of impartiality should arise which causes us to discontinue our work, we shall be pleased to suggest other Firms to you. We aim at all stages to give independent and impartial advice.
13. LLP
With effect from the 1st day of December 2020, we are authorised to operate as a limited liability partnership (LLP) under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 (“the Act”). This means that from the 1st of December 2020 no Partner in the Firm has a personal liability for any debts, liabilities or obligations which are incurred for the purposes of carrying on the business of the LLP (or whether these are liabilities of the LLP, herself or another Partner in the LLP or of any employee, agent or representative of the LLP) or any such liability that may arise. This does not in any way prevent or restrict the enforcement against the property of the LLP, of any debt, liability or obligation and the protection afforded relates to the personal liability of the Partners only.
The Partnership Act of 1890 continues to apply to the Firm to the extent that it is not inconsistent with Section 3 of Part 8 of the Act.
14. Professional Indemnity Insurance and Limit of Liability
We have a Professional Indemnity Insurance Policy in place. Our liability to you (and that of our present and former partners and employees) arising out of, or in connection with, our engagement (whether for breach of contract or of statutory duty, negligence or otherwise) is limited to the higher of (a) the minimum amount of the Professional Indemnity Insurance Cover from time to time required to be maintained by us under applicable Law or (b) €5,000,000.00. Nothing in this document shall limit our liability to you for (a) for fraud or fraudulent concealment or (b) to the extent that under any applicable Law liability may not be limited.
15. Electronic Storage
We are not responsible for any loss of, or corruption of, information stored electronically by us or by any off site electronic storage service or company that we use. We will endeavour to ensure that the company we use is reputable.
16. Your file
By instructing us, you agree to accept a photocopy only of your file if you later require it. There may be a charge for copying your file. We will retain the original.
The Law allows us to retain the original file as security for any costs that have not been paid for our services.
We will retain the original file on the understanding that we have the authority to destroy it six years after the issue of the final invoice. We will not destroy original deeds or documents which you ask us to deposit in safe custody. If we are required to retrieve original papers or documents which are in storage for you, there may be a charge.
17. Non-Residents
If we act for you in the sale of a property and you are non-resident, we are legally responsible to account to the Revenue Commissioners for your Tax. We cannot release your funds until we have tax clearance. You, by retaining us, authorise us to do so and indemnify us for any loss suffered by virtue of any wrong doing on your behalf. If we act for you as a non-resident beneficiary in an Estate, we are responsible for the filing of your CAT Return and payment of any Tax. We will discharge this on your behalf and also on the basis that you indemnify us. This means that you agree to repay us in full for any loss we suffer due to something you do or omit to do or some wrong doing on your behalf.
18. Confidentiality
All information received which is confidential will be kept confidential. Our Employees are subject to a strict requirement of confidentiality. We may however be obliged to disclose confidential information to the extent that we are required to do so by Law. We may also need to give access to our files to our Accountants, Auditors, Risk Assessment Auditors and IT service providers. Subject to the foregoing, we owe you a duty of confidentiality.
19. Complaints
We are confident of providing a high quality service. If however you have any queries or concerns about our work, it is important that you raise them in the first instance with the Solicitor you are dealing with who will attempt to resolve any problem. Good communication will guarantee the best possible outcome. It is therefore important that you immediately raise any concerns you may have. If you continue to be unhappy, please contact Fiona Foley who is our Managing Partner and who will deal with every complaint as a priority and ensure that it is investigated thoroughly. We value you and assure you that the matter will not be ignored. We have a comprehensive complaints procedure in place. We are also regulated by the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland and subject to very strict controls.
20. Termination
At any stage, either you or the Firm may terminate the contract by giving fourteen days notice in writing. If the contract is terminated, all outstanding fees and disbursements must be paid within thirty days of the date of the invoice. We are entitled to retain your file until all outstanding fees and disbursements are paid. If we do not receive instructions from you where we have represented you in a litigation matter, we may be obliged to come off record. There will be a charge for this process which will form part of your final bill.
21. Acceptance
These Terms and Conditions come into effect once your instructions are accepted. If we have already commenced work, the terms and conditions set out in this letter shall be deemed to have applied since such commencement. We look forward to working with you and to bringing your case to a successful conclusion.
We look forward to working with you and to bringing your case to a successful conclusion.
FOLEY TURNBULL SOLICITORS LLP