Kristina Harrison Solicitors Agrees Compensation After Legal Ombudsman Upholds Complaints
Kristina Harrison Solicitors has agreed to compensate a former client after the Legal Ombudsman upheld complaints over the firm's handling of callback requests and its subsequent communications with him. The Ombudsman found that the firm failed to deal reasonably with requests for contact and that its communication was not clear, consistent or proactive enough.
By Hopwood Radio - 22nd Sept 2026
The Middleton law firm agreed to make a payment of an undisclosed amount for distress and inconvenience following a recommended remedy from the Legal Ombudsman. Correspondence dated 10 September 2026 confirmed that Kristina Harrison Solicitors had agreed to make the payment and that the client was willing to accept the outcome. The firm was asked to make the payment within 14 days of receiving any information it required from him.
The compensation followed an investigation into four complaints concerning the service provided by Kristina Harrison Solicitors. Two complaints were upheld by the Legal Ombudsman, while two others were not upheld. The upheld complaints concerned the firm's handling of repeated callback requests between 22 and 29 August 2024 and the standard of its communications with the client from 29 August 2024 onwards.
The Legal Ombudsman found that Kristina Harrison Solicitors had failed to deal reasonably with the client's callback requests between 22 and 29 August 2024. The finding followed an investigation into the client's repeated attempts to obtain contact from the firm and the way those requests were handled. When setting out the standards it would consider during the investigation, the Ombudsman said it would expect a firm to have a system for recording telephone messages, passing callback requests to the correct fee earner and responding within a reasonable time so that a client was not left chasing for contact.
As part of that investigation, the client was asked to provide screenshots or itemised telephone records showing calls made to the firm around 22 and 29 August. He was also asked to explain what update he had been attempting to give the firm, why he considered it important that a solicitor spoke to him and what happened as a result of not receiving a callback.
The Legal Ombudsman also upheld the second complaint, concerning the firm's communications with the client from 29 August 2024 onwards. The Ombudsman found that the firm's communication during this period was not clear, consistent or proactive enough, which meant the client was left chasing updates and seeking clarity about who was dealing with his matter and what would happen next.
During the investigation, the Legal Ombudsman said it would expect the firm to tell the client who had day-to-day conduct of his matter, reply to correspondence within a reasonable time and clearly explain what work was being carried out and what would happen next. The client was asked to provide copies of emails he had sent to the firm after 29 August, particularly communications he said had gone unanswered, along with a chronology detailing when he contacted the firm, what he was asking for on each occasion and whether he received a response.
Following the findings, the Legal Ombudsman recommended a financial remedy for distress and inconvenience. Kristina Harrison Solicitors subsequently agreed to compensate the client in accordance with that recommendation, with the amount of compensation remaining undisclosed. Correspondence dated 10 September 2026 confirmed that the client was willing to accept the outcome and that the firm had been asked to make payment within 14 days of receiving any information it required from him.
The agreement concludes a complaint process in which the Legal Ombudsman upheld two of the four complaints investigated. It found that Kristina Harrison Solicitors failed to deal reasonably with the client's callback requests between 22 and 29 August 2024 and that its communication from 29 August onwards was not clear, consistent or proactive enough, leaving the client chasing updates and seeking clarity about who was dealing with his matter and what would happen next.
Kristina Harrison Solicitors has been approached for comment.
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