These terms govern your use of our website (www.gardnerchampion.co.uk). By accessing this website, you agree to comply with these terms. If you do not agree, please do not use our site.

• You may use this site for lawful purposes only. You must not use it in a way that breaches any law or regulation, or that is fraudulent or malicious.
• You must not knowingly introduce viruses, trojans, worms or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful.
• We may suspend or withdraw our site at any time without notice.

Unless stated otherwise, the content on this site (including text, graphics and logos) is owned by Gardner Champion or its licensors. You may print or download extracts for your personal use, but you must not modify the materials or use them for commercial purposes without our written consent.

The content on this site is provided for general information. It does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. You should seek specific advice before taking any action.

We do not exclude or limit our liability where it would be unlawful to do so. However, to the fullest extent permitted by law, we exclude all conditions, warranties and representations that may apply to our site or any content on it, and we will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your use of this site or reliance on its content.

Our site may contain links to other websites. These links are provided for your convenience; we have no control over the content of those sites and accept no responsibility for them.

We may update these terms at any time by posting the revised version on this page. Please check this page periodically.

These terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales, and you agree that the courts of England and Wales will have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute arising in connection with them.

These Terms of Business govern the provision of legal services by Gardner Champion Solicitors ("we", "us", "our", "the firm"). By instructing us to act on your behalf, you agree to be bound by these terms together with any specific terms set out in our client care letter and engagement letter.

Gardner Champion Solicitors is a trading name of Gardner Champion Solicitors Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales (Company Number: 07576113), authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA ID: 558945). Our VAT number is 109358410.

These terms apply to all legal services we provide unless we agree alternative terms with you in writing. Please read these terms carefully and contact us if you have any questions.

We are committed to providing you with high-quality legal services. When you instruct us, we will:

• Provide you with a client care letter setting out the scope of our work, key responsibilities, and cost information
• Identify the person responsible for your matter and who will supervise the work
• Keep you informed of progress on your matter
• Explain legal terms and procedures in clear, plain language
• Update you on costs as your matter progresses
• Respond to your communications promptly and professionally

We are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and must comply with the SRA Standards and Regulations, including the SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs and RFLs, and the SRA Code of Conduct for Firms.

Where we hold money on your behalf, we maintain it in a client account in accordance with the SRA Accounts Rules. We are authorised by the SRA to hold client money.

Client money is held in a designated client account at a UK bank or building society. Interest will be paid to you on client money held for significant amounts or periods in accordance with our client money policy, which is available on request.

We reserve the right to use client money to settle our fees and disbursements once they are due and payable. We will provide you with a bill or account statement before transferring money from client to office account.

Your engagement letter and client care letter will specify the scope of our work. We will only be responsible for matters specifically included within that scope unless we agree in writing to expand it.

5.1 Client Obligations

To enable us to provide effective legal services, you must:

• Provide us with clear, timely and accurate instructions and information
• Provide all relevant documents and information we reasonably request
• Inform us immediately of any changes in your circumstances that may affect your matter
• Respond promptly to our communications and requests for information or instructions
• Pay our fees and disbursements in accordance with these terms
• Comply with any agreed timetables and deadlines
• Cooperate with identity verification and anti-money laundering checks

5.2 Limitation on Advice

Unless specifically instructed otherwise, our advice is limited to the laws of England and Wales and is based on the law as it stands at the date of the advice. We do not accept responsibility for advising on the laws of other jurisdictions unless expressly agreed.

We maintain professional indemnity insurance in accordance with the requirements of the Solicitors Regulation Authority. This provides cover for claims arising from our provision of legal services.

Details of our professional indemnity insurance, including the name and address of our insurer, are available on request. The SRA's Minimum Terms and Conditions for professional indemnity insurance can be found on the SRA website.

Our total liability to you in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty or otherwise arising from or in connection with our services is limited to the amount stated in your engagement letter or, if not specified, to £3 million per claim or series of related claims.

This limit applies to the aggregate of all claims arising from the services we provide to you on a particular matter. Where we act for you on multiple unrelated matters, each matter is treated separately for limitation purposes.

We exclude liability for:

• Loss of profits, business, goodwill, opportunity or anticipated savings
• Any indirect or consequential losses
• Acts or omissions of third parties (including other professionals instructed by you)
• Your failure to provide instructions or information requested by us

Nothing in these terms excludes or limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited under English law.

Before accepting instructions, we carry out conflict checks to identify any conflicts or potential conflicts of interest. We may be unable to act for you if a conflict arises that cannot be resolved.

If a conflict arises during the course of your matter, we will inform you immediately and discuss the options available. This may include ceasing to act for one or all parties involved.

We maintain systems and procedures to identify and manage conflicts of interest in accordance with the SRA Code of Conduct for Firms.

At the conclusion of your matter, we will return any original documents that belong to you. We will retain a file of papers (which may be stored electronically) relating to your matter for a minimum period in accordance with our legal and regulatory obligations and professional standards.

Our standard retention periods are:

• Property transactions: 12 years from completion
• Wills and lasting powers of attorney: permanently
• Litigation and dispute resolution: 6 years from conclusion
• Commercial transactions: 6 years from completion
• Other matters: 6 years from conclusion

After these periods, we may destroy files without further reference to you unless you have requested us to retain them for a longer period. We reserve the right to charge for extended storage.

We may retrieve archived files on request. A retrieval fee may be charged to cover the administrative costs involved.

We are committed to providing high-quality legal services and hope you will be satisfied with our work. However, if you have any concerns about our services or charges, please contact us immediately so we can address them.

We have a formal complaints procedure in place. Full details are available on our Complaints page at /complaints.

If we are unable to resolve your complaint, you may refer it to the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman can investigate complaints about the legal services we have provided. Further information is available at www.legalombudsman.org.uk.

You may also contact the Solicitors Regulation Authority if you are concerned about our conduct. Visit www.sra.org.uk for more information.

We are required to comply with anti-money laundering legislation and regulations, including the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017.

This means we must:

• Verify your identity and, where applicable, the identity of beneficial owners
• Conduct ongoing monitoring of our relationship with you
• Keep records of identification documents and transactions
• Report suspicious activity to the National Crime Agency if we have reasonable grounds for suspicion

We cannot provide legal advice or services until satisfactory identification evidence has been obtained. We may need to make enquiries about the source of funds used in a transaction.

If we are required to report suspicious activity, we are prohibited by law from informing you that a report has been made.

If you have any questions about these terms of business or require further information, please contact us: