Should complaints sit with Risk, Compliance or Client Care?
Where should complaints sit in a law firm? Learn how to balance client care service recovery with compliance process discipline, ensuring your complaints team has the necessary authority to extract information from partners.
The short answer
Complaints can sit with Risk, Compliance or Client Care, but the structure must ensure independence, consistency and learning.
The right home depends on volume, risk profile, firm culture and whether complaints often overlap with claims or regulatory concerns.
Why ownership matters
Complaints can reveal serious risk issues. If they are treated only as service recovery, the firm may miss regulatory, reputational or professional indemnity signals.
If they are treated only as legal risk, the client experience may suffer.
What each model offers
Client Care may bring service focus. Risk may bring escalation judgement. Compliance may bring process and reporting discipline.
Some firms need a hybrid approach with clear escalation to Risk or GC where a complaint raises wider concerns.
What to avoid
Avoid unclear ownership. If no one owns complaints properly, responses become inconsistent and learning is lost.
Also avoid placing complaints somewhere without authority to obtain information from fee earners.
Bottom line
Complaints should sit where they can be handled fairly, consistently and intelligently.
The label matters less than authority, escalation and learning.
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