Can OmbudSRA prepare this complaint?

Yes. OmbudSRA prepares structured firm complaints, SRA reports and Legal Ombudsman complaints from the facts and evidence supplied. OmbudSRA is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.

High-intent solicitor complaint guide

My Solicitor Missed a Deadline: What Can I Do?

What to do if your solicitor missed a court, limitation, conveyancing, tribunal or complaint deadline, including evidence, complaints, SRA, Legal Ombudsman and negligence routes.

Start your complaint

Short answer: If your solicitor missed a deadline, record the deadline, how it was missed, what consequence followed and what evidence proves it. Ask the firm for an explanation in writing and request the file if needed. Depending on the impact, you may have a firm complaint, Legal Ombudsman complaint, SRA report, or need independent legal advice about negligence. Act quickly if the missed deadline affects court, tribunal, appeal or limitation rights.

First: Work Out What Deadline Was Missed

Not all missed deadlines have the same consequences. A missed internal target is different from a missed court order, limitation date, tribunal deadline, appeal deadline, exchange date, completion date or Legal Ombudsman time limit. The first step is to identify exactly what deadline was missed and who set it.

Write down the date, what was due, who was responsible, what the solicitor told you, what actually happened and what consequence followed. If you have a court order, tribunal direction, contract, email or letter showing the deadline, save it. If the deadline was verbal, write down when and how it was explained.

If the missed deadline is still capable of being fixed, act urgently. Ask the solicitor what steps have been taken to remedy the position. If trust has broken down, consider independent legal advice quickly, especially for court, tribunal, appeal or limitation issues.

Ask The Firm For A Written Explanation

Send a concise written request to the firm asking what deadline was missed, why it was missed, what steps have been taken, what impact it has on your matter and whether the firm's insurers have been notified. Keep the tone factual. The purpose is to create a record.

If the firm admits the error, ask what remedy it proposes. That may include urgent corrective action, fee reduction, refund, compensation, paying for replacement advice or notifying insurers. If the firm denies the error, ask for the documents showing that the deadline was met or not the firm's responsibility.

Do not rely on phone calls alone. Confirm important conversations by email. A written record matters if you later complain to the Legal Ombudsman, report to the SRA or seek negligence advice.

Legal Ombudsman Route

Missing a deadline can be poor service, especially where it causes delay, distress, financial loss, lost opportunity or extra costs. The Legal Ombudsman may consider whether the service was reasonable and what remedy is appropriate.

To prepare a Legal Ombudsman complaint, explain the missed deadline in plain terms. What was the deadline? How do you know? What did the solicitor do or fail to do? What impact did it have? What remedy do you want? Attach the order, correspondence, timeline and any evidence of loss or inconvenience.

You usually need to complain to the firm first. If the firm gives a final response or eight weeks pass, the Legal Ombudsman route may open. Time limits matter, so keep the final response date.

SRA Route

The SRA will not investigate every missed deadline. Mistakes happen. But an SRA report may be relevant if the missed deadline is part of a serious pattern, involves dishonesty, misleading you or the court, concealment, failure to act in your interests, or conduct that undermines trust.

For example, if the solicitor missed a court deadline and then told you it had been filed when it had not, the issue may go beyond poor service. If they concealed the error, altered documents, blamed someone else without evidence or ignored urgent risk, the regulatory angle becomes stronger.

An SRA report should be factual. State the deadline, the evidence, the statement made by the solicitor and the document that contradicts it. Avoid turning an ordinary negligence complaint into a misconduct allegation unless the evidence supports it.

Negligence And Loss

If a missed deadline caused financial loss, lost a claim, damaged a case or removed a legal right, you may need independent legal advice about professional negligence. That is separate from a complaint. A complaint can produce a remedy, but a negligence claim is a legal route and may have its own limitation period.

The key questions for negligence advice are usually: what duty did the solicitor owe, what deadline was missed, did that fall below the expected standard, what would probably have happened if the deadline had been met, and what loss was caused?

Gather the file early. A new solicitor may need the papers to assess whether anything can still be done. If the old firm delays file release, record the requests.

Practical Checklist

Save the deadline document. Create a chronology. Ask for a written explanation. Request your file. Keep evidence of impact, including extra costs, lost opportunities, court orders, tribunal correspondence and stress or inconvenience. Complain to the firm in writing. Decide whether you need the Legal Ombudsman, SRA or negligence advice.

If the deadline relates to an active case, do not wait for a complaint process to finish before protecting your position. Complaints can run in parallel with urgent steps to preserve rights.

OmbudSRA can help prepare the firm complaint, Legal Ombudsman complaint or SRA report, and organise the evidence so the missed deadline is presented clearly.