We reported earlier this week that DC Law have acquired the assets of Barnetts Solicitors from their Administrator.
Beth Rudolf a Director of DC Law has asked us to produce this release to help firms that are dealing with conveyancingcases where Barnetts Solicitors were instructed. She says, “We are all working day and night to get everybody in on time and to minimise disruption to chains.”
“We have taken on all Barnetts staff and the building from the Administrator to provide continuity for clients, agents and lawyers and all their contact details remain the same.”
“Regrettably it is unavoidable in this situation that some of the lenders will be less pragmatic than others. One of the main lenders, for example, requires the return of the advance monies prior to reissuing the mortgage offer. We are then required to submit the Certificate of Title signed by DC Law. “
“We are, of course prioritising all matters in this situation and the referrers and agents have been marvellous at rallying round to help wherever possible. It’s a real team effort. “
Ex Barnett’s clients have been issued with the following advice by DC Law:-
WELCOME TO DC LAW!
FREQUENTY ASKED QUESTIONS
We understand that you will have a lot of questions so have prepared this information sheet to help. If you have any other questions, please contact us at DC Law.
WHY HAVE DC LAW ACQUIRED MY FILE?
Your previous firm of Solicitors, Barnetts have called in the Administrators to undertake a restructure of the business. DC Law have acquired the conveyancing and probate side of the business.
WHO ARE DC LAW?
DC Law is a 4 branch firm of Licensed Conveyancers and Probate Practitioners with a further branch opening in February. DC Law is the trading name of Dorling Cottrell Ltd. We have been trading for 17 years and are specialist property lawyers and probate practitioners with an excellent track record of customer service. To see what our customers say about us just visit our website www.dclaw.co.uk.
WHAT HAPPENS TO MY FILE?
DC Law have agreed to take on and complete all conveyancing files at the Southport Office and will do all we can to ensure that there is no delay caused to your transaction as a result of the situation.
WILL I HAVE TO DEAL W ITH DIFFERENT CONTACTS NOW?
No, Barnetts employed excellent conveyancing staff, known for providing exceptional customer service. We have taken on all conveyancing staff from the business so that you will continue to speak to the same conveyancers as you have up until now. We have even kept the contact details the same, though their email address will change to the DC Law domain name.
WHAT HAPPENS WITH MY MORTGAGE OFFER
If you are buying with a mortgage or remortgaging then you must advise your lender and your broker, as soon as possible that DC Law will be acting for you and ask them to ensure that they issue the mortgage offer to us immediately. We will be trading from the same address as Barnetts so it is only the name that they will need to change on the application.
WHAT HAPPENS TO MY MONEY
Your money is completely safe. An Administrator, Leonard Curtis, has been appointed to ensure that your monies are transferred safely to our client account. If you have paid any monies to Barnetts, any of those monies not already paid out to third parties for disbursements or deposit on exchange, will be transferred over to us.
WHAT DO I NEED TO DO?
We understand that you will want your transaction to proceed without delay so are happy to accept an email from you to confirm that you would like to instruct us to continue with your transaction. We will email you our terms and conditions upon request with a full explanation as to the situation. All you need to do is to confirm that we may proceed immediately. If you have an active transaction and choose not to respond then we would assume after 7 days that you would like us to proceed on your behalf. If you would prefer to instruct a different law firm, then please contact us immediately and we will return any original documents to you and destroy your file.
WILL I HAVE TO REPEAT INSTRUCTIONS WHICH I HAVE ALREADY GIVEN REGARDING ISSUES ON THE FILE
No, your confirmation that you wish us to act on your behalf will be sufficient for us to accept all instructions which you gave to Barnetts as instructions to us. We will check all files prior to exchange and completion of the transaction to ensure that there are no unidentified issues and will let you know if there is anything which you should know, or that we will need your instructions on.
WHAT ABOUT FEES
To ensure that you suffer no loss, we will honour the estimate provided to you by Barnetts, and substantially to act under the same terms in connection with your conveyancing transaction. The terms offered extend to the work involved in a normal conveyancing transaction, should additional work be required then we will provide you with an estimate prior to undertaking any work. We have outlined our fixed fee costs for potential additional work in our Terms and Conditions.
WHAT HAPPENS ABOUT PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE?
We are not a successor practice of Barnetts because we have acquired your file from the Administrator. In the unlikely event of an error having been made on your file prior to 21st January 2014 it should be referred to the Administrators, Julien Robert Irving and Kevin Gerald Murphy of Leonard Curtis Recovery Limited, if you wish to make a claim against Barnetts Professional Indemnity Insurance Policy. This policy will provide cover for all work undertaken by Barnetts so long as any claim is submitted within 6 years.
For work completed after you have instructed us to act for you, we are insured via the Council for Licensed Conveyancer’s master policy with Prime Risk Solutions Policy Number: VH000003T499 for Conveyancing Services with cover to £2 million.
