Complaints

If something has gone wrong

This page explains how to raise a problem with the practice and where to take it if our answer does not resolve it.

General information, not legal advice. This page sets out how the law generally applies. It does not take account of your circumstances, and you should get advice about your own situation before acting on it. The official sources this page is written from are listed on it; where they differ from anything here, they are the authority.

Last updated: 23 September 2026

If you are unhappy with something that has been done, you can say so. Most problems are fixed fastest by telling us directly, and telling us early usually costs you nothing but the time it takes to write it down.

If that does not work, there is an independent path that does not depend on our goodwill. The Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner deals with complaints about lawyers in New South Wales. It is separate from any firm, its service is free and you do not need a lawyer to use it.

Start with the person doing your work

Legal services offered through this website are provided by Jameson Law.

Tell the person handling your matter first. Say what has gone wrong and what you would like done about it. A good many complaints are about something that can be corrected quickly: a call that was not returned, a document you were never sent, a step you did not know had been taken.

Putting it in writing helps, because it fixes the date and records what you asked for. You can do that through our contact page, or by replying to whoever has been writing to you about your matter.

If the complaint is about that person, or you would simply rather not raise it with them, skip this step and go straight to the next one. You are not required to confront anyone.

Then put it to the practice formally

If you do not get an answer, or the answer does not resolve it, put your complaint formally to Jameson Law, which provides the legal services offered through this website.

Say plainly that it is a formal complaint. A complaint about a particular person is not looked at by that person. You do not have to name anyone to make a complaint, and you do not have to complain to the practice at all before going to the Legal Services Commissioner.

What to put in your complaint

You do not need legal language and you do not need to name a rule you think has been broken. Describe what happened and say what you want done. It helps if you include the following.

Your name, and the matter or file it concerns
What happened, with dates, in the order it happened
Who you dealt with
Copies of the documents that show what you are describing — the relevant ones, not the whole file
What you would like done to put it right

If a bill is the problem, say which bill it is and which parts of it you dispute. That is treated as a costs dispute and it runs to a much shorter time limit than a complaint about service, so raise it straight away rather than waiting for the matter to finish.

How long we will take

We will acknowledge your complaint in writing within five business days of receiving it, and tell you who is looking at it.

We aim to give you a substantive written response within 28 days. If it is going to take longer — because a file has to be reviewed in full, or because someone involved is away — we will tell you within those 28 days, explain why and say when you can expect an answer.

Our response will set out what we found, what we propose to do about it and what you can do if you are not satisfied. Raising a complaint does not stop work on your matter, and it does not affect any deadline running in it.

The Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner

The Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner, usually called the OLSC, deals with complaints about lawyers and law practices in New South Wales under the Legal Profession Uniform Law and the Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014 (NSW).

The OLSC states on its own website that, unless there are good reasons not to, you need to have attempted to resolve your complaint with your lawyer before it can help you. There are exceptions, and nothing on this page takes away your right to complain to the Commissioner.

All complaints to the OLSC must be in writing and signed. It must identify the lawyer or law practice it is about and describe the conduct complained of. The current form, portal link and postal address are on its website, and its inquiry line will tell you which to use.

Consumer matters, disciplinary matters and costs disputes

The Commissioner sorts complaints into two kinds, and one complaint can raise both. A consumer matter is about the provision of legal services without alleging misconduct: delay, poor communication, a dispute about costs, or a dispute about documents or property. A disciplinary matter alleges conduct which, if proved, would amount to unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct.

Unsatisfactory professional conduct is conduct connected with the practice of law that falls short of the standard of competence and diligence a member of the public is entitled to expect. Professional misconduct is the more serious category, covering substantial or consistent failures of that standard and conduct that would justify a finding that a lawyer is not a fit and proper person to practise.

A costs dispute is a kind of consumer matter: a dispute about the legal costs payable to your own lawyer. The Commissioner can try to resolve it and, in appropriate cases, make a determination about what is payable, which may include waiving or reducing fees or requiring a refund. There are monetary limits on the bills it can deal with this way, and the OLSC publishes the current figures, so check them there rather than assuming.

The Commissioner does not assess a bill item by item. That is done through costs assessment, a separate process under the Legal Profession Uniform Law. Our costs page explains what a costs disclosure has to contain in the first place.

Time limits on a complaint

A complaint about conduct should generally be made within three years of the conduct complained about. The Commissioner has a discretion to accept a late complaint in limited circumstances, so do not assume a late complaint is automatically refused — but do not rely on the discretion either.

A costs dispute has a much shorter limit, measured from when the costs became payable or from when an itemised bill was provided. Because it is short, a bill you are unhappy with is worth raising straight away. The OLSC publishes the current periods and they are the figures to work from.

These limits are about complaining. They have nothing to do with a limitation period in your own dispute. A limitation period under the Limitation Act 1969 (NSW) continues to run whatever else is happening, and our guide to limitation periods in New South Wales explains how it works.

What happens next

The OLSC assesses a complaint when it arrives and may ask you or the lawyer for more information. It then either closes the complaint or tries to resolve it informally. Where it investigates, the lawyer is given a period to respond and that response is ordinarily sent to you for comment.

At the end, the Commissioner may close the complaint, make a determination in a consumer matter, or begin disciplinary proceedings in the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. You are told the outcome in writing, with reasons. It is not a quick process, and the OLSC’s own website sets out what to expect.

What the Commissioner cannot do

The Commissioner cannot give you legal advice or represent you. It cannot order a lawyer to hand over a file, recover a debt for you, or change a decision of a court or tribunal, and it will not usually investigate while related court or tribunal proceedings are still on foot. It does not deal with complaints about judges, magistrates or court staff.

If your complaint is about the other side’s lawyer rather than your own, the Commissioner can still receive it: it deals with complaints about the conduct of lawyers generally, not only about a lawyer’s own client relationship.

A complaint about how personal information has been handled is a different path again, and our privacy policy sets it out. The external body for that is the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, not the OLSC.

Where to send a complaint

Raise a complaint about the service you have received through the contact page, and say plainly that it is a complaint so that it is not treated as a general enquiry.

Enquiries and requests

Through the form on our contact page. Say plainly what kind of request it is so that it reaches the right person.

Who you are contacting

My Civil Lawyer is an informational website about civil disputes in New South Wales. Legal services are provided by Jameson Law. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner

Inquiry line 1800 242 958 (toll free within Australia) or 02 9377 1800. Complaints must be in writing and signed — see olsc.nsw.gov.au.