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Hi all
Wonder if anyone can help with a recommendation for a good professional negligence firm of solicitors.
Someone I know is in a bit of a bind. He bought a flat 3 or 4 years ago from 3 partners at a firm of accountants (they had moved offices so turned the old premises into a block of flats and sold them off). Unknown to him, they transferred the leasehold title from their names into that of the LLP just before completion; his original solicitor neglected to carry out the pre-completion searches so this was not picked up. Additionally, part of the deal was a parking space for his flat in the communal parking area, but the title to this was not included in the conveyance as it should have been. Now the accountancy firm is insisting on attaching various covenants to the parking space as a condition for transferring it into his name and, therefore, completing the Land Registry registration of his title to both the flat and its parking space. These covenants are more onerous than those for the other parking spaces eg a commercial vehicle like a delivery van or electrician can’t park there and were not what he originally agreed to. Nevertheless, he reluctantly agreed to these and yet the registration of his title has inexplicably still not taken place. There is a strong suspicion that the accountants, and their solicitors, are deliberately stalling in order to run my acquaintance out of time for bringing a civil claim. The second firm of solicitors that my acquaintance appointed to resolve this issue on his behalf with the accountants, their solicitors and his own original firm – all local firms in the small part of England where this issue is taking place - are similarly dragging their feet; and they all appear to have an unduly cosy relationship with each other.
As the registration of his title to both the flat and its parking space has not completed, my acquaintance cannot remortgage or sell the flat. I don’t quite know what I would do if it were me in his shoes and suspect I would be similarly stuck.
In order to break this logjam, please could anyone recommend a good firm of solicitors that specialises in claims for professional negligence against legal firms (and claims for misrepresentation against accountancy firms)? I suppose I am talking about the legal equivalent of a forensic accountant.
Thanks in advance.
R
Wonder if anyone can help with a recommendation for a good professional negligence firm of solicitors.
Someone I know is in a bit of a bind. He bought a flat 3 or 4 years ago from 3 partners at a firm of accountants (they had moved offices so turned the old premises into a block of flats and sold them off). Unknown to him, they transferred the leasehold title from their names into that of the LLP just before completion; his original solicitor neglected to carry out the pre-completion searches so this was not picked up. Additionally, part of the deal was a parking space for his flat in the communal parking area, but the title to this was not included in the conveyance as it should have been. Now the accountancy firm is insisting on attaching various covenants to the parking space as a condition for transferring it into his name and, therefore, completing the Land Registry registration of his title to both the flat and its parking space. These covenants are more onerous than those for the other parking spaces eg a commercial vehicle like a delivery van or electrician can’t park there and were not what he originally agreed to. Nevertheless, he reluctantly agreed to these and yet the registration of his title has inexplicably still not taken place. There is a strong suspicion that the accountants, and their solicitors, are deliberately stalling in order to run my acquaintance out of time for bringing a civil claim. The second firm of solicitors that my acquaintance appointed to resolve this issue on his behalf with the accountants, their solicitors and his own original firm – all local firms in the small part of England where this issue is taking place - are similarly dragging their feet; and they all appear to have an unduly cosy relationship with each other.
As the registration of his title to both the flat and its parking space has not completed, my acquaintance cannot remortgage or sell the flat. I don’t quite know what I would do if it were me in his shoes and suspect I would be similarly stuck.
In order to break this logjam, please could anyone recommend a good firm of solicitors that specialises in claims for professional negligence against legal firms (and claims for misrepresentation against accountancy firms)? I suppose I am talking about the legal equivalent of a forensic accountant.
Thanks in advance.
R
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