Inappropriate behaviour

If you want to talk to someone, you can contact…

• Rape Crisis Scotland
• Scottish Women’s Rights Centre
• Scottish Women’s Aid
• Survivors UK
• You may wish to contact your GP
• Mind also outlines a wider-range of organisations that may be able to help

You might find the following online information helpful

• EHRC guidance on sexual harassment at work
• ACAS Sexual Harassment at work

Scottish solicitors and other members of the legal profession are required to meet high standards of conduct. If you believe that a member of the profession's behaviour has fallen short of those standards, you may wish to consider making a complaint. 

Please note that we cannot take complaints directly. In the first instance, all complaints should be made to the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC) as the gateway for complaints against solicitors in Scotland.  You can find out more about the complaints process on our website. 

You can contact the SLCC on on 0131 2012130, enquiries@scottishlegalcomplaints.org.uk or find out more on the SLCC website.

As the professional body for Scottish solicitors, we cannot provide legal advice. Should you wish to seek legal advice, you can use our find-a-solicitor tool to search all Scottish solicitors by area of law and location.

www.findasolicitor.scot

If you believe that a crime has been committed, you can contact Police Scotland.
https://www.scotland.police.uk/contact-us/

Keep a record of any and all inappropriate behaviour, including dates, times, and details of what happened. This could include any relevant text messages or emails. These could be helpful if you decide to make a report at a later date. 

If you want to talk to someone, you can contact…

• LawCare
  LawCare is the mental wellbeing charity for the legal community. They offer free, confidential, emotional support to anyone working in the law.
  You can call the helpline on 0800 279 6888, or email the support team or find out more.
• Law Society dedicated support for trainees
  If you are a trainee solicitor, you can contact our confidential trainee support helpline on 0131 476 8162.
  If your organisation has one you may wish to speak to your HR team.
• You might find it helpful to get in touch with other representative organisations
  • Scottish Young Lawyers Association
  • Scottish Ethnic Minorities Lawyers Association
  • Women in Law Scotland 
  • The Glass Network

You might find the following online information helpful

• Sexual harassment: managing the workplace risk
• Preventing bullying and harassment advice and information
• International Bar Association: Us Too? Report on what can constitute bullying, harassment and sexual harassment.
• Lawscot Wellbeing

If you or someone you know has suffered or is suffering because of a member of the legal profession’s inappropriate behaviour,  explaining what has happened might be the important first step you need to take.
We cannot provide legal advice or counselling services, but we can walk you through the possible routes forward.

Please do inform us when contacting us if you wish to remain anonymous.

We are happy to offer support and guidance anonymously but this will necessarily focus on pastoral support and signposting.

If you are happy to tell us your name, please also be aware that as per Section 33 of the Legal Profession and Legal Aid (Scotland Act) 2007, where we receive an ‘expression of dissatisfaction’ about a Scottish solicitor, we are duty bound to report it to the SLCC.

While we appreciate the complexities and sensitivities where people have been affected by inappropriate, behaviour, anyone considering taking action should be aware of the impact timing can have in matters of this kind. 

If you are considering making a formal complaint, the SLCC has strict time limits around when it can accept complaints. These differ depending on the type of complaint and you can find out more on the SLCC website.  

Civil cases can be subject to time bars and a Scottish solicitor will be best placed to advise on your particular circumstances.  If you believe that a crime has been committed, in Scotland there is no set time period within which a member of the public must submit their complaint to Police Scotland. However anyone considering reporting a crime, should be aware that early reporting may assist with an investigation.

Wherever possible we will ensure that the same designated person deals with your inquiry providing continuity of care from start to finish.
We are in the process of upskilling those members of the Law Society team you might be in contact with to certify them as trauma informed. We welcome requests for a male or female member of the team to manage your enquiry and will do our best to accommodate your preference.
Whoever you are in contact with, you can expect to be treated with sensitivity and respect.