WW & J Mcclure Limited / Jones Whyte Limited FAQs

Both the Law Society of Scotland and the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) regulate Jones Whyte Limited and WW & J Mcclure Limited (which is now in administration).

The Law Society of Scotland is the regulator for all Scottish solicitors and the information provided on this page sets out the position for former clients of WW & J Mcclure Limited who were dealing with one of WW & J Mcclure Limited’s Scottish offices in relation to Scottish assets.

If you were dealing with one of the English offices of WW & J Mcclure Limited, then you will need to contact the Solicitors Regulation Authority who are the regulators of solicitors in England and Wales.

Further information, including contact details are available on the Solicitor Regulation Authority’s website.

Whilst we are unable to prevent the demise of a firm, we are always made aware of the arrangements put in place when a firm ceases to trade or transfers its business to another firm.

Our primary concern is to ensure the security of the clients’ confidential data, documents and funds by ensuring that they are passed to another solicitor (or firm) regulated by us.

In most circumstances this is achieved by arranging for another regulated firm to ‘acquire the goodwill of the practice'. This allows the acquiring firm the opportunity to contact all clients to advise them of the demise of the former practice unit and ask whether they wish to instruct the acquiring firm going forward.

At the same time, documents and money held by the original firm are passed to the acquiring firm to keep safe, pending instructions from the clients. In the case of WW & J Mcclure Limited, these arrangements were made by the Administrator (FRP Advisory) who transferred the goodwill, documents and client money to the law firm Jones Whyte. In accordance with our requirements, we were notified of these arrangements.

When WW & J Mcclure Limited ceased trading, we published notifications on our website to flag that WW & J Mcclure Limited had ceased trading and that the goodwill, work in progress and certain assets had been taken over by Jones Whyte. It is now the responsibility of the acquiring firm (Jones Whyte) to contact the former clients of WW & J Mcclure Limited.

Unfortunately when a firm fails, there isn’t time to consult clients in advance of the necessary safeguarding and/or finalisation of transfer arrangements.

Most firms have many thousands of clients.

Our expectation is that the acquiring firm (in this case Jones Whyte) writes to each of the clients advising them that their documents and funds are now safely held by them (giving priority to the most urgent cases with on-going work). This correspondence should request authority to retain these papers and hold any client money on behalf of the client. The correspondence should also advise the client that they are entitled to choose an alternative solicitor or request the return of the documents and any funds. If a client wishes to instruct an alternative solicitor, then the client would ‘mandate’ the transfer of the documents and money from the solicitor holding the documents and funds (in this case Jones Whyte) to the new solicitor selected by the client.

The circumstances of this case were such that it was not appropriate to appoint a Judicial Factor.

The circumstances in which a Judicial Factor can be appointed are on the occasions where it is found that a firm's accounting records have not been kept properly or the rare occasions it is suspected that client money is missing. In these circumstances and to protect clients, the Society asks the Court of Session to appoint a Judicial Factor to examine the firm's records.

The circumstances which would trigger the appointment of a Judicial Factor did not apply at the time that WW & J Mcclure Limited became insolvent. Instead, an Administrator (FRP Advisory) was appointed to wind up WW & J Mcclure Limited.

Where a solicitor has ceased trading without making arrangements for outstanding work and client files, we have limited statutory powers to intervene.

The priority is to protect the interests of clients and, where possible, put them in touch with other solicitors who may be able to assist. In this case, arrangements for the work and files of WW & J Mcclure Limited were made by the Administrator (FRP Advisory) and so it was not feasible for us to intervene.

Our role in the WW & J Mcclure Limited situation was to satisfy ourselves that the arrangements made by the Administrators would ensure that the clients’ documents, and any funds held on behalf of clients, were securely transferred to another solicitor or firm regulated by us. That was achieved by the transfer of the goodwill, work in progress and certain assets to Jones Whyte LLP (now Jones Whyte Limited).

If you have agreed with Jones Whyte that they will act as your solicitor, then they may charge you for work undertaken by them.

You are entitled to instruct another solicitor to act on your behalf. If you have suffered loss because of the demise of WW & J Mcclure Limited or wish to make a complaint against WW & J Mcclure Limited or Jones Whyte Limited, additional information is provided below.

On the demise of WW & J Mcclure Limited, the documents and funds belonging to clients of WW & J Mcclure Limited were passed to the law firm Jones Whyte for safekeeping. Our expectation is that Jones Whyte writes to each client advising them that their documents and funds are now safely held by Jones Whyte (giving priority to the most urgent cases with on-going work). This correspondence should request authority to retain these papers and hold any client money on behalf of the client.

The correspondence should also advise you that you are entitled to choose an alternative solicitor or request the return of the documents and any funds direct to you.

If you exercise your right to request the return of your file before you agree to become a client of Jones Whyte, no charge should be made for delivering papers other than a fee for posting or delivery by courier. The fee is not chargeable before the material is delivered. If you do not want to pay for posting or delivery you may be able to collect the papers directly from Jones Whyte.

If you have agreed to become a client of Jones Whyte and later decide to terminate the relationship with Jones Whyte and/or to instruct another solicitor instead, then a fair and reasonable fee may be charged by Jones Whyte for delivery of the files in accordance with our Guidance.

You can use our find-a-solicitor tool to access a list of all Scottish solicitor firms, who according to our records practise in the law relating to wills, executries and trusts.

Find Scottish solicitor firms who practise in wills, executries and trusts

You can enter the relevant postcode, town or city and hit search again to find a firm in your preferred location.

Please note that a firm may decline to act if they do not have the relevant legal knowledge and skill to provide you with a competent and professional service within a reasonable period of time.

You can also use our find-a-solicitor tool to access details of Scottish solicitors who are accredited specialists in Trust Law.

Find Trust Law Accredited Specialists

Please note that the Law Society does not set the fees for services provided by Scottish solicitors, but you can find out more about the cost of legal services and how you can expect to be charged on our website.

Find our more about the cost of legal services

We cannot comment on specific commercial arrangements between a firm and its clients or prospective clients.  You are entitled to instruct another solicitor to act on your behalf. If you have suffered loss because of the demise of WW & J Mcclure Limited or wish to make a complaint against WW & J Mcclure Limited or Jones Whyte Limited, you can find information on how to do that below.

WW & J Mcclure Limited has ceased practice. There is no-one in a position to implement a letter of obligation or undertaking and as the professional body for Scottish solicitors, the Society has no power to carry out legal work for clients or lenders. Jones Whyte is not legally able to discharge a letter of obligation or undertaking granted by WW & J Mcclure Limited.

If the issue relates to a discharge, the seller has, through their solicitor, agreed to have the security discharged. However, where a transaction has already settled it is rare for a seller in these circumstances to instruct new agents to discharge the security. Generally, the quickest way to resolve the issue is for the purchaser’s agents to ask the lender to if they provide an executed discharge which the purchaser’s agents will then register.

Lenders will often request a mortgage account number to deal with these enquiries. If you do not have the mortgage account number, Jones Whyte may be able to find it in the files they hold.

If no mortgage account number is available, and the lender will not deal with the discharge request without the mortgage account number, explaining the issue to the lender’s legal department may assist.

You may be able to reclaim the cost of remedial work for discharging a letter of obligation or undertaking from the Master Policy. To do so, please contact Lockton, brokers appointed in the administration of the Law Society of Scotland Master Policy for Professional Indemnity Insurance, at masterpolicyclaims@uk.lockton.com.

We continue to monitor the situation and will take appropriate regulatory action if required.

Contact details are available on the Jones Whyte website.

If you have suffered a loss due to a solicitor’s negligence (a mistake or a breach of a duty of care), you may be able to obtain redress through the solicitor’s professional indemnity insurance. All solicitors in Scotland have professional indemnity insurance through a Master Policy arranged by the Society. The Master Policy also covers firms which have ceased practice.

Claims on the policy in relation to McClures should be addressed to Lockton, brokers appointed in the administration of the Law Society of Scotland Master Policy for Professional Indemnity Insurance, at masterpolicyclaims@uk.lockton.com. Please be aware this email address only relates to clients affected by the closure of McClures Solicitors. Further information about how solicitors are insured  is available on our website.  

Making a claim and proving negligence can be complicated and you may wish to ask an independent solicitor for assistance. If you do not currently have a solicitor, then you could also contact a member of the Pursuer’s Panel, which consists of seven solicitors with expertise in dealing with professional negligence claims against other solicitors. The panel assists members of the public with advice about potential claims for negligence and will also pursue well-founded claims on their behalf. The panel members are not employed by the Law Society of Scotland and are independent of the Society. Panel members may charge for their advice and assistance. Additional information in relation to the panel is available on our website.

If you have lost money because of the dishonesty of a solicitor, then you may apply to the Client Protection Fund for compensation. The Client Protection Fund is a fund of last resort and in most cases will only compensate those who have tried all other options to recover their losses. Additional information and guidance in relation to the Client Protection Fund is available on our website.

If you are dissatisfied by the service or conduct of a Scottish solicitor, you have the right to complain.

The Law Society of Scotland cannot receive complaints directly. If you wish to bring a complaint against a Scottish solicitor, then you must contact the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC). The SLCC is the gateway for all complaints about solicitors in Scotland and If the SLCC determine that the complaint is eligible and that it relates to the service provided by a Scottish solicitor, they will deal with it themselves. If they determine that a complaint is eligible and relates to a conduct issue, they will pass it to us for investigation. As a separate organisation, we liaise regularly with the SLCC but do not automatically share all information with each other.

Sanctions in relation to service complaints upheld by the SLCC may include compensation, a refund of fees or correcting a service. Conduct complaints passed to the Law Society by the SLCC are investigated by us and in the most serious cases, if a solicitor is considered to have failed to meet the professional standards expected, are prosecuted before the independent Scottish Solicitors’ Discipline Tribunal (SSDT). The SSDT decides whether the solicitor is guilty of professional misconduct and on any sanction. These include a censure, fine or restriction on a solicitor’s practice. In the most serious cases a solicitor can be struck off by the Tribunal which means they are no longer able to practise as a solicitor.

Under Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC)  Rules, there are strict time limits as to when the SLCC can accept complaints.  The time limits which apply depend on what type of complaint you are making.  You should submit your complaint to the SLCC as soon as possible. You can find out more on the SLCC website.

If you are unhappy with the service provided by a member of staff of the Law Society of Scotland, you can make a complaint in writing to our Chief Executive:

Diane McGiffen, Chief Executive
The Law Society of Scotland
Atria One,
144 Morrison St,
Edinburgh
EH3 8EX
Email: dianemcgiffen@lawscot.org.uk 

Additional information is available on our website.

If you believe that a crime has been committed, you should contact the police.

Police Scotland has set up a dedicated email address for clients affected by the closure of Mcclure Solicitors.

You can contact Police Scotland at SCDECONOMICCRIMEABERDEEN@scotland.police.uk.

If a non-solicitor such as a will writer, financial advisor or funeral planning advisor was involved in setting up your family protection trust, will or related documents, then you may wish to raise a complaint against them with another regulator.

Please note that we do not regulate such non-solicitors but it’s possible that they are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Complaints against FCA regulated individuals and firms are dealt with by the Financial Ombudsman Service.

If you wish to consider raising a complaint through the Financial Ombudsman Service you can find information on how to do so online.

https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/ .