Law firm enjoys triple audit success

Biscoes solicitors celebrate Lexcel accreditation. Directors Alison Lee and Stephanie Bellchambers are pictured with fellow directors and staff at their Portsmouth head office.

Biscoes solicitors celebrate Lexcel accreditation. Directors Alison Lee and Stephanie Bellchambers are pictured with fellow directors and staff at their Portsmouth head office.

An expanding law firm in Hampshire is celebrating a hat-trick of quality mark successes.

Biscoes has been reaccredited with the Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) and had successful Lexcel and Legal Aid Agency (LAA) audits within in a few weeks.

Similar to kite marks of excellence, they provide professional assurance to customers that the law firm has trusted quality standards.

Biscoes, which has six offices in Portsmouth, Gosport, Portchester, Wickham, Waterlooville and Petersfield, employs 100 staff and is led by Managing Director Alison Lee.

She said: “Our three quality mark and audit successes provide our clients with ‘peace of mind’ that we carry out work to consistently high standards.”

The firm even went through a mystery shopper exercise, run by external company Shoppers Anonymous, to help put their employees through their paces before the auditing process.

The Law Society’s CQS accreditation provides a recognised standard for house purchases and sales as well as leasehold extension work in which the firm specialise.

Lexcel is the Law Society’s legal practice quality mark for excellence in legal practice management and client care.

LAA ensures that legal aid providers must have quality assurance standards through Lexcel.

Alison said: “Our audits showed that our files are well managed, which was very pleasing.

“It shows that the compliance to requirements laid down by these various organisations is held in high regard amongst all our staff.

“That means that the quality of work being done is well managed and well supervised and that is good for client services.

“It is all about providing a quality service and in order to do that we have to make sure that everyone in the firm is working as hard as they can for our clients.”

Biscoes, which has been established for 162 years, could secure another achievement in November as the firm works towards gaining the ISO 9001 accreditation for its quality management systems.

In addition to the audit successes Jane Hodge, a Director at the firm, has recently been appointed as Chairwoman of Forces Law, the independent organisation providing legal support to the armed services.

There was further success for Biscoes at the Hampshire Incorporated Law Society (HILS) awards as they triumphed in the small firm of the year category.

Biscoes is a member of several associations, including the Law Society, Hampshire Law Society, Notary Services, the Charity Law Association, Portsmouth Property Association and Hampshire Chamber of Commerce.

It is also part of LawNet and counts itself as one of very few firms offering access to practising Notary Publics in England and Wales.

Earlier this year Biscoes merged with Fareham-based commercial law specialist Graeme Quar & Co. to enhance service offering to clients with commercial and business legal needs.

Biscoes’ services include personal injury and accident claims, civil litigation, divorce and child arrangements, immigration, military redress of grievance, wills, trust, probate, mediation, employment, fertility law, adoption, court of protection and debt recovery.

Legal expertise, through the recent merger, includes property transactions, company law, buying and selling businesses, employment law, business disputes, planning law, corporate taxation and insolvency.

 

Notes to Reporters:

Biscoes, Kingston Place, Kingston Crescent, North End, Portsmouth, Hampshire PO2 8AQ 023 9266 0261 www.biscoes-law.co.uk Fax: 023 9266 2970 Email: info@biscoes-law.co.uk

Biscoes, which traces its roots back 162 years and is led by managing director Alison Lee, is headquartered in Portsmouth and has five other offices in Gosport, Portchester, Wickham, Waterlooville and Petersfield. Staff number more than 100, including 28 fee-earners.

Biscoes is a member of a number of professional associations, including the Law Society, Hampshire Law Society, Notary Services, the Charity Law Association, Portsmouth Property Association and Hampshire Chamber of Commerce. The practice is also part of LawNet, the UK and Ireland’s leading network of independent law firms promoting excellence and providing a range of benefits for members.

Biscoes has the Law Society’s legal practice quality mark Lexcel, for excellence in legal practice management and client care, and is accredited with the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. The firm is among 900 or so practising notaries in England and Wales – duties include authenticating legal documents for use abroad, including for people intending to marry or work overseas.

Historically, the long established Portsmouth based firms of Biscoe Smith, Heather and Bellinger, Cousins Burbidge & Connor and Lyndhurst Groves merged in 1994 to form Biscoes Cousins Groves. In 2004 in the Firm’s 150th year, Biscoes absorbed Wilkinson & Co and merged with King and Franckeiss, both well respected local firms.

Subsequently in 2005 a merger with Covers added a Petersfield office to an already impressive list of locations, which was closely followed by the opening of an office in Gosport. In 2006 a Portchester branch was created following the link up with the long established practice of Barry Swanton & Co. In 2016 commercial specialist Graeme Quar & Co also came under the Biscoes banner

 

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