Regulatory Information

Our Notary Publics are duly organised, and their practice is regulated through the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Find out more about their regulatory compliance below.

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Service standards

You have the freedom to choose your notary public. We are happy to hear your needs and provide quotes for work so you may better decide which local notary best suits your needs. Your choice is respected and valued at every step.

Our notaries practice independently of the solicitors practice of HCR Legal LLP and of each other.

After you communicate your legal needs, we provide a fixed fee for our service before undertaking action unless your requirements are complex in which case we will provide an estimate of charges. Being independent and located in different parts of the country our notaries’ charges differ. Please see the links to the side for their respective Terms of Business.

We endeavour to see clients within two weeks of being provided with full instructions and documentation, we are often able to see clients more quickly. Notarisation often takes place at the time of the meeting but in more complex cases is undertaken after the meeting with the documentation being notarised and ready for collection the following working day- in exceptional circumstances this may take longer but we will let you know if that is the case.

If required, we will obtain an apostille from the legalisation office operated by the UK FCDO and return the document to you. This will normally take 3-5 working days, assuming the document is returned to a UK address. If the recipient country is not party to the Hague Apostille Convention, then consular legalisation may be required as an additional step. Requirements, cost, and timescales vary by country – we are able to advise on request.

We provide clear outlines of the work we will be doing for you, our expected timelines, payment information and any specific details. Where necessary we may suggest other services which we believe might be relevant.

For your peace of mind, we carry professional indemnity liability cover which is at least the minimum level of cover specified by the Master of the Faculties (currently £1 million).

In the unlikely event of dissatisfaction with the service provided, we have a formal complaints procedure in place. Details of how to make a complaint are provided below and in the Terms of Business referred to above.

Our Notary Publics are duly organised, and their practice is regulated through the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Each notary aims to provide all clients with an efficient and high standard of service. However, in the unlikely event that you should wish to complain, then you should follow the complaints procedure as set out below.

Notarial practices are regulated through the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury: The Faculty Office, 1 The Sanctuary, Westminster, London SW1P 3JT. Telephone 020 7222 5381 (Email [email protected]) (website www.facultyoffice.org.uk).

If you are dissatisfied about the service you have received, please do not hesitate to contact us. If the notary is unable to resolve the matter then you may complain to the Notaries Society of which they are members, who have a Complaints Procedure which is approved by the Faculty Office. This procedure is free to use and is designed to provide a quick resolution to any dispute. In that case please write (but do not enclose any original documents) with full details of your complaint to: The Secretary of the Notaries Society PO Box 1023 Ipswich IP1 9XB Email: [email protected]. If you have any difficulty making a complaint in writing, please do not hesitate to call the Notaries Society/the Faculty Office for assistance.

Finally, even if you have your complaint considered under the Notaries Society Approved Complaints Procedure, you may at the end of that procedure, or after a period of eight weeks from the date you first notified me that you were dissatisfied, make your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman if you are not happy with the result: Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6167, Slough SL1 0EH. Telephone 0300 555 0333 email [email protected] website www.legalombudsman.org.uk.

If you decide to make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman you must refer your matter to the Legal Ombudsman within one year from the act/omission or within one year from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.

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