www.biggartbaillie.co.uk

clarityBiggart Baillie LLP – explaining our service standards

Our objective is to provide you with high quality, value for money legal services and as a result to retain you as a satisfied client. To achieve this, it is important to set out clearly what you can expect from us and what we ask of you in return. We rely on you to provide us with all relevant information and to tell us as soon as possible about any change in circumstances which might affect the business in hand.

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OUR RESPONSIBILITIES

Provide you with a professional legal service We aim to provide you with a high quality service in an effi cient,

friendly and approachable manner.

We exercise due care in the performance of our service in accordance with applicable professional standards.

We tell you who is handling each piece of work for you and we tell you, as soon as practicable, should there be any requirement to change these arrangements.

Should such a change be necessary, we brief the new or additional member of staff without cost to you.

We only advise on the detailed taxation aspects in relation to any piece of business where we have been specifi cally instructed by you to do so and we have agreed the scope of our service in that respect in a separate letter of engagement.

We do not carry out work under the Legal Aid or Legal Advice & Assistance Schemes. It may be that you are eligible for advice under such schemes, in which case it is for you to seek such advice elsewhere. We do not assess your eligibility for cover under either scheme.

Complete work within agreed timescales We seek to deal with your business as quickly and effi ciently as possible.

We are happy to discuss timescales for carrying out each piece of work and we will do all that we reasonably can to meet those timescales. However, the speed at which work can be completed is affected by the levels of co-operation that we receive from other people, and by other circumstances (such as the fi xing of hearing dates) all of which are to a large extent outwith our control.

Keep you informed of progress We keep you regularly informed of progress on the work we are doing

for you and of any likely delays.

Provide a confi dential service Information provided to us is dealt with in confi dence and is only

disclosed to parties as required for the proper conduct of your work or as authorised by you or as required by The Law Society of Scotland or any other relevant authority or by law.

Unless specifi cally instructed otherwise, we may disclose that we act for you including using that information for marketing purposes. We do not refer to the existence or particulars of any of the transactions or matters on which you instruct us without your consent unless the information is already public knowledge.

Communicate with you Our aim is to communicate in a clear, jargon free manner. We do not

always confi rm discussions with you in writing, but from time to time we may feel it is appropriate to do so.

We may communicate with you by telephone, letter, fax, e-mail or any other form of electronic communication.

Manage papers Our practice, subject to any legal requirement to preserve papers, is to

microfi lm or electronically scan fi les on completion of the work to which they relate. Original fi les are then destroyed.

We are happy to retain title deeds, wills or other documents on your behalf. We cannot guarantee, however, that they are always held within our offi ces or that where they are held is secure against damage by fi re or the like.

We do not accept responsibility for the loss of or damage to any items or papers which we hold on your behalf (whether in our own offi ces or otherwise) unless we expressly agree in writing to the contrary.

If we are asked to retrieve stored documents and/or papers or to provide fi les or other papers (whether in hard copy or electronic form) we reserve the right to charge for this work.

Under general law, we have the right to retain any deeds, documents or other materials which are your property and are held by us until such a time as any sums payable by you to us are paid.

Hold your money The rules for holding clients’ money are governed by The Law Society of

Scotland and the types of banking facility or accounts that we may use to hold client funds must adhere to their Solicitors’ Accounts Rules at all times. Where we hold money for you, we will deposit it on your behalf in an interest bearing account if it is reasonable to do so, having regard to the amount we are holding on your behalf and the time for which we are holding the money.

The Rules of The Law Society of Scotland in relation to the holding of client monies are detailed and strict. We are unable to pay out money on your behalf until we are in possession of cleared funds. This means that electronic money transfers to us need to be made in such a way that we have cleared funds in advance of us having to pay out any settlement sums to a third party. It also means that any cheques must be received by us at least 5 days before any money is to be paid out on your behalf. Similarly, if we receive cheques for you, they have to be cleared through our bank before we can pay you.

Funds should not be sent to us before we are satisfi ed that there has been compliance with the anti-money laundering rules in relation to the source of those funds (see the anti-money laundering section below). If funds are sent to us prior to satisfactory completion of the compliance procedure, we will not be able to treat those funds as clients’ money within the meaning of The Law Society of Scotland’s Accounts Rules. In particular, we will not be able to pay such funds into a client bank account without delay.

The Law Society of Scotland’s Accounts Rules require us, in certain circumstances, to account to you for interest on funds that we are holding on your behalf. Where these Rules are applicable, interest will be paid to you at competitive high street rates, which would at least match interest rates which clients can achieve for similar deposits on the high street in an instant access deposit account. At any one time, the fi rm can be holding total deposits on behalf of all clients of considerable value, and therefore our bank may pay a higher rate of interest than would be achievable on individual deposits. We are happy to share with you the benefi ts of the interest rates we have negotiated.

When we hold money on your behalf, the money will be held within a client bank account which complies with the relevant provisions of The Law Society of Scotland’s Accounts Rules. This may be a non-designated

general client account, if The Law Society of Scotland Accounts Rules allow, or a separate designated deposit account, which is designated as holding client funds benefi cially owned by one or more clients.The fi rm may also hold client monies within a pooled account held within an electronic banking product, where the bank is aware that the monies in the account are benefi cially owned by clients on an individual designated basis. Monies will only be held in such an account where the bank is able to provide a breakdown on a designated basis to allow any interest earned to be credited to individual accounts.

The fi rm will only hold client monies with a banking institution included on the List of Banks as compiled by the Financial Services Authority on a monthly basis, and only with those institutions covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme and which can offer a suitable client bank account facility which complies with The Law Society of Scotland’s Accounts Rules. We have client banking arrangements with a number of banking institutions, and we reserve the right to change from time to time, without notice, the banks or other institutions in which we hold your money.

We shall not be liable for the partial or even complete loss of your funds held in accordance with these terms and conditions of business due to the failure of a banking institution, or as a result of nationalisation in whole or in part or as a result of takeover or merger affecting a banking institution. We will not give advice to clients on the appropriateness of individual banking institutions for the holding of deposit funds.

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme may provide compensation for certain levels of deposit monies held with failed fi nancial institutions. Whether you qualify for compensation under the Scheme will depend upon the rules of the Scheme from time to time. We reserve the right to pass to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme any information and details required by them to enable any claim to be pursued.

Where we are holding client funds on your behalf for any reason, and you owe us money on any matter, we reserve the right to apply such funds in reduction of any monies owed to us.

Comply with any other service levels We are happy to discuss the tailoring of our Service Standards to meet

any specifi c requirements you may have.

Our responsibilities

Service Standards

Only by forming successful working relationships with our

clients can we give the right service and value – that has

always been our philosophy.

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Provide you with a responsible partner

You have access to one of our partners with overall responsibility for

our relationship with you. If you are concerned about any aspect of

our service, then please discuss your concerns in the fi rst instance

with the person handling your business or with the responsible

partner. Alternatively, if you prefer or if you are still not satisfi ed,

please raise the matter with our Client Relations Partner.

The Client Relations Partner may change from time to time so is not

named here. Please contact us if you wish to know the name of the

current Client Relations Partner.

We are happy to provide you with our written procedure for handling

complaints if you ask us to do so. That procedure is provided to you

if you raise a matter with our Client Relations Partner.

The Client Relations Partner ensures that any complaint you may

make is fully investigated and that you receive a detailed response.

He provides an initial response as soon as possible, normally within

ten working days, with a more detailed response being provided as

quickly as possible thereafter.

If you are still dissatisfi ed, you are always entitled to take the matter

up with the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission

(www.scottishlegalcomplaints.com).

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The extent of our liability

Advice given and documents prepared by us are for your use only in

connection with the particular circumstances or transaction in relation

to which the advice is given or the documents are prepared. We accept

no liability to you or any other party if such advice or documents

are used without our consent in other circumstances or for another

transaction.

Our advice and documents may not be copied, used or relied upon by

any third party without our express written consent.

Our liability, and the liability of our individual partners, employees

and agents, to you (whether for negligence or otherwise) in relation to

any work which we undertake for you is limited to the amount (if any)

specifi ed in writing by us to you at the outset of our engagement for

that work, or if no amount is so specifi ed, £50 million.

Copyright and knowledge management

All copyright in documents we produce in the course of our work

for you is, and remains, our property. We may adapt, develop or use

the same for other clients. All such documents, and any counsel or

other third party opinions we may obtain for you, may be stored

(electronically or otherwise) in our internal knowledge management

systems.

How we manage a confl ict of interest

If your interests come into confl ict with the interests of any other

client of ours, or if there is a reasonable basis to anticipate that such

a confl ict may arise, we advise you as soon as we become aware of the

actual or potential confl ict. The Law Society of Scotland’s rules govern

confl icts of interest. Should a confl ict arise, we inform you how the

rules affect the particular case and discuss with you how the confl ict

can be dealt with.

Anti money laundering

We are obliged to comply with the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, the UK

Money Laundering Regulations 2007 and other legal requirements.

The Regulations require that, prior to forming any business relationship

with any person or entity, we must obtain evidence of the identity

of that person or entity. In addition we must be satisfi ed we fully

understand the nature of the transaction or matter. In our discretion

we will either verify your identity by obtaining from you copies of

the necessary documentation or by checking your identity by such

other means as may be appropriate including the use of electronic

databases. It is a condition of you seeking to instruct us that you

co-operate fully in this and consent to us following such procedures

as we consider appropriate.

In the event we decide to verify your identity by documentary

evidence you will be required to provide us upon request with sight

of original documentation confi rming your identity (e.g. certifi cate

of incorporation, passport, driving licence with photograph, etc.)

and your current permanent address (e.g. bank statement, utility bill,

mortgage statement, etc.) as well as such information as we require in

respect of the transaction or matter to comply with these provisions.

Photocopies are not acceptable unless certifi ed in a manner acceptable

to us. Similar proof of identity and address is required from third

parties who have a fi nancial involvement in any matter or transaction

on which we act for you and any “benefi cial owners” in relation to

clients. If we are not given satisfactory evidence we will be obliged

to withdraw from acting. If you request that we obtain documents

to confi rm matters (e.g. copy documents from Companies House) or

otherwise verify identity, we reserve the right to pass the costs on to

you.

In the event that we seek to verify your identity by other means you will

be required to provide us upon request with the necessary information

to allow us to do this.

The legislation places an obligation on us to report to the Serious

Organised Crime Agency (“SOCA”) any suspicions we may have that

the money or property being used (or going to be used) in any matter

or transaction derives from the proceeds of any criminal act. It is an

offence for anyone to prejudice a SOCA investigation by “tipping

off” a person who is the subject of suspicion or any third party who

is suspected of money laundering. Where we make a report to SOCA,

we are not entitled to take further steps on the matter or transaction

without SOCA approval and we accept no responsibility for the effects

of any delay which may thereby arise. You should be aware that the

obligation placed on us may override any duty of confi dentiality

otherwise owed by us. A report to SOCA may involve signifi cant

consequences. If we seek your consent to make a report (where such

consent is required) and that consent is not given we reserve the right

to withdraw from acting for you.

Our responsibilities

Service Standards

Fees

It is our objective that the fees which we charge are fair and

reasonable for the work in question in all the circumstances of

the particular matter or transaction. In the absence of any other

agreement between us, the principal element in the calculation of

our fee is the time spent by us on the work. Where that is the case,

we will advise you of the applicable rates, which are reviewed from

time to time.

The actual fee may also refl ect consideration of other relevant

factors such as urgency, importance of the work to you, amount or

value of money or property involved, complexity, diffi culty or novelty

of the matters and length, number or importance of documents or

papers.

It is important for our clients to have a clear idea of the likely costs.

We are therefore happy to estimate fees, so far as possible, at the

start of any piece of work and to update any estimate provided as

the matter progresses. We will try to identify in our estimate any

need which can reasonably be anticipated to make any payment

on your behalf.

We may request a deposit from you at the outset towards the fee

liability you will have. If you are unhappy with any fee we charge,

you are entitled to an independent assessment by the Auditor of

the Court. This process is known as taxation. Alternatively, The Law

Society of Scotland can give you guidance.

As part of a sustained growth strategy, we embrace new

technology to improve the services we can offer you. “

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We can provide information on request as to the time spent to date on

any matter and the cost it represents. We normally render an interim

fee if a matter on which we are instructed has not been completed

within a reasonable time after we are instructed (normally three

months). We may, thereafter, render further interim fees until such time

as the relevant matter is completed.

From time to time, we may require to make payments on your behalf

(for example for copy documents or for services of counsel). Normally,

we only make such a payment after receiving the necessary funds from

you but in every case you are liable to reimburse us on demand.

If any request for payment on account or settlement of a fee is not

timeously met, we are entitled to cease or suspend further work on the

matter in question and on any other matters being handled by us for

you. In such instances we accept no liability for the effects of delays

and other consequences which may thereby arise.

We are normally able to meet any special requirements for format

of invoices or other steps to assist your fi nancial or accounting

procedures.

Unless otherwise agreed at the time of your instruction, our fees for

work done are payable even if the proposed transaction or matter is

not completed.

Recoveries

In situations where you or we on your behalf contract with a third party

to the effect that you are indemnifi ed by that third party in respect of

all or part of our costs, the primary liability for those costs remains with

you, since we have no entitlement in law to seek recovery from the

third party.

In litigation, any recovered expenses rarely cover all of the fees due to

us. About 50% is a reasonable working indication. You are liable for all

our fees, whether or not they are recoverable from any other party.

Data protection

As you would expect, your details are kept on computer. Some of this

data (e.g. name, address and interests) is used so that we can send you

information about us and our services. None of the information that

we hold on computer is disclosed to third parties except in the ordinary

course of acting for you or if required by law.

If you do not wish to receive information about us and our services,

you should notify our Business Development Director and your name

can then be removed from our database for this purpose.

Our responsibilities

Service Standards

Your responsibilities

Service Standards

If we are to meet your expectations of performance, we need

your co-operation. “

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES

Communicate with us

You may instruct us in a variety of ways. However, we may ask you to

confi rm instructions in writing. Unless otherwise agreed between us,

we are entitled to assume that anyone who holds himself or herself

out as having authority to instruct us on your behalf does have such

authority. However, we may wish to confi rm that authority with you

before proceeding.

Unless we specifi cally agree with you to the contrary, we will not

accept instructions for payment, or details of bank accounts to be

credited, other than in writing.

Where we are acting for a group of people or an organisation, we

can accept instructions on a matter from more than one person

and, unless otherwise agreed between us, we are entitled to assume

that the person instructing us has the authority of the others to do

so. Before acting on such an instruction, however, we may wish to

confi rm it with any other interested party.

Provide us with information and decisions

If we are to meet your expectations of performance, we need your

co-operation. From time to time we need information from you and,

although you have our full support and guidance, we need decisions

by you at certain stages of our work.

If we require information or decisions from you, we try to give you as

much notice as we can. Where such information or decisions are not

provided to us within any timescale we indicate to you, we accept no

liability for the effects of delays and other consequences which may

thereby arise.

Provide us with all relevant facts

As your agents, we can only act on information and instructions

given to us. We need to have full details of each matter on which

we are instructed particularly to comply with our obligations in

respect of Money Laundering Reporting. We rely on you to provide

us with all relevant information on a timely basis and to tell us as

soon as possible of any change of circumstances. You should not

assume that we have knowledge of any factual matters.

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Settle fees

All our fee invoices are payable on presentation. If any invoice remains

unpaid for 30 days after it is rendered, we may add a surcharge of 2%

for each period of 30 days (or part of such a period) thereafter until the

full amount due is paid.

If an account is not paid promptly, we may cease or suspend further

work on the matter in question and on any other matters being

handled by us for you. In such instances, we accept no liability for

the effects of delays or other consequences which may thereby arise.

Where we are acting for a group of people on any matter, every person

in the group is equally responsible for the instructions given to us and

for payment of our fees and outlays in connection with the matter in

question.

Where you carry out a matter or transaction through a company,

limited partnership, limited liability partnership or other corporate

vehicle established, or to be established, for that purpose, you will

remain responsible for payment of our fees and outlays in connection

with that matter or transaction in question.

We are entitled to apply any money of yours which we hold to meet

fees, VAT and outlays due by you.

Our regulation & accreditation

Biggart Baillie LLP is a limited liability partnership incorporated in

Scotland with registered number S0301366, and having its registered

offi ce at:

Dalmore House,

310 St. Vincent Street

Glasgow G2 5QR.

In these Service Standards, or in any correspondence, reference to a

“partner” of Biggart Baillie LLP is to a member of Biggart Baillie LLP.

All correspondence sent, and advice given, by a member or an

employee of Biggart Baillie LLP is sent or given on behalf of Biggart

Baillie LLP.

Biggart Baillie LLP is regulated and authorised to conduct business as

solicitors by The Law Society of Scotland and is subject to its Code of

Conduct. Details of the accreditation can be obtained by contacting:

The Law Society of Scotland,

26 Drumsheugh Gardens

Edinburgh EH3 7YR.

Telephone: +44 (0) 131 226 7411

www.lawscot.org.uk

©Biggart Baillie LLP. Issue 3, 2009

Biggart Baillie LLP is regulated and authorised to conduct business as solicitors by The Law Society of Scotland and is subject to its Code of Conduct.

Glasgow

Dalmore House, 310 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow G2 5QR

Tel: +44 (0) 141 228 8000 Fax: +44 (0) 141 228 8310

Edinburgh

No. 2 Lochrin Square, 96 Fountainbridge, Edinburgh EH3 9QA

Tel: +44 (0) 131 226 5541 Fax: +44 (0) 131 226 2278

For more information about our services,

visit www.biggartbaillie.co.uk

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