anonymous
Absolutely disgusted and Deeply Disturbed
I am absolutely disgusted and deeply disturbed by the way Burd Ward Solicitors have handled my late mother's estate and my request for her medical records. What I have experienced is a shocking combination of prolonged delays, contradictory communication, failure to properly deal with a formal complaint, and written statements that I believe are contradicted by the firm's own previous communications with me. What I have experienced constitutes an extremely poor professional service. While fetching medical records isn't a standard probate task, a lawyer cannot make a professional promise, string a beneficiary along for a year causing massive delays with ongoing lack of response via telephone and email, and then drop it with weak reasons as to why after informing me "it shouldn't be a problem" without facing accountability for how they handled the matter. unbelievably unprofessional ! My mother died in March 2025. I contacted Burd Ward after discovering her Will. I spent an enormous amount of time assisting them with the estate, gathering, searching for and providing information they did not have and needed in order to administer the estate. My request for my mother's medical records has now been dragging on for well over a year. Her GP practice has had to chase Burd Ward repeatedly for a response . Their incompetence to respond in a timely manner to anything is shocking. Eventually, I spoke directly with Michael Ward. I was told that obtaining the records "should not be a problem" and that he would deal with it THAT DAY and it would not take long at all. Michael Ward specifically asked me whether I wanted the records for the purpose of suing or bringing legal proceedings. I told him clearly that I did not. What happened afterwards is extremely concerning. The firm's subsequent written response presented the circumstances surrounding my request in a way that does not reflect what I actually discussed with Michael Ward. I then made a formal complaint about the extraordinary delay, the contradictory communications and the handling of my request. Instead of properly addressing the substance of my complaint, Martyn Green responded by telling me that because I am not personally the firm's client, I cannot validly complain, and then simply declared the matter "closed." This is disturbing because my daughter is the beneficiary of the estate, I am acting on her behalf, and Burd Ward have known this from the beginning. So after more than a year of delay, repeated chasing, contradictory communications and a formal complaint, the response from the firm was effectively: You cannot complain. The matter is closed. I find this completely unacceptable. I have kept the documentation. I have the emails. I have the letters. I have the firm's own written statements. The paper trail speaks for itself and my record of a personal phone call with Michael Ward. I am now taking this matter to the appropriate independent and regulatory bodies and will allow them to examine the conduct, the handling of the complaint and the conflicting information I have received. I am sharing my experience because I believe people have a right to know how a professional firm has treated someone before deciding whether to entrust that firm with something as important and sensitive as their family's affairs. This isn't simply about being refused medical records. It is about what I was told, what subsequently appeared in writing, the extraordinary length of time this matter has taken, the failure to properly address my complaint, and the attempt to simply shut the complaint down. When a solicitor tells you one thing directly and the firm's subsequent written position appears materially different, when a matter is allowed to drag on for over a year, and when a formal complaint is dismissed rather than properly addressed, I believe that raises very serious questions about accountability and professional standards. I am not prepared to simply accept it. The matter is not closed as far as I am concerned.
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