Slee Blackwell Omdömen 58

We had no choice but to use this firm as they were appointed executors, and unfortunately our experience was extremely poor from start to finish.

What should have been a straightforward probate process took 16 months to complete. During that time, we dealt with four different solicitors due to staff leaving the practice or going on maternity leave, resulting in a complete lack of continuity and communication.

Emails were rarely answered, phone calls were seldom returned, and we were repeatedly left chasing for updates. As professional people ourselves, we found the level of service completely unacceptable and far below what we would expect from any professional organisation.

There were also mistakes made in documentation and in the final billing, which only added further stress to an already difficult process. We also received poor advice at several stages.

The overall experience felt disorganised, inefficient, and unprofessional. Because probate fees are taken directly from estate funds they hold, it often felt as though there was little incentive to provide good client service or maintain proper communication.

We would not recommend this firm based on our experience.

COSTS – DATA HARVESTERS, NOT LAWYERS
Company: Slee Blackwell / Helpline: Professional Negligence

I am writing this review to warn everyone — do NOT use this company. They are not regulated solicitors, they are a claims management company whose entire business model is to collect all your private information, documents, evidence and hard work, then reject your case using false legal arguments, just to waste your time.

This is exactly what they did to me:

1. Pretended to be helpful experts – At first, they were very friendly, asked for everything: every invoice, every report, every photo, every quote, every detail of your situation. You send them everything you have, thinking they are specialists who will actually help you.
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2. Collected ALL your data and evidence – Once they have absolutely everything you own, and know exactly how strong or weak your position is, their attitude changes completely. They have what they want, and they stop being helpful.
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3. Sent a generic, scripted rejection email with FALSE LEGAL ADVICE – They use the same made‑up arguments on everyone, even though they are wrong in law:
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- “It is always the buyer’s responsibility, not the solicitor’s” → THIS IS WRONG IN UK LAW. Solicitors have a strict legal duty to advise you, explain documents, warn you of risks and protect your interests — confirmed in the leading legal case Cottingham v Attey Bower & Jones (2000). This duty is even higher if you are vulnerable, elderly, or have special needs. For them to shift blame onto the client is disgraceful and legally incorrect.
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- “Legal defects or missing paperwork are only academic / don’t matter” → COMPLETELY FALSE. Missing certificates or legal issues mean the property is worth far less than you paid, is unsafe, and is hard or impossible to sell or mortgage properly. This is not a minor point — it is a huge financial loss and risk.
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4. They ignore serious misconduct – They completely ignore key facts that prove negligence or bad behaviour, such as documents being removed or hidden from your file. They don’t want to deal with anything that is not simple or guaranteed easy money.

The truth:
They are middlemen only. They take all your hard work and evidence, assess if it is 100% straightforward and risk‑free for them, and if it has any complexity at all, they reject you. They are NOT qualified to give legal advice, they are only registered as data handlers.

Do not waste weeks or months here. Go straight to a real, regulated specialist solicitor. They will actually fight for you, they understand the law properly, and they won’t trick you into giving them everything only to let you down.

This company is rated 2.4/5 for a reason — read the other reviews, it is the same story every time: “took all my info, then rejected with rubbish reasons”.

BEWARE — STAY AWAY.

This firm is absolute garbage they drop your case just like that. It’s evil and disgusting my suggestion is do not waste your time with this firm seriously save yourself the heartache

Lack of response, I cant believe how many times I chased them and still go no response, now I will only complain about them to them, not worth dealing with them after I've been through such a stressful time already.

I approached this firm to confirm if they had the capacity to accept new instructions. I was initially told they dia, but only after they insisted on collecting my personal data. Once my details were provided, the firm immediately reversed their position, claiming they had no capacity.
Furthermore, I found it highly irregular and unprofessional that the communications I received lacked any formal signature or identifying details of the individual handling my enquiry. Sending anonymous correspondence is bizarre for a legal practice and fails to meet the basic standards of professional accountability and transparency.

James McNally and Katie Sheasby were very kind and genuine dealing with a very sad personal injury claim involving the loss of my dog, it took 4 years but justice was served, thank you , I would recommend them , trust the process , thank you both for your kindness and compassion through out

Very poor first impression. I received a callback from their Tiverton office after an initial email enquiry. I asked a simple question about whether they offered a free initial consultation, and the person I spoke to was abrupt and dismissive. She said “no” with no explanation, followed by silence, making me feel uncomfortable. When I ended the call politely, she put the phone down on me. When I called back to highlight how rude this was, she incorrectly claimed I had hung up.

For important matters like probate, basic courtesy and professionalism should be expected. Based on this experience, I would not feel comfortable using this firm.

After my first review, they provided a grossly inaccurate reply. They did not provide me with any advice on challenging or not challenging or will, not about any parallel part eight proceedings in the probate court. My settlement would have been bigger, they say, had I followed their advice; yet, they provided no advice in the manner to which they suggest. However, in truth, had they followed through on the actual advice to me that any debts, however incurred, by the other side or elsewhere would be taken into account as part of my settlement and the inheritance act claim, they failed to take this into account, or follow my instructions, and agreed to settlement at mediation by, I now learn, tricking me into believing the other side were going to satisfy the the debts on the condition, I would withdraw my appeal in the high court against the other side. I withdrew to my appeal as a result, and now learn the debt incurred was taken out of my settlement which is contrary to the actual advice they provided me; according to my understanding of the settlement agreement (of which I can see no agreement in this nature), and they refused to provide any explanation without paying them additional fee fees (presumably of their £810 per hour including uplift and VAT!). I now have evidence they provided me with around two minutes to read, understand and sign the elaborate settlement agreement consisting of several pages, having been provided to me at 8:14 pm, sent back to the other side via the mediator, signed by the other side and uploaded by them all by 8:20 pm, I.E.all within six minutes.

A more comprehensive response to their reply on my first review, is on the website ‘review solicitors’ which I would recommend reading before instructing this firm of solicitors, especially if you are needing contested probate advice.

Suffice it to say, other solicitors are now considering pursuing Slee Blackwell for professional misconduct.

We had a tight schedule, Helen Hine handled the suituation in a very professional, orgainised and efficitant way. Thank you again Helen.

The firm was reccommended by my accountant as one of the solicitors went round touting for business. A subsequant cavatt was put in place on an estate due to the hesitantcy of my sisters when my father only passed away litrally in few days.Unfortunately due to the fact that the solicitor dealing with it was leaving the firm and quite frankly not interested think he was on maternity leave as well it was not passed to another solicitor to deal with then they never answered the phone when I knew the cavatt time was running out and we had a message to say the other side were applying to take over the estate and slee blackwell just let it happen . Totally disgusting firm even when we went to court the first time Slee blackwell helped themselves to thousands in costs from the estate even though I never signed it off ! Think this must go on alot with solicitors as when questioned they said it was in the small print even though I never received it ! . Estates are just a big money spinner for solicitors thats why they keep expanding with new offices whilst not doing their job properly and at least get the basics right in answering the phone! The times I rang with no answer plus their were spelling mistakes in paperwork ( no excuse ) if your doing this day in day out ! They did apologise but that was too late by then damage was done ! Totally rubbish firm tried to get meeting with partner but they so far up their backside they wouldnt as a result all my fathers hard work and his legacy was torn to pieces .Then they went and got a judgement on me for rest of fees without serving papers on me ! So now I have No chance of ever owning a home whilst they live in lap of luxury in big houses , thats what I got for busting my guts on building sites since 18 ! Better to come in on the boats now at least you get a home ,sometimes a new one and now I see their giving them private healthcare at cost of £60 million government gone barmy! My advice sought your own problems out yourself dont waste money with these solicitors who just leach the money from you they treated me disgustingly and see they got 6 offices now too must be catching alot of people . Thank-you slee blackwell for a crap job I could be living in a lyeby soon due to your rubbish efforts ! The other reviews I have seen are fake -the proof is in the pudding experience dealing with these people show their not worth it and dont care either especially when your still grieving over the loss of your parents !!!
I agree with alot of the poor reviews on hear I have truly experienced it dont know how the senior partners sleep at night obviously got No empathy or conscious in their actions !!! MONEY MONEY thats what drives them ! Worst firm ever come across and now I got shit credit when they messed the job up ! Best they offer up their offices for asylum seekers at least it will save the houses then for the rest of us been on the waiting housing list for 12 years !

Emma Slade is probably the worst solicitor I have come across to date. She is completely unprofessional, rude and unhelpful. Please don't waste your time or money with this firm.

From the outset, Zoe Harker-Smith's expertise in managing an exceptionally complex and challenging matter was outstanding. She immediately understood both the detail and wider implications of the situation, and her prompt advice from our very first contact made all the difference. I felt completely supported throughout.

The claim I was required to defend was extensive and challenging in both scope and tone. It could easily have been overwhelming without Zoe’s reliable guidance. She broke down the response process into manageable, strategic steps, always explaining each clearly and without judgment. Her ability to combine close attention to detail with a clear focus on the bigger picture helped keep the case on track and avoided wasted costs, effort, or distraction.

Zoe’s judgment regarding when and how to involve both junior and leading counsel was impeccable, and her management of all communications and procedural steps was consistently prompt, thoughtful, and thorough. She was always generous with her time and able to explain complex legal matters in a way I could understand. Her calmness, professionalism, and kindness made a very difficult period significantly more bearable.

Thanks to Zoe’s expert handling, we achieved what I wanted at settlement under a private contractual agreement, with no order for costs and without compromising on the factors that were most important to me. Throughout, I trusted Zoe completely. Her integrity, insight, and advocacy gave me confidence even in the most stressful moments.

I cannot recommend her highly enough. Zoe brings not only legal excellence but genuine care, and anyone facing a difficult legal situation would be in the safest possible hands with her.

Emma Slade is very unprofessional and offered me an appalling service. her service was beyond reasonable standards and i would not even give a one star if there was an option. They are asking me to collect my conveyancing file even though i am hundreds of miles away from their office or they gave me an option to arrange collection lol what a joke. imagine how desperate they can be avoiding paying postage money to return clients file.

I’m pleased with my experience with Slee Blackwell. In my case the defendant was difficult and hard to liaise with. I was updated consistently throughout the process by Emma & Carly. Although the amount retrieved by the defendant wasn’t as much as hoped for due to the defendants difficulty, if it wasn’t for Slee Blackwell I wouldn’t have received anything at all, so I am very grateful. Huge thank you to Emma Donovan & Carly for your help and support with this case.

Elizabeth Duncan (Taunton Branch) was a breath of fresh air and a credit to her profession. Really personable, compassionate and a very skilled solicitor - what a great combination. Elizabeth was tenacious, persistent and effective in dealing with a lazy/obstructive defendant. We successfully settled a claim out of court and my daughter received a significant pay out for damages. Thank you Elizabeth, wishing you well and offering gratitude and thanks.

Great team, worked hard to get the ball over the line, got us completed before our deadline despite the buyer's attempts to slow it down.
Thanks Jasmine for keeping us up to speed, and remaining cheerful when we were getting a bit demanding towards the end.

I had a mixed experience with Slee Blackwell. While initial communication was quick and responsive, especially from Emma Donovan, the overall process left much to be desired. Better communication and clearer explanations of the legal process would help alleviate client frustrations, especially for those dealing with emotionally charged situations. Unfortunately, delays, lack of empathy, and high fees for minimal action left me disappointed. I expected more consistency and professionalism from a firm with such a high initial rating. A more transparent approach would go a long way.

Emma Donovan reacted to my enquiry extremely fast and efficiently. She consulted with her colleagues and responded to my request for information on pursuing a civil claim against my ex husband, although I am not a current client, within a short amount of time. I would thoroughly recommend Slee Blackwell to deal with your legal issues.

Slee Blackwell handled our property sale professionally and quickly. Often putting my mind at ease over some of the more complicated areas of selling a property

We are very happy to recommend Carly Sylvester from Slee Blackwell Solicitors . Professional yet caring and a positive outcome too . Thank you Carly .