Stowe Family Law - Harrogate Reviews 22

Requested a call about a DV case. I mentioned it was urgent and I had to book in for a consultation call. 1. They didn’t call on time 2. When I received the call it popped up on my phone and I didn’t get the chance to answer. When I tried calling back with my time slot, I was told to reschedule!

I have just had a free consultation with a representative of Stowe Family Law. He was the most unhelpful, most distant, most uninterested person I could speak with. Forget what they say about everyone is heard, you couldn't wait to get rid of me.

I recently contacted Stowe Solicitors for advice regarding a frustrating situation that I am currently facing.

My initial call was dealt with by Andy Balkham and I was both pleased and impressed with how well he handled my enquiries.  

Andy has a relaxed, professional manner and tone that make him easy to communicate with.   He understood my issue quickly and promptly responded with useful information, whilst being patient and empathetic.  

Most importantly, I felt listened to and genuinely supported during the call.  I came away feeling better, even though there was no quick fix.  I think that says an awful lot in terms of the quality of the service provided. 

Based on my interaction with Andy, I would not hesitate to recommend Stowe.  Hopefully, the same level of service is consistently provided by all members of their Team.  

My experience with this firm and in particular Rachael Wilson, was a positive one, despite the personal situation I found myself in. Rachael was empathetic, direct and supportive. I found her to be incredibly genuine in her approach and was able to explain, clearly the questions I had without me feeling overwhelmed.
There was never any pressure for my business and her follow-up email after offered me many alternative options to choose from.
Highly recommend both the Firm and Rachael Wilson.

I tried to use this firm when I was having issues regarding my daughter, she was 11 years old at the time. They were unhelpful and didn't listen, they did not take points on board or listen to what I was saying. The only thing they were good at was giving excuses.

I made the mistake of creating an evidence bundle myself which took many hours and was not easy. I am a Veteran who suffers from posttraumatic stress disorder and the nature of some of the evidence was extremely distressing for me, especially when I was battling my own demons.

Some of the evidence related to my 11 year old daughter being groomed online and the bundle contained screen shots of the conversations and copies of the images that grown men were sending to an 11 year old child. The bundle also contained images that these grown men persuaded my 11 year old daughter to send of herself.

As I couldn't risk this bundle being lost in the post I 100% took it into the Harrogate Office and handed it in and personally gave it to a young female member of staff.

However when I asked for the bundle to be returned, they denied ever receiving it. I couldn't believe this, they had lost it. The Harrogate office is in a building with multiple companies, this now meant that somewhere in this building was my bundle and its sensitive contents. I tried my best to get my bundle back but they continued to state they never received it, I am not a liar and they most definitely did have it. I submitted a complaint with them and took it all the way to the ombudsman but had to drop it as I could not prove they had it without a tracking number (they had it) the firm gave me a full refund but still I have to constantly think about where the bundle is and who has it and what they are doing with it.

All of the above greatly impacted on my already poor mental health and the firm just didn’t care.

I would recommend avoiding this firm and I most certainly would never recommend them to anyone ever after my personal experience.

Chloe was very knowledgeable whilst being understanding and sympathetic to the situation.

Sound advice with clear guidance of next steps.

Kate was so supportive and guided me through a very traumatic time. Her advice was fantastic which enabled us to achieve an amicable conclusion.

Alicia has been my solicitor throughout my 2 year divorce , along with the help of Debbie. Alicia has been nothing but supportive, prompt and professional throughout my divorce journey. I was very very happy with the teams service. Thank you Alicia.

Kate Sarsfield was excellent from start to finish.

Very understanding of the situation and made me feel at ease throughout the divorce proceedings.

Very professional and I had complete confidence in her at all times.

I would certainly recommend Stowe and in particular Kate.

They didn't even know I was divorced! I had been divorced 3 months but the team at Stowe Family Law did not know. I only found out because I contacted the Divorce Centre myself and had to send STOWE the documentation, and yet I still had to pay thousands for them not doing their job properly. My experience throughout was poor, multiple case handlers, errors in communications around court dates, requests for documents already sent, and topped off with the fact they didn't know I was divorced 3 months after my divorce had been granted. Make your own mind up.

My case was handled well despite the outcome not being entirely as good as I hoped it would be. This is not due to the work carried out on my case but the circumstances surrounding it which occurred during the unforeseen global pandemic.
The staff dealing with my case were very professional and empathetic and communicated well with me.

I was recommended this company to finalise my divorce I paid a fixed fee of £1500 but my wife is not corresponding to amending. I also used this company for sorting my house settlement out. I had a friend of mine draw up an agreement with my ex wife of what she wanted to have from me. My ex wife didn't have a solicitor so Stowe was acting for her and me but I got billed for her contacting my solicitor. I said to Mark I wasn't paying no more as its costing more and getting no where. He said to me we are nearly there now I think we should carry on. Still 4 month on still in same position as I was when this started in May 22 so I sacked them now and said close the case. I was on to Rachel solicitor in this company aswell that 2 solicitor's in this company .I still have money on account with them I have asked for this to be payed to my bank account but not shown yet.i was sent emails that repeated them self to me it seems there just a waste of money. All i wanted to happen was do the wright thing through legal side as all paper work was done out of solicitor by a friend

We all know that a divorce is an expensive and stressful experience regardless of what side you are on.I went to Stowe family law in Harrogate as I wanted to get divorced from my estranged wife of many years.There would have been no reconciliation but she and I are Irish and I live and work in the UK.My specific question to Stowe family law was that given the international aspect to the procedure would they be equipped to carry the divorce through.
It turned out to be an awful experience as the solicitor dealing with my case was not sure what the laws between the UK and Ireland were as we are now not in the European Union.Suffice to say I paid dearly for that in pounds sterling and also had to get a legal firm in Ireland to advise also who obviously had to be paid aswell.Its too long a story to tell but all Stowe family were good at was billing me constantly while not really listening to my emails with questions but perfectly able to bill for replies somehow.In the end it actually cost me more in legal fees than I actually received from the settlement.I would not recommend them to anyone but that was my experience and maybe others have fared better.

I found Stowe to be so helpful, supportive and friendly. They were respectful and very knowledgeable. They knew how to approach situations quickly and smoothly. I would 100% recommend and use them again if necessary. Both Neil and Emily were brilliant!

Practical & professional approach, which showed a good understanding of my individual situation & tailored an approach accordingly.
Matter resolved quickly & amicably without the necessity to resort to arbitration or court proceedings.
Excellent service

Very happy from start to finish, could not have had a more understanding and caring lady deal with my divorce, Shanika was very knowledgable with every aspect and gave excellent advise and has been there to support me throughout, without her I,d have lost everything. Would recommend 100%

Mark Christie was very professional and explained every step, making the divorce as straight forward as it could be.

From the first phone call with the Client Care Team through to speaking with the mediator, Gemma, I was made to feel at ease and comfortable. Given how stressful the situation is and how anxious I had been feeling, my mind was put at ease straight away. Friendly and professional service. I would gladly recommend.

Kate was professional supportive and understanding! She made sure I was heard and felt listened to while ensuring I was realistic and understating the process! Couldn’t have asked for more. Thank you for your exceptional support during such a stressful time.

Kate Sarsfield helped me through a very tricky divorce, we avoided Court and settled in a very amicable way.