Challenor Gardiner Avis 

Public Accountability Log – Trustee Conduct & Delays

Agreed release of funds from children’s trust: October 2025.

5 months later: silence, delay, and no action beyond sending a leaflet detailing the company’s complaints procedure (Bingham is answerable to himself, so entirely pointless to complain to the firm other than to follow procedure to escalate to regulatory authorities).

Now escalated to the Legal Ombudsman and Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Meanwhile, Nick Bingham continues to pay himself with my children’s trust fund and has entirely failed to invest the funds in any meaningful way or indeed produce accounts beyond one single year.

This follows a decades long pattern of obfuscation, appalling communication and a stunning lack of adherence to basic ethical business practice.

This has caused me to waste considerable time trying to resolve this, whilst in deep grief and solo parenting my bereaved children.

I have made my position crystal clear: every request to the trustees is solely for the benefit of my bereaved children, not for myself. My solicitors confirmed this to Mr Bingham in writing on 16 July 2025, together with all the information he claimed was missing. His public replies to date have been marked by an inappropriate and dismissive tone ( ‘a personal windfall for myself’ is a particularly disgraceful comment in these circumstances), which does nothing to address the actual failures. The trustees have had what they need for over two weeks. From this point forward, I will be tracking their progress publicly until the historic accounts are produced and the urgently needed child‑welfare funds are released.
To quote my grandmother-in-law’s will, ‘it is my hope that eventually my Trustees will feel that my Grandson has attained a state of maturity and responsibility that would justify them passing all remaining funds in their hands to him absolutely or for the benefit of his children if any.’. Seems rather clear cut, no mention of Trustees holding the funds until my children (a son and daughter, not ‘sons’, reach 18). Given the circumstances, your delays and obfuscations are striking.
You are dealing with the legacy of a man who turned his life around entirely and the future of two children who have already lost their father. These are not abstract legal entities—they are human lives.

I had a very problematic home sale that had dragged out for ages. It required a huge amount of patience to deal with the buyer. They basically rescued the sale. Very responsive and professional, proactive in pushing back on unreasonable demands, but not rigid in discussions.
Thanks particularly to Curtis and Alexia.

We had a fantastic experience with this solicitors firm while handling a legal matter related to our property. From the very first conversation, Alexia was extremely efficient and genuinely helpful. She dealt with our case promptly and showed a personal approach and real empathy. Everything was handled properly and without unnecessary delays. Curtis and Alexia truly went above and beyond.
We would highly recommend Challenor Gardiner to anyone looking for reliable and approachable legal support at reasonable fees.

Curtis Rogers and Alexia White acted for me in relation to the sale of a previous house, the purchase of my current house, and in relation to a previous negotiation in relation to another house with which I decided not to continue.
They have both been extremely helpful, and generous, and a real pleasure to have acting for me. They are patient, thorough, completely professional and willing to take extra time at difficult moments, staying late to complete negotiations, and always able to offer expert advice. Really above and beyond what one might hope for. I am really grateful to them - this is not the first time I have needed to employ solicitors for conveyancing, and they have been the very best.

Curtis and the Challenor Gardiner team were great when I was buying a flat in Oxford. They were helpful and kept me informed, so the whole process did not take any longer than needed. The service seemed very good value for money, and their convenient location in central Oxford made signing documents etc very straightforward. I would use them again.

Overall very disappointed of the poor service and lack of clarity of the fees charged four months after a dispute was initiated with no success.I also asked to review a will of which was charged £1200.Would not recommend,wish had read previous reviews before choosing this firm

I am very pleased with Challenor Gardiner. They have been very efficient in both the process of probate and in the conveyancing of the property. They have kept me informed throughout, and are always ready to answer questions. I would highly recommend them.

I have sold or bought three times with Challenor Gardiner. In all cases they did excellent work, and the last conveyance was rather complicated with a tight time limit. They were always approachable and efficient. I would recommend them and will be using them again.

Avoid like the plague. They are slow, do not communicate, attention to detail is non existent. The most unprofessional law firm I have come across in my 20+ year career. So bad we have sort legal advice and are making an official compliant to the Ombudsman and the Law Society. If you value your sanity don't go here! If I could give them no stars I would. Just to follow up on the reply below, 3 out of the 4 family members have been appalled by the so called service provided by Nick Bingham and he cannot even get the details correct on his reply it relates to my grandfather not uncle! Awful AVOID

I was extremely impressed with the manner in which the sale of my property was handled by Mr. Rogers. He kept me informed at all stages of the process and any queries on my part were swiftly dealt with. The final week before completion was rather hectic but, thanks to Mr. Rogers, everything went smoothly and according to plan. I strongly recommend him and Challenor Gardiner without hesitation.

Callenor and Gardiner supported us throughout the whole selling and buying process in legal matters. Very approachable, detailed in guidance and clear on the process and costs.
This is the second time we used their services, and we will do it again.

Very pleased with the service provided for the sale of my property. Curtis was always extremely thorough when answering my many queries and always a prompt response. Personable & professional approach to all matters.

We selected Challenor Gardiner for house conveyancing based on the reviews available, the fact that they were local to where we lived, and also because we did not want an on-line only conveyance – it would be uncomfortable to send these large sums of money to a solicitor that we could not visit physically. Also, the price compared favourably to other options.

The conveyance was pretty straightforward – it may be very common, but some of the covenant terms were difficult for lay people to understand. The one way in which the solicitor could have helped more is in translating these complicated paragraphs into plain English. Other than that all went smoothly, and there were no unexpected extra costs. We would recommend them.

The staff were professional and kind, they became my go too, especially the administrator. Excellent service, I used the conveyancing for a previous property and again this time, they are very trusted, and I have no hesitation in continuing to recommend them

I was very happy with the friendly, personal service I received from Challenor Gardiner when sorting out my Will recently.
My questions and requirements were met with thoughtful efficiency, and Nick Bingham couldn't have been more helpful.
I would happily recommend them.

Curtis Rogers and his team helped me to navigate through the arduous process of selling a house in the UK whilst living abroad. Curtis was very good at explaining everything and communicating with the buyer's solicitors. I would highly recommend Challenor Gardiner Solicitors for your conveyancing needs.

Very good service.
Always kept me informed.
Very good value for money.
Will use again.
Many thanks

thank you, Curtis - you were up against the lender's bureaucracy but you carefully shepherded things to a good conclusion - thank you
Nicholas Barber

Curtis is very kind and patient, he has helped me with a couple of tasks and all have been dealt with in a very proffessional way. Would highly reccomend Challenor Gardiner.