Services
Our Legal Fees
Our legal fees are the amount you will be required to pay for all the work performed by us in actioning your instructions from commencement of your case to conclusion.
These costs apply where your claim is in relation to an unpaid invoice which is not disputed, and enforcement action is not needed. If the other party disputes your claim at any point, we will discuss any further work required and provide you with revised advice about costs, if necessary, which could be on a fixed fee (e.g. if a one off letter is required), or an hourly rate if more extensive work is needed.
Anyone wishing to proceed with a claim should note that:
- Interest and compensation may take the debt into a higher banding, with a higher cost.
- The costs quoted above are not for matters where enforcement action, such as the bailiff, is needed to collect your debt.
Our fee includes:
- Taking your instructions and reviewing documentation
- Undertaking appropriate searches
- Sending a letter before action
- Receiving payment and sending onto you, or if the debt is not paid, drafting and issuing claim
- Where no Acknowledgment of Service or Defence is received, applying to the court to enter Judgement in default
- When Judgement in default is received, write to the other side to request payment
- If payment is not received within 28 days, providing you with advice on next steps and likely costs.
The value and complexity of the matter alongside the stage at which the matter is resolved are factors that must be taken into account to confirm the fees in accordance with this scale.
If your matter is simple or low value we will discuss with you other fee options that may be available to ensure our fees are proportionate to the value of the debt.
If your matter becomes complex (see below) our fees may increase further and we will notify you in advance of any increased costs.
Should your instructions require us to take your matter out of the fixed fee rate we will charge an hourly rate of £225.00.
Additional costs
If there are likely to be additional costs, we will inform you as soon as possible. You may incur additional costs if:
- We need enforcement proceedings
- We need to instruct a Bailiff
Time Scales
Matters usually take 3 – 18 months from receipt of instructions from you to receipt of payment from the other side, depending on whether or not it is necessary to issue a claim, and the Court’s timetable. This is on the basis that the other side pays promptly on receipt of Judgement in default. If enforcement action is needed, the matter will take longer to resolve.
Key Milestones
These are the typical steps we’ll take although individual circumstances differ.
- Take your instructions and review documentation
- Carry out appropriate searches
- Before action, issue a letter to request payment from the debtor
- Take payment and forward on to you
- Draft and issue a claim form to the relevant court for an unpaid debt
- Apply to the court to enter a Judgment in Default if the debtor fails to respond to court proceedings
- Request payment from the debtor where a Judgment in Default has been issued by the court
Factors That Could Make A Case More Complex
The following factors may make your case more complex and impact on your legal fees and disbursements: –
- The matter is defended
- Judgement is obtained and needs to be enforced for example
- Instruction of a Bailiff
- Attachment to earnings
- Making or defending a costs application
Should any of these factors occur we will notify you and discuss with you any increase in our legal fees or disbursements.
OUR HOURLY RATES
We work on a fixed rate of £240 per hour. If at any stage our total fee changes, we will notify you in advance and discuss the reason for any changes. This would typically occur if you change your instructions or your case involves an unforeseen complexity.
Our total fee assumes that:
a) The transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complications arise.
b) All parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from any parties providing documentation.
Disbursements and Other Costs
Disbursements may be incurred in the handling of the matter for you. In Debt Claims, fees tend to relate to Counsels’ fees and Court Fees.
Counsel fees – If Counsel is required to be instructed a quotation for their services will be obtained from them and discussed with you before they are instructed to ensure you are fully aware of the fees that will be charged. However, we have given examples of costs below:
The fees of a barrister vary depending on the experience of the advocate and their expertise. In our experience, the initial fee for a barrister and the first day of the hearing (known as the brief fee) will be in the region of £1,000 – £3,000 plus VAT (£1200 – £3600 Inc. VAT). Each subsequent day would be an additional £500 – £1,500 plus VAT (£600 – £1800 Inc. VAT).
If you want a very experienced barrister, then the cost is likely to be more. You may also incur additional charges such as travel costs for us to attend meetings and hearings.
Courts Fees – The following link sets out the current court fees
https://www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money/court-fees.
These are only necessary where we are required to issue a claim form via the court.
- What’s the difference between a section 21 notice and a section 8 notice?
A section 21 notice, also known as a ‘no-fault’ eviction notice, is the form the landlords must use to start the process to evict a tenant. It is normally used once the fixed-term of the tenancy has expired and the landlord does not need to provide a reason for wanting to evict the tenant.
A section 8 notice is an eviction notice that can only be used in limited and specific legal situations. These are normally where the tenant is in breach of their tenancy agreement (eg by not paying rent or by damaging the property) or the landlord wants to use the property as their main residence). There are 17 legal grounds available for the landlord to use if they apply.
Both notices require the landlord to provide a notice period for the tenant to leave. The section 21 notice requires at least 2 months’ notice, whereas the section 8 notice can vary between 2 weeks’ and 2 months’ notice.
Why use professional representation?
The eviction process can be very complicated and missing one small detail could potentially lead to your eviction being invalid or illegal. This is especially true with more complicated cases. Tenants on assured shorthold tenancies are provided with greater protection from illegal evictions and it’s important that you get the process right.
Anything you do outside of the Section 21 or Section 8 process could be seen as unlawful and you could face a fine or imprisonment if you evict your tenants illegally.
In order for your eviction to be valid, you must follow set rules and procedures. Our lawyers can provide the assistance and expertise needed in order to ensure you comply with the law.
Professional negligence claims
A dispute between a group or an individual and a financial adviser or tax adviser, where the claimant believes they’ve received poor advice. For example, negligent advice relating to an investment or tax mitigation scheme.
A dispute between a group or individual and a financial services provider. A dispute could be anything from a simple administrative error with serious financial consequences, to a failure by the provider to pay out the correct returns or benefits.
Who we can help and how
Our financial services lawyers advise businesses and individuals on a broad range of financial disputes. Our lawyers understand and have worked successfully in this area of the law. We advise financial services organisations and individuals regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). If you need advice on complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) or the Business Banking Resolution Service (BBRS) we are the experts. Perhaps you need advice regarding an investment loan? We also conduct high value and complex claims for negligence, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and misrepresentation.
- Validation orders
- Claims for wrongful trading
- Asset tracing and recovery
- Directors’ duties
- Defending directors’ disqualification proceedings
- Cross-border insolvency
- Bankruptcy annulments
- Provisional liquidations
- Sections 235 and 236 Insolvency Act interviews
- Voluntary arrangements
OUR OTHER SERVICES
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.