20/10/2017
Identify Your Legal Costs At The Start
Any large purchase such as a car or a house can have additional charges or hidden extras. They can be unspecified at the time of sale. This can apply to legal costs and work by lawyers.
One Hour’s Free Advice
At the start of any dispute, such as a divorce or a disagreement over building work, tempers can fray in the heat of the moment. Rushing off to consult a lawyer can appear to be the right course of action to take at the time.
Most solicitors (and today some barristers who do public access cases), offer an appointment of one hour to discuss clients' problems. During this time, they will give an indication of whether a favourable resolution can be found.
Unknown Number of Hours
While these appointments are often free, many solicitors and barristers charge by the hour.
During the appointment, it can be reassuring to hear that the problem is not insoluble or that the opponent can be prevented from carrying out a threat.
If the customer or client decides to proceed further, they will be invited to sign a Letter Of Engagement. This can be a lengthy document setting out the terms and conditions of contract of how the solicitor or barrister will carry out the work.
If hourly charges are included in the terms of the letter, these amounts will be listed in relation to the persons expected to be doing the work.
The Cost Can Be Anything
Charging on an hourly basis is open-ended. Therefore, no indication could be given of the final cost of the entire dispute. This means that the client would be unable to budget for the work in advance.
There can also be additional court fees and other charges such as courier expenses, photocopying, witness fees, experts fees, travel charges and other amounts which may not be specified or quantified.
Once the letter is signed and work starts on resolving the dispute, after the first three or six months, the solicitor or barrister would send out their first invoice. At that stage, the customer or client may consider that the charges were beyond anything contemplated by them at the outset.
Fixed Fees & Prior Quotations
In comparison, both we and our barrister associates charge one composite affordable fixed fee. This is a finite amount which does not change.
It is agreed at the start and can be charged over a period of time convenient to the customer or client, on an instalment basis.
It is not open-ended. The client could find it much easier to organise their own finances to fit in with the continuation of the case.
It is a singular amount which would not blow out of proportion. With a budget set in advance, the client would know what to expect. Any additional charges such as court fees would be identified by us and agreed before any work was done. Unknown costs such as experts reports would be estimated and quantified as far as possible.
It therefore pays to find out exactly what the cost of any legal work will be before setting out on a lengthy and expensive expedition in litigation, arbitration or mediation. With a budget set in advance, the legal system can be affordable.
