| Partner | £330 plus VAT |
| Senior Associate | £275 plus VAT |
| Solicitor | £250 plus VAT |
| Paralegal | £140 plus VAT |
| Legal Assistant | £110 plus VAT |
Our pricing for bringing and defending claims:
Simple case
Typically with a value of less than £10,000 and unlikely to involve numerous complex legal issues.
£5,000 – £7,500 (plus VAT) + Disbursements
Medium complexity case
Typically with a value of £10,000 – £20,000 with some complex issues, possibly requiring expert evidence and witness evidence. Likely to result in a Court hearing of a number of hours or one full day.
£7,500 – £25,000 (plus VAT) + Disbursements, including counsel’s fees between £5,000 and £25,000 plus VAT
High complexity case
Higher value cases (£25,000 +) and typically those with more complex issues (legal or factual), requiring expert evidence, multiple witnesses and likely to result in a Court hearing lasting longer than a full day.
£25,000 (plus VAT) + Disbursements, which are likely to exceed £20,000 plus VAT (including counsel’s fees). Please note if acting for a claimant, and the value of the claim exceeds £200,000, the court issue fee alone is £10,000 thus disbursements for such a claim would most likely exceed £30,000.
Factors that could make a case more complex:
- If it is necessary to make or defend applications to the Court (for example applications to amend a Claim Form);
- Defending claims that are brought by litigants in person;
- Making or defending a costs application;
- The number, and complexity, of issues. For example, a commercial lease dispute with a tenant owing rent with the latter raising numerous counterclaims for breach of landlord covenants such as disrepair, loss of income, harassment. A further example could be a right of way dispute that includes a disputed boundary. Another example could be a will challenge including a claim for proprietary estoppel;
- The number of witnesses required;
- The number of and complexity of documents;
- The likelihood of needing one or more expert reports.
Disbursements
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
Counsel’s fees estimated between £125 to 250 per hour (depending on experience of the advocate) for attending a Court Hearing (although lower day rates are possible).
Key stage
The fees set out above cover all of the work in relation to the following key stages of a claim:
Taking your initial instructions, reviewing the papers and advising you on merits and likely outcome (this is likely to be revisited throughout the matter and subject to change);
Entering into pre-issue correspondence with the other party, including drafting and sending a Protocol Compliant Letter of Claim;
Complying with any relevant Pre-Action Protocol;
Preparing a Claim Form and Particulars of Claim;
Reviewing and advising on claim or defence from other party;
Exploring settlement and negotiating settlement throughout the process, including all forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution;
Preparing for (and attending) a Preliminary Court Hearings (allocation hearing, directions hearing, Case Management Conference);
Exchanging documents with the other party (disclosure);
Taking witness statements, drafting statements and agreeing their content with witnesses;
Reviewing and advising on the other party’s witness statements;
Finding and instructing any necessary expert;
Preparing for Trial;
Preparing bundle of documents, a list of issues, a chronology and statement of case (as required for Trial);
Preparation and attendance at Trail, including instructions to Counsel;
The stages set out above are an indication and if some of stages above are not required, the fee will be reduced accordingly. You may wish to handle the claim yourself and only have our advice in relation to some of the stages. This can also be arranged on your individual needs.
How long will my matter take?
The time that it takes from taking your initial instructions to the final resolution of your matter depends largely on the stage at which your case is resolved.
If a settlement is reached during pre-issue correspondence, your case could take a matter of weeks. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take anywhere from 10 – 24 months.
This is just an estimate and we will of course be able to give you a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses.
Debt Recovery (hourly rate)
Undisputed debt
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 a revised estimate of costs, which will be chargeable at an hourly rate.
| Debt Value | Court fee | Our likely fee |
| Up to £5,000 | Between £35 and £205 | £500 plus VAT |
| £5,001 – £10,000 | £455 | £750 plus VAT |
| £10,001 – £200,000 | 5% of value of the claim | £1,500 – £2000 plus VAT |
Anyone wishing to proceed with a claim should note that:
- The VAT element of our fee cannot be reclaimed from your debtor.
- The above costs are not for matters where enforcement action, such as bailiff or high court enforcement officer, is needed to enforce your debt.
Our fee includes:
- Taking instructions and reviewing documentation
- Sending a letter before action
- Drafting and issuing claim
- Applying to the court for judgment if claim is not defended.
- These costs apply where your claim is in relation to an unpaid invoice which is disputed and/or enforcement action is needed. Costs are chargeable at an hourly rate.
If the matter becomes disputed, we estimate our costs to be in line with the fee scales provided above for Litigation/Dispute Resolution matters.
Please contact us for a bespoke quotation if you would like to instruct us to recover a number of debts.
VAT is charged at 20%
