We provide a wide range of legal services to individuals through our specialist teams of solicitors across our offices.
We provide a wide range of legal services to individuals through our specialist teams of solicitors across our offices.
Online Services
We provide a wide range of legal services to businesses through our specialist teams of solicitors across our offices.
Online Services
Costs below apply where your claim is in relation to an unpaid invoice which is not disputed, and no enforcement action is required. If your claim is disputed, we will discuss any further work required and provide you with a revised cost estimate if necessary, which may be on a fixed fee (e.g. if a one-off letter is required), or an hourly rate if more extensive work is needed.
All charges are subject to 20% VAT.
The disbursement on debt collection will be the court fee only
| Debt Value | Court Issue Fee | Fee Charged |
|---|---|---|
| Up to £5,000 | £35 to £205 | £350 (plus 20% VAT ) |
| £5,001 – £10,000 | £455 | £650 (plus 20% VAT ) |
| £10,001 – £25,000 | 5% value of the claim | £1500 (plus 20% VAT |
| £25,001 – £100,000 | 5% value of the claim | £1500 to £5000 (plus 20% VAT )* |
*Where a range is provided, the fee is based on the level of the fee earner dealing with the matter given the complexity and value of the claim. The hourly rates we charge are:
| Grade of Fee Earner | Hourly Rate |
|---|---|
| Partner | £335.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Senior Associate or Associate with 10+ years’ experience: | £315.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Associate: | £285.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Solicitor: | £240.00 plus 20% VAT |
| CILEX Lawyer | £170.00 plus 20% VAT |
Anyone wishing to proceed with a claim should note that:
Our fee includes:
New cases can take between 1 to 4 months from receipt of instructions from you to receipt of payment from the other side, depending on whether or not it is necessary to start a claim. This is on the basis that the other side pays promptly on receipt of the letter of claim or Judgement in default. If enforcement action is needed, the matter will take longer to resolve. Starting a claim, or obtaining Judgement, is no guarantee of successfully collecting the debt.
As no employment problem is identical, our fees will reflect the particular circumstances and requirements. We will set out in writing the estimate for our fees, VAT and disbursements based on your instructions and circumstances of your case and what work we will do for you, including assumptions and exclusions.
Where appropriate we may offer to work on your matter, or parts of it, on a fixed fee or capped fee basis.
The majority of claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal do not proceed to a final hearing before an Employment Tribunal and settle at an earlier stage. Legal fees are not normally recoverable as a rule in the Employment Tribunal, win or lose unless the other side or their representative have acted, abusively, disruptively or unreasonably or if the claim pursued or defended was misconceived.
Our average pricing for defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal:
We will raise regular interim bills throughout, in line with our terms of business.
If the case only relates to wrongful dismissal your costs may be less than those set out above. Wrongful dismissal claims worth more than £25,000 will need be issued and defended in the County Court and the above average pricing does not apply. We would be happy to provide a bespoke costs estimate on request.
We charge based on an hourly rate which varies depending on the lawyer dealing with your matter.
As of 1 May 2023, our hourly rates are as follows:
Stephen Eccles (Partner) – £335 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)
Alex Pearce (Senior Associate) – £300 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)
Charlotte Dawe (Trainee Solicitor) – £150 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)
The complexity of your case will ultimately determine how many hours work will be required and therefore our costs for defending an unfair or wrongful dismissal claim can vary significantly.
The fees set out above cover all of the work in relation to the following key stages of a claim:
The stages set out above are an indication and if some of stages above are not required, the fee will be reduced.
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.
Typical stages not included in the pricing include the preparation and attendance at any judicial or other formal mediation, appeals against any Orders/ Judgments made and the enforcement of any Judgments.
Factors that could make a case more complex:
In addition to our fees, you may incur other costs in connection with your case. These are referred to as disbursements. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. Where these are payable, we will ask you to put us in funds before we make the payment on your behalf.
Barristers’ fees range between £800 to £3,000 per day (excluding VAT, charged at 20%) for attending a Preliminary Hearing.
Barrister’s fees for Final Hearing – £1,500 – £6,500 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%) for the first day (this is called the Brief Fee) and £1,000 – £2,500 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%) for each additional day (this is called a Refresher Fee).
Please note that Barrister fees depend on the experience of the Barrister, the nature of the hearing and the complexity of the case. We work with a range of barristers and would be happy to recommend a barrister that we think is best suited to your case.
If it is necessary for our lawyer to travel to attend a hearing, then we will charge travelling expenses in addition to our legal fees. These expenses depend on the location and length of the hearing. We will discuss this with you at the time.
Expert or medical fees: if an expert witness is required (e.g. a forensic accountant or a medical expert), they will also charge fees for their report and to attend any hearing
These fees will only usually be incurred if the case proceeds to an actual hearing.
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-claim conciliation, your case is likely to take between 1 to 3 months. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take 12 – 24 months given the current Tribunal listings. 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.
Please do not hesitate to contact us and we will be happy to discuss our costs and answer any questions which you may have in respect of the same.
As no employment problem is identical, our fees will reflect the particular circumstances and requirements. We will set out in writing the estimate for our fees, VAT and disbursements based on your instructions and circumstances of your case and what work we will do for you, including assumptions and exclusions.
An initial consultation with one of our employment lawyers will provide you with a quick and effective initial assessment on your potential case. We offer a fixed fee consultation for clarity on your employment situation and what steps you can take.
Where appropriate we may offer to work on your matter, or parts of it, on a fixed fee or capped fee basis. You may have the benefit of legal expenses insurance (many household insurance policies include legal expenses cover) which may cover some or all of your fees in pursuing a claim in the Employment Tribunal.
The majority of claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal do not proceed to a final hearing before an Employment Tribunal and settle at an earlier stage. Legal fees are not normally recoverable as a rule in the Employment Tribunal, win or lose unless the other side or their representative have acted, abusively, disruptively or unreasonably or if the claim pursued or defended was misconceived.
Our average pricing for bringing claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal:
We will raise regular interim bills throughout, in line with our terms of business.
If your case only relates to wrongful dismissal your costs may be less than those set out above. Wrongful dismissal claims worth more than £25,000 will need be issued in the County Court and the above average pricing does not apply to that claim. We would be happy to provide a bespoke cost estimate on request.
We charge based on an hourly rate which varies depending on the lawyer dealing with your matter.
As of 1 May 2023, our hourly rates are as follows:
Stephen Eccles (Partner) – £335 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)
Alex Pearce (Senior Associate) – £300 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)
Charlotte Dawe (Trainee Solicitor) – £150 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)
The complexity of your case will ultimately determine how many hours work will be required. Our costs for pursuing an unfair or wrongful dismissal claim can therefore vary significantly.
The fees set out above cover all of the work in relation to the following key stages of a claim:
The stages set out above are an indication and if some of stages above are not required, the fee will be reduced. 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.
Typical stages not included in the pricing include the preparation and attendance at any judicial or other formal mediation, appeals against any Orders/ Judgments made and the enforcement of any Judgments.
Factors that could make a case more complex:
In addition to our fees, you may incur other costs in connection with your case. These are referred to as disbursements. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. Where these are payable, we will ask you to put us in funds before we make the payment on your behalf.
Barristers’ fees range between £500 to £2,500 per day (excluding VAT, charged at 20%) for attending a Preliminary Hearing.
Barrister’s fees for Final Hearing – £1,000 – £6,000 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%) for the first day (this is called the Brief Fee) and £750 – £2,000 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%) for each additional day (this is called a Refresher Fee).
Please note that Barrister fees depend on the experience of the Barrister, the nature of the hearing and the complexity of the case. We work with a range of barristers and would be happy to recommend a barrister that we think is best suited to your case.
If it is necessary for our lawyer to travel to attend a hearing, then we will charge travelling expenses in addition to our legal fees. These expenses depend on the location and length of the hearing. We will discuss this with you at the time.
Expert or medical fees: if an expert witness is required (e.g. a forensic accountant or a medical expert), they will also charge fees for their report and to attend any hearing.
These fees will only usually be incurred if the case proceeds to an actual hearing.
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-claim conciliation, your case is likely to take between 1 to 3 months. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take 12 – 24 months given the current Tribunal listings. 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.
Please do not hesitate to contact us and we will be happy to discuss our costs and answer any questions which you may have in respect of the same. We can also give you an honest assessment of whether you would benefit from advice and discuss in general terms your options before you become a client.
Dealing with the administration of an estate of someone who has died can be time consuming and complex. Our specialist Estate Administration Team can guide you through the process and provide a service tailored to your individual requirements.
We offer no obligation free initial consultations to discuss your individual case, your responsibilities as executor and the likely cost.
We offer a fixed fee grant extraction service where we solely obtain a grant of probate for you. Our fees depend on the tax position of the estate and breakdown as follows:
| Grant Extraction for estates valued at less than the Nil Rate Band | £1,500 plus 20% VAT |
| Grant Extraction for estates involving a transferable Nil Rate Band claim | £2,000 plus 20% VAT |
| Grant Extraction for estates requiring the filing of an IHT400 with HMRC | £3,000 plus 20% VAT |
| Grant Extraction for estates involving a Residence Nil Rate Band claim | £3,500 plus 20% VAT |
In addition you will be required to pay a Probate Registry Fee of £273 plus £1.50 for each additional copy of the grant.
We understand that some clients prefer the reassurance of the entire estate administration process being handled by one of our specialist probate lawyers. No two estates are the same and the cost will depend on the individual circumstances of each case.
Our work for handling the entire estate administration broadly includes:
Our fees for handing a full estate administration will depend on the complexity of the estate. For example, an estate comprising one property, one bank account and one beneficiary will be considerably more straightforward than an estate comprising multiple properties, a business, assets overseas and multiple unknown beneficiaries. We will give you a clear estimate of costs from the outset and update you throughout the course of your case. As a guide the average cost of a full estate administration is between £8,000 and £10,000 plus 20% VAT.
In addition you will incur some or all of the following expenses:
| Probate Registry Fee | £273 |
| Bankruptcy Search (per beneficiary) | £2 |
| Statutory Notices | £300 |
You will be allocated a specialist probate lawyer to handle your case. They will be supervised by the Head of the Private Client Department. The hourly rates of our lawyers range between £170 and £335 plus 20% VAT.
On average, an estate administration takes 6 to 9 months to complete.
The disbursements listed are typical and are not subject to VAT.
We will quote each matter on an individual basis, but below you will find the general costs for a standard matter.
The majority of our conveyancing matters are charged on a fixed fee basis, and the usual steps included within that estimate can be found below:
The typical transaction proceeds as follows:
Client Engagement – Taking initial instructions and contacting all parties
Draft contracts – Prepare the draft contract pack and supporting documentation and sending this to the Buyer’s lawyers.
Enquiries – Dealing with enquiries raised by the Buyer’s lawyers, with your assistance where necessary. We will also sign the Contract and Transfer at this stage.
Exchange of contracts – Once all parties are ready and with your permission, we will exchange contracts and set a specific date for completion.
Completion – We will receive the completions money from the Buyer’s lawyer, and will redeem any mortgages on the Property, sending the balance to you. This is also the date you must vacate the property and hand the keys over to the Estate Agent.
A purchase will be much the same but from the opposite direction. In addition there will be further requirements in terms of mortgage providers obligations, and on completion will need to attend to payment of the SDLT (Stamp Duty Land Tax) on your behalf, and registration of the purchase at Land Registry.
| Sale Price | Legal Fees – Sale |
| £0 – £500,000 | £1,500 plus 20% VAT |
| £501,000 – £1,000,000 | £1,700 plus 20% VAT |
| £1,000,000 – £1,500,000 | £1,900 plus 20% VAT |
| £1,500,000 – £2,000,000 | £2,400 plus 20% VAT |
| £2,000,000 + | 0.15% plus 20% VAT |
If redeeming a high street mortgage, please add £100 plus 20% VAT per mortgage redeemed.
Please add an additional £350 plus 20% VAT if the property is Leasehold.
| Sale Price | Legal Fees – Purchase |
| £0 – £500,000 | £1,600 plus 20% VAT |
| £501,000 – £1,000,000 | £1,800 plus 20% VAT |
| £1,000,000 – £1,500,000 | £2,000 plus 20% VAT |
| £1,500,000 – £2,000,000 | £2,500 plus 20% VAT |
| £2,000,000 + | 0.15% plus 20% VAT |
If taking out a mortgage as part of a purchase, please add £200 plus 20% VAT per mortgage
Please add an additional £500 plus 20% VAT if the property is Leasehold.
In addition to our fees, you may also have to pay other administration fees and disbursements in connection with your transaction. Common expenses and disbursements are as follows:
In addition to our fees, you may also have to pay other administration fees and disbursements in connection with your transaction. Common expenses and disbursements are as follows:
There are further costs that may be associated with Leasehold purchases:
For property work we will in all cases provide an estimate of our charges in writing at the outset. As with all estimates, while it is given in good faith, it is based on information which we have in our possession at the time it is given and it envisages a straightforward transaction.
Because of this, we specifically reserve the right to make additional charges for any other matters which do not come within the ambit of a straightforward transaction. While it is impossible to provide an exhaustive list, we set out below a list of some of the matters which can arise and which could involve the additional approximate charges:
| Redemption of a mortgage or charge | £100.00 plus 20% VAT per mortgage |
| Removal of a third party restriction | £100.00 plus 20% VAT per restriction |
| Obtaining copies of missing Planning Permissions or Building Regulations | £40.00 plus 20% VAT plus any fees charged by the Local Authority |
| Arranging defective title insurance policy | £100.00 plus 20% VAT (in addition to premium) |
| Preparing or approving a Statutory Declaration or Statement of Truth | £100.00 – £250.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Mortgage (Standard high street Lender) – reporting on special conditions | £200.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Mortgage (Specialist Lender) – reporting on special conditions | £200.00 – £450.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Preparing or approving a Deed of Covenant | £75.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Registering a company charge | £100.00 plus V.A.T (in addition to Company House fee) |
| Transfer of a Share Certificate | £75.00 plus V.A.T. |
| Preparing or approving a Deed of Variation | £500.00 – £750.00 plus 20% VAT |
| Agreeing a Service Charge Retention | £100.00 plus 20% VAT |
It is very difficult to give an accurate time estimate in Conveyancing transactions. This is because of so many variables such as the time to obtain replies to enquiries and for the Buyer to obtain a local search or mortgage offer, possible title difficulties and of course delays elsewhere in the “chain” (if there is one). Our best estimate however, would be to exchange Contracts in 8 weeks and to complete in 10 weeks for a Freehold property. For Leasehold property these periods could be 10 and 12 weeks respectively. It must be understood that these are estimates only and must not be relied upon to make removal or other arrangements.
Where we do use our hourly charge out rates this will be based on the individual charge out rate for the lawyer involved. Below are some examples of our charge out rates. Up to date details of the main lawyer’s charge out rate, and those of the team who may assist, will be detailed in our initial letters.
| Partner | £335 plus 20% VAT |
| Senior solicitor or conveyancer | £300 plus 20% VAT |
| Solicitor or conveyancer | £260 plus 20% VAT |
| Trainee solicitor/Paralegal | £150 plus 20% VAT |
For help and advice, talk to a member of our team. They can advise on the best options in your matter.
