Litigation Funding

Funding Court cases (except in the Small claims Court or most family or employment claims).

This is often the most concerning aspect for clients who do not have spare savings to use.

The normal way of funding a claim is to pay the solicitor for the work they do. The time spent is recorded and is the basis of the bill which applies an hourly rate for the person doing the work.

If you get a Costs Order against the opponent at the end of the case, then it is normally only the essential costs incurred that can be recovered. Using solicitors who stick to the essentials and apply an hourly rate that the Court will normally accept is often the only way of getting most of your costs back if you win. Using solicitors who charge more than the hourly rates the Court have said will normally be accepted or who carry out non-essential work usually results in a bigger disparity between the costs paid and costs recovered. There are numerous examples of this costing winning clients of other solicitors tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of pounds in complex cases.

Here at Berry Redmond Gordon & Penney we charge at rates that the Courts have indicated will normally be accepted in any costs order against an unsuccessful opponent and, unless you ask us to go beyond the essentials, we will try and keep to the work that is necessary for a successful outcome whilst maximising the amount of those costs that can be recovered from an unsuccessful opponent.

No win-no fee. Technically these are called “Conditional fee Agreements”. You need the solicitors agreement to work under such an agreement and if the solicitor does not believe there is a reasonable chance of success or that the opponent can pay, they will not normally agree. To encourage solicitors to do this they can charge a “success fee” on top of any costs that can be recovered from the opponent. That can range from 5% extra for cases that are almost certain to succeed and 100% for those that are marginal. That way solicitors can afford to take on more marginal cases. Clients still have to fund the other parts of the Claim such as court fees and experts fees.

If you run out of funds part way through and cannot take the case further we will consider deferring our further fees to the end of the case if we believe you have a good chance of success and are likely to have the winnings to pay or the opponent is likely to have the funds to pay the costs. Those fees will however be due win or lose.

Legal Expenses Insurance.

• Our charges

  Range of costs for Employment Tribunals

  Factors that could make a case more complex:

  • If it is necessary to make or defend applications to amend claims or to provide further information about an existing claim
  • Defending claims that are brought by litigants in person
  • Making or defending a costs application
  • Complex preliminary issues such as whether the claimant is disabled (if this is not agreed by the parties)
  • The number of witnesses and documents
  • If it is an automatic unfair dismissal claim e.g. if you are dismissed after blowing the whistle on your employer
  • Allegations of discrimination which are linked to the dismissal

  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 to be £3000 excluding VAT, charged at 20% (depending on experience of the advocate) for attending a one day Tribunal Hearing (including preparation) and £100 plus VAT per further day.

  Key stages

  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 compensation (this is likely to be revisited throughout the matter and subject to change)
  • Entering into pre-claim conciliation where this is mandatory to explore whether a settlement can be reached
  • Preparing claim or response
  • Reviewing and advising on claim or response from other party
  • Exploring settlement and negotiating settlement throughout the process
  • Preparing or considering a schedule of loss
  • Preparing for (and attending) a Preliminary Hearing
  • Exchanging documents with the other party and agreeing a bundle of documents
  • Taking witness statements, drafting statements and agreeing their content with witnesses
  • Preparing bundle of documents
  • Reviewing and advising on the other party's witness statements
  • Agreeing a list of issues, a chronology and/or cast list
  • Preparation and attendance at Final Hearing, 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. 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-claim conciliation, your case is likely to take 16 weeks. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take 9 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

  Stephen Mackie is a solicitor with nearly 40 years’ experience.

  (Range of fixed fees) for a business to business debt that is undisputed

  Court Claims

  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.

  Debt Value:	Court Fee:	Our Fee (incl. VAT):	Total:
  Up to £5,000	£205	£720 (£120 VAT)	£925
  £5,001 - £10,000	£455	£840 (£140 VAT)	£1295
  £10,001 - £50,000	5% value of the claim	£960 (£160 VAT)	£3460

  Anyone wishing to proceed with a claim should note that:

  • The VAT element of our fee cannot be reclaimed from your debtor.
  • 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
  • Sending a letter before action
  • Receiving payment and sending onto you, or Undertaking appropriate searches
  • 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 in received, write to the other side to request payment
  • If payment is not received within 7 days, providing you with advice on next steps and likely costs

  Matters usually take 16 weeks 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. 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.