Debt Recovery Pricing (up to £100,000)

We undertake Debt Recovery work subject to prescribed hourly rates.
Our approach, however, is to listen and discuss your case following which we will we then outline what we propose to do on your behalf and provide you with an estimate of our fees.

Our current hourly rates are:

Partners: £450 per hour
Senior Associates: £375 per hour
Associates/Consultants: £300 per hour
Solicitors: £250 per hour
Trainee Solicitors/Paralegals: £200 per hour

These rates exclude VAT (currently 20%) and disbursements.

Pre-Action

Prior to commencing legal proceedings, there is a requirement for Claimants to engage with the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims. Part of the Pre-Action Protocol is sending a letter before action to the debt. Our fixed fees for preparing a letter before action are as follows.

Court Proceedings and the Court Process to Trial

If the letter before action does not lead to the resolution of the matter, then the next step is to consider the option of issuing court proceedings.

For this area of work, we do not charge a fixed rate and our fees will be charged on an hourly basis and subject to the amount of time spent on the matter, which can vary, especially if the claim is defended.

At this stage, a personalised quote will be provided by the solicitor who is dealing with your case.

There are many factors that can influence and affect our estimate and, should those factors change during the course of proceedings, we will consult you if we believe that time and fees are likely to exceed our original estimate.

The factors that may affect any claim include (but are not limited to):

The amount in dispute – we endeavour to ensure that costs are not disproportionate to the amount in dispute and that your case is dealt with by a level of experience commensurate with the amount in dispute; and

The complexity of a case – if a case involves complex facts or law, multiple parties or counterclaims, applications by either party (for example, security for costs), multiple witnesses, expert evidence, large scale disclosure (in other words, large volumes of supporting documents), cross-border jurisdictional issues and/or multiple languages, it will likely be more expensive to resolve.

Average Fees

It is very difficult to predict what our fees will be in a particular dispute, as each case is inherently different.
However, on average we would imagine likely fees to trial, dependant on complexity would likely be in the region of:

Low complexity between £2,500 – £7,000 plus VAT
(This being undefended claim where judgment in default is obtained)

Medium complexity between £10,000 -£15,000 plus VAT
(This being a defended claim which goes to trial and has minimal witness evidence)

High Complexity – in excess of £25,000 (please revert for an individual quote)
(this would involve factual issues in dispute, multiple parties, higher value debt and potentially jurisdictional issues).

Services included (Low and Medium complexity)

Of course, each matter we deal with, comes with its own set of facts and any services we provide, will be tailored to the matter at hand, however the above quotations will include services as follows:

• Preparation of proceedings, review of any Defence and preparation of a Reply.
• Organising representation at a Case Management Conference/Costs and Case Management Conference.
• Advice in respect of any disclosure obligations.
• Preparation of witness statements.
• Review of any expert advice (if applicable to your matter).
• Preparation for trial

Services not included (Low and Medium Complexity)

• Fees for advocacy and representation at any hearing (likely by Counsel).
• Fees for any expert advice required.
• Court, Trial Fees.
• Enforcement of any of judgment or the assessment/recovery of legal costs.
• In respect of any High Complexity matters, please do enquire with the team.

Experience and Qualifications

Any and all matters will be supervised by a Partner, however for Low or Medium Complexity matters, it is likely that a solicitor, Associate or Senior Associate (again case dependant) will carry out the majority of the work on your behalf.

Timescales

Again, with all matters, timescales will be dependant on a multitude of factors and be subject to each individual client’s needs.

However, in terms of Low Complexity matters there is a current average of around 52 weeks to reach a trial with Medium Complexity matters reaching around 78 weeks.

A breakdown of likely timescales is as follows:

Instruction and preparation of a letter before action 1 – 3 weeks.
Preparation of pleadings 3 – 5 weeks
Completion of pleadings (Defence and Reply) 5 – 10 weeks
Case Management Conference 10 – 15 weeks
Trial 52 weeks

It is possible for solicitors to undertake litigation work on a no-win, no fee basis or on a damages based agreement. However, we take the view that this form of arrangement is not attractive in relation to ordinary commercial litigation and we are unlikely ever to propose it to you, except in exceptional circumstances. It is possible that other firms may take on litigation on a no-win, no-fee basis in circumstances in which we would not.

We recommend you check with your insurance broker as to whether you have legal expenses cover in place. You might also consider buying insurance to cover the costs that you may be liable to pay to us or others involved in the dispute.

Anyone wishing to proceed with a claim should note:

• The VAT element of our fee cannot usually be reclaimed from your debtor; and
  Obtaining a judgment is not the end of the case and costs of enforcement of the judgment will be in addition to the costs incurred through to obtaining judgment.
• If you would like advice about a commercial dispute, please contact Derek Robins (Partner) and or Niall Mullins (Partner).