Our approach to fees
We want you to be clear about how we will charge you for the work we do for you.
Before we begin working for you, we will provide you with an indication of costs. Sometimes we will give you an estimate of the cost for the work, e.g. a house purchase or sale, the preparation of a will or separation agreement, but this is always subject to the proviso that should the scope of the work increase, additional fees may be payable. We will explain this to you before you instruct us.
For other types of work, where the amount we charge is dependent on the amount of work we do, we charge in units. One unit of time is six minutes and we normally round up to the next unit. For some types of work a unit equates to a number of words in a document. Full details will be provided before we start work and we will let you know the unit charge to be applied to the work we do for you. When charging on the basis of time or word count, we will provide you with a detailed breakdown of the work carried out and the total cost each time we issue you with a fee notification.
We will agree with you beforehand when fee notifications will be issued and when they must be paid. We will confirm these details in writing. If any fee notification that we send you is not what you expect, please tell us why.
Outlays
Outlays, also called disbursements, are necessary expenses that we must pay to other people or organisations on your behalf. These are charges for things such as registry searches, experts’ fees (for example, surveyors) or registration charges.
Normally, we only pay outlays after we receive the funds from you. If we have to pay before getting the funds from you, you must pay us back when we ask you to.
Any reference to paying our fees also includes paying any outlays which you may owe.
Payment
You must pay our fees as soon as you get our bill. You can pay by cheque, debit or credit card, or by paying funds into our bank account direct.
Fixed Fee Packages
Family Law Fixed Fee Preliminary Legal Advice
We understand that taking the first step in consulting a solicitor can be daunting and you may be concerned about the likely cost of legal advice. To help you understand your options and the likely cost, we offer a fixed fee package for preliminary legal advice. For £295 (inclusive of VAT) we will provide:
- A one hour meeting with a specialist in Family Law. During that meeting, in-depth advice will be given on your legal situation and your options for proceeding further.
- We will follow up the meeting with estimated costs for each option available to you.
- If you decide to proceed, we will identify ways in which you can keep your costs to a minimum as you go through the process.
Fixed Fees for Wills and Powers of Attorney
We offer fixed fees for wills and for powers of attorney. We also provide a discount on the cost when both documents are done together.
If you require a “simple” Will, we can prepare this for a fixed fee of £400 + VAT.
A simple Will is a basic Will leaving the bulk of your estate to one or two people (or a group of people), with a couple of straightforward legacies to other people.
For a couple requiring simple mirror Wills, we can prepare these for a fixed fee of £600 + VAT.
Mirror Wills mean that your instructions for the Wills mirror each other (i.e. they are the same in reverse).
If your Will(s) is/are more complex, we may be able to provide you with a fixed fee for the extra work, or if the extra fixed fee is not appropriate, we will charge based on our terms of engagement and hourly rates. We will discuss this with you at the earliest opportunity, if appropriate.
If you require a standard Continuing and Welfare Power of Attorney, we can prepare this for a fixed fee of £400 + VAT and outlays.
For a couple requiring standard Powers of Attorneys, we can prepare these for a fixed fee of £600 + VAT and outlays.
Please note that there is an outlay (currently of £99.00) payable to the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) for registration of the Power of Attorney. Please note that this outlay is payable to a third-party institution and is subject to change. We endeavour to keep this information as up to date as possible.
If you wish to prepare a simple Will and Power of Attorney at the same time, we can offer a reduced fixed fee package.
For a single simple Will and Power of Attorney, the total cost will be £700 + VAT and outlays.
For a couple requiring simple mirror Wills and Powers of Attorney at the same time, the total cost will be £950 + VAT and outlays.
Additional charges may apply if the provisions to be included in your Will(s) are more complex or if you require inheritance tax or other estate planning advice. We will discuss this with you at the earliest opportunity, if appropriate.
Additional charges in connection with the Power of Attorney may apply if substantial changes are required to the standard powers, complex drafting is required or if significantly more time is required in dealing with your Power of Attorney. We will discuss this with you at the earliest opportunity, if appropriate.
Additional charges may apply if you require a home or hospital visit, or if an additional member of staff is required to attend as a witness to a home of hospital visit. We will discuss this with you at the earliest opportunity, if appropriate.
All our charges must be read in conjunction with our general conditions on fees and expenses set out in our terms of engagement and our hourly rates. Please get in touch if you wish to receive more information.
If you would like to receive assistance from our dedicated team or to discuss your circumstances further, please do not hesitate to get in touch. You can submit your Callback Request here and a member of our team will be in touch as soon as possible.
Current Fee Rates
Our fees are based on units. 1 unit is equivalent to 6 minutes of time or part thereof (e.g. 1 hour of time is charged at 10 units) or based on a word count of letters and documents generated. As indicated in the hourly rate table below, the cash value of the hourly rate is determined by the status of the person carrying out the work on your behalf. We reserve the right to review these rates from time to time. Please contact us at any time to confirm the rates applicable to your case.
| Hourly Rate (excluding VAT) | |
|---|---|
| Head of Family Law (Fiona Rasmusen) | £430.00 |
| Partner | £420.00 |
| Consultant | £420.00 |
| Legal Director | £380.00 |
| Senior Associate | £350.00 |
| Associate | £335.00 |
| Senior Solicitor | £305.00 |
| Solicitor | £270.00 |
| Trainee Solicitor | £250.00 |
| Paralegal | £250.00 |
| Other Staff Members | £230.00 |