PROFESSIONAL COSTS - 24.02.2010

Reducing legal fees

Guideline costs

Most solicitors charge for their services by the hour - and they can pretty much ask what they like. Local county courts do offer guideline charging rates but solicitors can set their own fees. As with all professional services, solicitors’ costs vary according to the seniority of the staff working on your behalf, by location, and any specialist advice they provide.

Every minute counts

The time spent on dealing with your query will be billed - to the minute, or at least to every six-minute period. Generally, solicitors will bill you in six-minute units (ten per hour) and this can quickly add up, e.g. if your solicitor charges £180 an hour - then a short phone call can cost you £30.

Tip 1. Before you hire a solicitor, you should be provided with a costs estimate before any work commences. This is a Law Society requirement. When you receive an invoice, it will break down costs into the number of hours worked and hourly charges for each member of staff.

Tip 2. You may be able to cut costs by using an online solicitor who works purely by post, e-mail, letter and telephone. But any mistake you make while doing it yourself or relying on someone online who isn’t insured is both your mistake and your financial responsibility.

Lean times for law

Though there have already been signs that we’re emerging from the recession, the process of recovery will take some time. This means that many law firms are still a little slow in terms of incoming work and are thus desperate to retain existing clients and attract new ones. In fact, there’s been a 26% increase in law firm closures in the past year.

Reducing the rates

Until recently the idea of a fixed-fee was foreign to many law firms. It’s understandable: if they offered a quote and then unearthed issues that made the case more complicated they could end up spending more time on it than they had quoted for. But the recession has changed the situation: if you need an employment contract drafted or for someone to act in a commercial property transaction, there’s now a chance for a fixed-fee deal. The other option is to ask for a reduced hourly rate, or to offer to pay the bill early in return for a discount.

Tip 1. As an existing client, your solicitor won’t want to lose you so fixed-fee is certainly an option worth raising.

Tip 2. For new clients some solicitors will offer an initial fixed-fee consultation which is at a reduced hourly rate.

What you’ll save

If you barter for a 20% reduction in the unit rate and a 15% reduction in the bill by paying early, then a small job that took an hour for your solicitor to complete could cost £123 instead of £180.