Litigation
Team Members and Supervision
The litigation department is led by Ashrat Khan and Bushra Khan, who are Solicitors and Partners of the firm.
Your matter would be dealt with by a qualified Solicitor supported by a Trainee Solicitor or Paralegal. Any work undertaken by a Trainee Solicitor or Paralegal would be supervised by Bushra Khan (Partner), Ashrat Khan (Partner) who are all qualified Solicitors. All solicitors in the team are supervised by a Partner. Details of the individuals within the team and their qualifications and experience can be found in their profile.
Stage 1 – Pre-Legal Action – Fixed Costs – Standard Debt Recovery
The first step in recovering a debt is to send a Letter Before Claim. This is a procedural requirement under the Civil Procedure Pre Action Protocol for Debt Claims. The nature and content of the Letter will depend upon particulars facts surrounding the debt. We will discuss with you whether a Standard or Bespoke letter is appropriate based on the specific facts of each case.
A Standard Debt Recovery claim will typically be a straightforward claim in respect of an unpaid invoice for goods or services supplied by you.
Action | Our Fixed Costs |
Drafting Standard Letter Before Action | £100.00 plus VAT |
Pre-Legal review (if required) | |
up to £10,000 | £750.00 plus VAT |
£10,000- £25,000 | £1000.00 plus VAT |
£25,000 upwards | £2,500.00 plus VAT |
Note: If the debt requires a Bespoke Letter of Claim, then Hourly Rates shall apply (see table below entitled “Claims in excess of £10,000 – Court Action – Hourly rates”).
A Bespoke Letter of Claim will typically involve specialist drafting by a Solicitor and often goes beyond a debt based on an unpaid invoice for goods or services.
Stage 2 – Court Proceedings
If the Letter of Claim does not result in payment then it may be necessary to commence Court proceedings. If so, the following Fixed Fee Structure shall apply:
Sum Claimed | Court Fee | Our Fixed Costs | Total |
Up to £300.00 | £35.00 | £50.00 plus VAT | £85.00 |
£300.00 but not over £500.00 | £50.00 | £50.00 plus VAT | £100.00 |
£500.00 but not over £1000.00 | £70.00 | £70.00 plus VAT | £140.00 |
£1000.00 but not over £1,500 | £80.00 | £80.00 plus VAT | £160.00 |
£1500 but not over £3000 | £115.00 | £80.00 plus VAT | £195.00 |
£3,000.00 but not over £5,000 | £205.00 | £80.00 plus VAT | £285.00 |
£5,000 but not over £10,000 | £455.00 | £100.00 plus VAT | £555.00 |
£10,000 but not over £100,000.00 | 5% of the claim | Hourly rates apply | Depends on precise value of sum claimed |
£100,000 but not over £200,000 | 5% of the claim | Hourly rates apply | Depends on precise value of sum claimed |
Over £200,000 | £10,000 | Hourly rates apply | Bespoke costs advice shall be provided |
If the Defendant fails to respond to the Proceedings, then we will enter a request for Judgment in Default on your behalf. The following fixed fees for doing so shall also apply:
Sum Claimed | Our Fixed Costs |
Less than £5000 | £22.00 |
Over £5,000 | £30.00 |
Defended Actions
If following Court proceedings being issued, the claim is disputed by the Defendant, then the following fixed charges shall apply in addition to those detailed in Stage 1 above.
Fixed Fees for Contested Small Claims matters (i.e. less £10,000 or less)
Action | Our Fixed Costs |
Fixed fee for dealing with standard defended small claims matter up to £5,000.00 | £1,500.00 plus VAT |
Fixed fee for dealing with standard defended small claims matter between £5001.00 and £10,000.00 | £2,500.00 plus VAT |
These Fixed Costs include:-
- Taking your instructions, reviewing documentation and dealing with all routine correspondence with the Defendant and Court; and
- Preparing witness evidence; and
- Instructing an advocate to attend the final Small Claims Hearing.
These Fixed Costs exclude:-
- Court hearing fees (these range from £80 to £335 dependant on the value of the claim).
- Advocates’ fees (these range from £500 to £1500 plus VAT).
- Expert fees (if required)
- Any application required during the course of proceedings e.g. summary judgment application.
Claims in excess of £10,000 – Hourly rates apply
Category of Fee Earner | Hourly Fixed Rate |
Solicitors with over eight years post qualification experience (Grade A) | £320.00 |
Solicitors and legal executives with over four years’ experience. (Grade B) | £245.00 |
Other solicitors and legal executives and fee earner or equivalent experience (Grade C) | £200.00 |
Trainee solicitors, para-legal and other fee earners (Grade D) | £140.00 |
Stage 3 – Enforcement Costs
Once Judgment has been obtained either by default or following a contested hearing/trial, then it may be necessary to enforce the Judgment. If so, we shall discuss with you the various enforcement methods available. Typically these include the following (although we may discuss other methods depending upon the circumstances of your case).
Charging Order
Action | Cost (£) |
Our fixed fee | £500 plus VAT |
Court Fee | £119.00 |
Obtaining Official Copies | £3.00 |
Land Registry fee | If done electronically, the fee is £20.00 for the first three titles and £10 thereafter. |
Dealing with Charging Order Application | £500.00 plus VAT |
Hourly rates are banded in terms of seniority and experience with higher charge-out rates applying for more senior solicitors. The Grade range from A to D, as follows; –
Grade A – Solicitor with over 8 years’ post qualification experience including at least eight years’ litigation experience.
Grade B – Solicitors and legal executives with over four years’ post qualification experience including at least four years’ litigation experience.
Grade C – Other solicitors and legal executives and fee earners of equivalent experience.
Grade D – Trainee solicitors, paralegals and other fee earners. “Legal Executive” means a Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives.