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Guidance

Appendix 1 (Omitted) | Appendix 2 (January 2007))

Appendix 2 - Guidline Figures for the summary assessment of costs

Solicitor’s hourly rates

The guideline rates for solicitors provided here are broad approximations only. In any particular area the Designated Civil Judge may supply more exact guidelines for rates in that area. Also the costs estimate provided by the paying party may give further guidance if the solicitors for both parties are based in the same locality.

The following diagram shows guideline figures for each of three bands outside the London area, and a further three bands within the London area with a statement of the localities included in each band. In each band there are four columns specifying figures for different grades of fee earner.

Localities

The guideline figures have been grouped according to locality by way of general guidance only. Although many firms may be comparable with others in the same locality, some of them will not be. For example, a firm located in the City of London which specialises in fast track personal injury claims may not be comparable with other firms in that locality and vice versa.

In any particular case the hourly rate it is reasonable to allow should be determined by reference to the rates charged by comparable firms. For this purpose the costs estimate supplied by the paying party may be of assistance The rate to allow should not be determined by reference to locality or postcode alone.

Grades of fee earner

The grades of fee earner have been agreed between representatives of the Supreme Court Costs Office, the Association of District Judges and the Law Society. The categories are as follows:

Solicitors with over eight years post qualification experience including at least eight years litigation experience.
Solicitors and legal executives with over four years post qualification experience including at least four years litigation experience.
Other solicitors and legal executives and fee earners of equivalent experience.

Trainee solicitors, para legals and other fee earners.

"Legal Executive" means a Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives. Those who are not Fellows of the Institute are not entitled to call themselves legal executives and in principle are therefore not entitled to the same hourly rate as a legal executive.

Unqualified clerks who are fee earners of equivalent experience may be entitled to similar rates and in this regard it should be borne in mind that Fellows of the Institute of Legal Executives generally spend two years in a solicitor’s office before passing their Part 1 general examinations, spend a further two years before passing the Part 2 specialist examinations and then complete a further two years in practice before being able to become Fellows. Fellows have therefore possess considerable practical experience and academic achievement. Clerks without the equivalent experience of legal executives will be treated as being in the bottom grade of fee earner ie. trainee solicitors and fee earners of equivalent experience. Whether or not a fee earner has equivalent experience is ultimately a matter for the discretion of the court.

Rates to allow for senior fee earners

Many High Court cases justify fee earners at a senior level. However the same may not be true of attendance at pre-trial hearings with counsel. The task of sitting behind counsel should be delegated to a more junior fee earner in all but the most important pre-trial hearings. The fact that the receiving party insisted upon the senior’s attendance, or the fact that the fee earner is a sole practitioner who has no juniors to delegate to, should not be the determinative factors. As with hourly rates the costs estimate supplied by the paying party may be of assistance. What grade of fee earner did they use?

An hourly rate in excess of the guideline figures may be appropriate for Grade A fee earners in substantial and complex litigation where other factors, including the value of the litigation, the level of complexity, the urgency or importance of the matter as well as any international element would justify a significantly higher rate to reflect higher average costs.

Guideline Rates for Summary assessment
                    January 2007


Band One Grade *	A**	B	C	D
Guideline Rates	195	173	145	106
Aldershot, Farnham, Bournemouth (including Poole)
Birmingham Inner
Bristol
Cambridge City, Harlow
Canterbury, Maidstone, Medway & Tunbridge Wells
Cardiff (Inner)
Chelmsford South, Essex & East Suffolk
Fareham, Winchester
Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Isle of Wight
Kingston, Guildford, Reigate, Epsom
Leeds Inner (within 2 kilometers radius of the City Art Gallery)
Lewes
Liverpool, Birkenhead
Manchester Central
Newcastle - City Centre (within a 2 mile radius of St Nicholas Cathedral)
Norwich City
Nottingham City
Oxford, Thames Valley
Southampton, Portsmouth
Swindon, Basingstoke
Watford


Band Two Grade *	A**	B	C	D
Guideline Rates	183	161	133	101
Bath, Cheltenham and Gloucester, Taunton, Yeovil
Bury
Chelmsford North, Cambridge County, Peterborough, Bury St E, Norfolk, Lowestoft
Chester & North Wales
Coventry, Rugby, Nuneaton, Stratford and Warwick
Exeter, Plymouth
Hull (City)
Leeds Outer, Wakefield & Pontefract
Leigh
Lincoln
Luton, Bedford, St Albans, Hitchin, Hertford
Manchester Outer, Oldham, Bolton, Tameside
Newcastle (other than City Centre)
Nottingham & Derbyshire
Sheffield, Doncaster and South Yorkshire
Southport
St Helens
Stockport, Altrincham, Salford
Swansea, Newport, Cardiff (Outer)
Wigan
Wolverhampton, Walsall, Dudley & Stourbridge
York, Harrogate


Band Three Grade *	A**	B	C	D
Guideline Rates	167	150	128	95
Birmingham Outer
Bradford (Dewsbury, Halifax, Huddersfield, Keighley & Skipton)
Cumbria
Devon, Cornwall
Grimsby, Skegness
Hull Outer
Kidderminster
Northampton & Leicester
Preston, Lancaster, Blackpool, Chorley, Accrington, Burnley, Blackburn, Rawenstall & Nelson
Scarborough & Ripon
Stafford, Stoke, Tamworth
Teesside
Worcester, Hereford, Evesham and Redditch
Shrewsbury, Telford, Ludlow, Oswestry
South & West Wales

LONDON BANDS


Grade *	A**	B	C	D
City of London: EC1, EC2, EC3, EC4	380	274	210	129
Central London: W1, WC1, WC2, SW1	292	222	181	116
Outer London: (All other London post codes: W, NW, N, E, SE, SW and Bromley, Croydon, Dartford, Gravesend and Uxbridge)	210-246	158-210	152	111

*There are four grades of fee earner:

A.Solicitors with over 8 years post qualification experience including at least 8 years litigation experience.
B.Solicitors and legal executives with over 4 years post qualification experience including at least 4 years litigation experience.
C.Other solicitors and legal executives and fee earners of equivalent experience.

D.Trainee Solicitors, para legals and fee earners of equivalent experience.

Note:"legal executive`" means a Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives.

**An hourly rate in excess of the guideline figures may be appropriate for Grade A fee earners in substantial and complex litigation where other factors, including the value of the litigation, the level of complexity, the urgency or importance of the matter as well as any international element would justify a significantly higher rate to reflect higher average costs.

Counsel's Fees

The following table sets out figures based on Supreme Court Costs Office statistics dealing with run of the mill proceedings in the Queens Bench and Chancery Division and in the Administrative Court. The table gives figures for cases lasting up to an hour and up to half a day, in respect of counsel up to five years call, up to ten years call and over ten years call. It is emphasised that these figures are not recommended rates but it is hoped that they may provide a helpful starting point for judges when assessing counsel’s fees. The appropriate fee in any particular case may be more or less than the figures appearing in the table, depending upon the circumstances.

The table does not include any figures in respect of leading counsel’s fees since such cases would self evidently be exceptional. Similarly, no figures are included for the Commercial Court or the Technology & Construction Court.

Table of Counsel's Fees
Queens Bench	1 hour hearing	½ day hearing
Junior up to 5 years call	£259	£450
Junior 5 - 10 years call	£386	£767
Junior 10+ years call	£582	£1,164
Chancery Division
Junior up to 5 years call	£291	£556
Junior 5 - 10 years call	£497	£931
Junior 10+ years call	£757	£1,397
Administrative Court
Junior up to 5 years call	£381	£582
Junior 5 - 10 years call	£698	£1,164
Junior 10+ years call	£989	£1,746

If the paying parties were represented by counsel, the fee paid to their counsel is an important factor but not a conclusive one on the question of fees payable to the receiving party’s counsel.

In deciding upon the appropriate fee for counsel the question is not simply one of counsel’s experience and seniority but also of the level of counsel which the particular case merits.

Counsel’s fees should not be allowed in cases in which it was not reasonable to have instructed counsel, but it must be borne in mind that, especially in substantial hearings, it may be more economical if the advocacy is conducted by counsel rather than a solicitor. In all cases the court should consider whether or not the decision to instruct counsel has led to an increase in costs and whether that increase is justifiable.