Legal Cost Specialists

hourly rates

Grade C fee earner?

I have a bill of costs which utilises various hourly rates for the “Grade C”, “Grade A” and “Costs Draftsman”. However, the bill fails to comply with Costs Practice Direction 4.5: “The background information included in the bill of costs should set out: (2) a statement of the status of the solicitor or solicitor’s employee …

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Market forces in setting hourly rates

Lord Justice Jackson’s Preliminary Report on civil costs raises a number of concerns about whether any proper market forces operate in relation to lawyers’ hourly rates in personal injury claims:   "For the claimant personal injury market in particular, where the majority of work is conducted under conditional fee agreements, the chargeable hourly rate recoverable …

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APIL complains about excessive costs of litigation

Whether excessive legal costs are really a problem depends, in part, from what perspective you are considering matters. Defendants have little difficulty appreciating how problematic this issue is. However, claimant representatives have been far slower to join in the criticisms. How strange then that the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) should now join in …

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2008 Guideline Hourly Rates

The Advisory Committee on Civil Costs is in the process of a thorough review of the guideline hourly rates. However, pending its findings, the Committee has advised that the guideline rates from 1st January 2008 should be increased in line with the increase in average earnings in the private sector, currently 4%.

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