I have recently come across an article in the press about a wife’s experience from being divorced twice and how the second divorce had cost her an extortionate amount in legal fees. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-389662/Battle-multi-million-pound-divorce.html
Solicitors are often criticised for escalating legal costs that they are incurring on behalf of their client and whatever the truth of the situation is, it is not the whole story as there are also some cases where the client is the driving force. They can be quite happy to heavily litigate the issues no matter what the cost because it could be a matter of pride or principal.
As a firm we are cost conscious and estimates are provided not only in our initial meetings but also throughout the case if it turns from what was thought to be amicable from the start to a bitter long drawn out battle as a result of no agreement being reached, which then leads to court proceedings being issued, which leads to an increase in legal fees. In some cases however, we do find that at the expense of our client’s that want to act sensibly and are putting forward a fair and reasonable settlement, the other party is refusing to co-operate and respond to any communication, which gives our client the only option but to issue proceedings to seek a resolution to their matter. This can cause unnecessary increases to legal fees.
In order to try and assist clients we offer fixed fee products with no hidden costs so the client knows exactly what they have to pay. If the circumstances of the case mean that a fixed fee is not applicable, then we offer a standard hourly rate and we provide a range of cost estimates depending on what could happen with the case.
For those who are unable to work and are in receipt of certain benefits such as income support or income-based jobseekers allowance, as a result of public funding being withdrawn (except for specific types of cases that involve child abuse and domestic violence) we offer lower fixed fee products. If you believe that you may meet the criteria for public funding (legal aid) because of your level of income and the involvement of domestic violence and/or child abuse then we would recommend contacting us so that we can undertake a brief assessment.
We also offer a DIY divorce workshop for those who do not wish to instruct a solicitor as they would prefer to do the divorce themselves. This is an hour’s workshop where we guide you through the divorce process from start to finish and how to complete the forms. This is at a fixed fee price of £99 plus VAT. Please contact Sarah Curbishley on 01606 48777 if you are interested in booking a place on the next workshop on the 25th February 2014 at 5:30pm.
Whoever our clients are, we are also happy to discuss payment plans including monthly or weekly standing orders to suit their individual financial circumstances. We try to alleviate any potential concerns that clients have when it comes to paying for legal advice and representation as we understand that clients will be experiencing their own personal problems, which is why they have sought legal help in the first place.
We would recommend anyone with a legal issue to take up the opportunity of booking a first free initial half hour consultation at our office or to turn up at our free drop in clinic on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8.00am – 9:00am and 5:00pm – 6:00pm where no appointment is necessary. Please contact us on 01606 48777 or email info@susanhowarthsolicitors.co.uk.
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