Can anything be done about unreasonable solicitor's fees?

Bendy_House

3 years ago my neighbour - who is in his late 60s - was involved in a traffic accident when a car pulled out of a side road directly across his path. My neighb was riding a Vespa-type scooter.

He received numerous scuffs and bruises to his face and was apparently out cold for around half a minute, but his worst injury was a broken bone in his foot which - 3 years on - is still causing him pain, a heavy limp and unable to stand for prolonged periods (by 'prolonged', I mean for more than several minutes). The driver of the car admitted full liability right away.

He let his family solicitor handle the claim, and now and then I'd ask him how things were progressing. After a year had passed with nothing close to a resolution, I was suggesting to him that this was clearly unreasonable and he should perhaps be looking for an alternative.
At one stage the solicitor told him he'd need to attend a medical consultant who was based over 2-hour's drive away. I've just heard the details of this event - the consultant saw him for a round 20 minutes, told him he'd need physiotherapy, and sent him a bill for £500.

Today my neighb came round to see me, clearly upset, which is no surprise since he'd just been sent a bill by his solicitor for £12k. After I picked up my jaw, I asked if this meant it was resolved? 'No'. Are you going to receive anything? 'He reckons I should get a round £20k, but £12k of that is for the solicitor himself...'

I find this outrageous. Is there anything that he can do?

I did ask him if there was any indication at any time how much this could cost him, and he claims 'no'.

Cheers.

ttoli

It might be worth contacting the Law Society https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/

I had a similar situation and they resolved the matter quickly.

Good luck

uk1

Firstly, complain to the solicitor and ask him to provide details of the original letters detailing charges and estimates of total charges.

Ask for copies of the subsequent interim letters detailing charges so far incurred.

The solicitor was obligated to ensure that your elderly neighbour understood the possible charges and give interim accounts. If your neighbour was genuinely shocked it implies the solicitor failed in his duty and against the code to ensure your neighbour understood.

Some further reading for you.

https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/for-the-public/paying-for-a-solicitor/

Your solicitor should:

tell you how much your case is likely to cost at the outset
keep you updated about costs during the process
give you a final bill clearly showing what work was done and when, and the amount charged

If you’re unhappy with your bill
You can complain about:

your bill
the services you’ve received
How to complain about your solicitor

Challenge your solicitor’s bill – GOV.UK website

https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/for-the-public/using-a-solicitor/complain-about-a-solicitor/

You must apply to the court before asking for a detailed assessment. You must do this within one month of getting your solicitor’s bill.

https://www.gov.uk/challenge-solicitors-bill

Good luck

Bendy_House

Thank you very much for the replies, ttoli and uk1.

The law society requirements you show, uk1, seem very clear and really cover the issues here. I've printed this out and will pass it on.

Terrific help!

EdGasketTheSecond

Very difficult to complain about or sue a solicitor. A friend tried it and after £20K later on the new solicitor's fees, he gave up.

Bendy_House

Lol!

Based on what uk1 has said, backed up by the expectations of the LawSociety, if the situation here is as my neighb says (not given advance warning of likely costs, no updates on same etc) then there's a good chance he can hold them over a barrel if he so chooses; this is in a small community where solicitors gain a reputation for being 'long-term' and 'family'.

Anyhoo, it's up to him what to do. Currently he was minded to just permanently remove all his family's business from them (house deeds, wills, that sort of stuff).

Does this situation strike folk as being unreasonable? I mean, there was no contesting of the fault, and the guy was hospitalised for checks after being knocked out for a short while. The damage to his foot has caused him genuine and continuous discomfort, and it's taken three years to arrive at this bill, and not even a final settlement yet. Seems crazy to me.

uk1

Bendy_House wrote: »

Lol!

Based on what uk1 has said, backed up by the expectations of the LawSociety, if the situation here is as my neighb says (not given advance warning of likely costs, no updates on same etc) then there's a good chance he can hold them over a barrel if he so chooses; this is in a small community where solicitors gain a reputation for being 'long-term' and 'family'.

Anyhoo, it's up to him what to do. Currently he was minded to just permanently remove all his family's business from them (house deeds, wills, that sort of stuff).

Does this situation strike folk as being unreasonable? I mean, there was no contesting of the fault, and the guy was hospitalised for checks after being knocked out for a short while. The damage to his foot has caused him genuine and continuous discomfort, and it's taken three years to arrive at this bill, and not even a final settlement yet. Seems crazy to me.

Hi,

In the situation you outline I suggest that he sends an extremely short letter to the solicitor which is devoid of emotion and superlative and state something along the lines of the following.

1. He has received the bill. the high amount demanded was a surprise and a shock - and is rejected.

2. That he intends to complain to The Law Society about both the amount and lack of detailed information prior to engagement and interim information and in order to proceed with that complaint he requires copies of all previous initial and ongoing correspondence that the solicitor claims has been sent with respect to his/her charges, potential total costs, and any interim notices of totals “to date”.

3. Personal disappointment that the trust built up over the years as the family solicitors has been broken.

In a small community - such an approach might nudge some reconsideration.

A word of caution is appropriate.

A solicitor’s charges could well start from anything but not unusually from around £250 per hour although trainees and paralegals will cost less than senior or experienced solicitors. Charges can go through the proverbial roof. So your neighbour may discover the charges are high but fair.

The main potential weakness in the solicitor’s position may not be the charges per se but might well be solely his lack of itemising before hand the cost and the lack of interim updates and/or bills. The above suggested letter might just bump up the costs by a few hundred pounds. So your neighbour must be satisfied that he hasn't simply not read correspondence properly or forgot. Remember there are always two sides - or more - to every dispute and the bill might well be forewarned and reasonable.

Also, did the solicitor suggest that his fees might or would be covered by third party in the event of a successful claim? It would be quite normal to expect his fees to be paid by them. If so then your solicitor should be billing the third parties insurers with only any unclaimable and reasonable shortfall being due from your neighbour.

Can I also just thank you for simply saying “thanks”. You’d be suprised at how many people don’t bother.

Good luck.

EdGasketTheSecond

Some folks have to work all week for £250; don't seem right.

uk1

EdGasketTheSecond wrote: »

Some folks have to work all week for £250; don't seem right.

What they bill is "revenue" not "income".

Out of their billings they have to pay for staff, rent or mortgage, business rates, professional insurance etc etc. Out of what is left of their income many are now left with considerable loans to pay for their university and training. They will have had many years on no income whilst studying for their degree and then their professional studies at law school and many further years on low incomes whilst being a pupil or training. They also don't bill for every hour of a working week.

For what it's worth, I wouldn't be suprised if in the area I live the average self-employed plumber has a take home net pay that's higher than the average local net pay of local solicitors.

I'm clearly more optimistic than you and believe that most people are capable of great things if they set their mind to it.

Bendy_House

Again, that's really helpful uk1, and wise caution.

I will ensure he understands all the elements of this issue, such as whether the solicitor did actually give him an initial idea of likely costs, and keeping him updated. (It's fair to say that my neighb can be forgetful about some things...)

He does have family living nearby who do visit regularly, however, so I'd have thought they'd have been keeping an eye on the progress of the case, but I'll certainly let him know what he should be considering.

Thanks everyone.

Jumblebumble

uk1 wrote: »

Hi,

In the situation you outline I suggest that he sends an extremely short letter to the solicitor which is devoid of emotion and superlative and state something along the lines of the following.

1. He has received the bill. the high amount demanded was a surprise and a shock - and is rejected.

2. That he intends to complain to The Law Society about both the amount and lack of detailed information prior to engagement and interim information and in order to proceed with that complaint he requires copies of all previous initial and ongoing correspondence that the solicitor claims has been sent with respect to his/her charges, potential total costs, and any interim notices of totals “to date”.

3. Personal disappointment that the trust built up over the years as the family solicitors has been broken.

In a small community - such an approach might nudge some reconsideration.

A word of caution is appropriate.

A solicitor’s charges could well start from anything but not unusually from around £250 per hour although trainees and paralegals will cost less than senior or experienced solicitors. Charges can go through the proverbial roof. So your neighbour may discover the charges are high but fair.

The main potential weakness in the solicitor’s position may not be the charges per se but might well be solely his lack of itemising before hand the cost and the lack of interim updates and/or bills. The above suggested letter might just bump up the costs by a few hundred pounds. So your neighbour must be satisfied that he hasn't simply not read correspondence properly or forgot. Remember there are always two sides - or more - to every dispute and the bill might well be forewarned and reasonable.

Also, did the solicitor suggest that his fees might or would be covered by third party in the event of a successful claim? It would be quite normal to expect his fees to be paid by them. If so then your solicitor should be billing the third parties insurers with only any unclaimable and reasonable shortfall being due from your neighbour.

Can I also just thank you for simply saying “thanks”. You’d be suprised at how many people don’t bother.

Good luck.

Presumably liability in the case was not clear enough to merit a no win no fee with 25% commission on success type of arrangement.
This is a far better way of doing things IMHO if the case stacks up.