Monday 25th September 2023
PUBLISHED ARTICLES
Article 13
What is the cheapest way for a firm to obtain legal advice?
This month a paper was produced which may inhibit those seeking to pay lawyers
on a ‘no win no fee’ basis. Some would bemoan another avenue of
cheap legal advice and representation cut off but in fact, another cheap source
of law is available to businesses.
Contingency fee agreements have hitherto been unregulated but a consultation
on the proposed amendments to the Coroners and Justice Bill seeks views on
the details of the regulatory requirements, including:
• a cap on the percentage of damages that can be recovered by the representative
• a requirement that representatives provide claimants with clear and
transparent information on total costs
• a requirement that representatives clarify the deductions made from
the claimant’s award which are to go to the representative as their
fee for taking the case
• a requirement that they provide explicit information on alternative
methods of funding.
Paying lawyers on a ‘No win no fee’ basis obviously has its advantages
in that if you lose you don’t pay a penny to your solicitor but there
are disadvantages. You may have to search far and wide for a solicitor who
will adopt your case on that basis. Many solicitors know that there is an
element of unpredictability at a tribunal in that you cannot always legislate
for a witness departing from a carefully drafted witness statement. Perhaps,
you may be lucky enough to find a solicitor ready to hedge his bets on your
case but one who will only proceed on the basis of ‘no win no fee’
for a hugely disproportionate portion of the fee.
There is another source of cheap legal advice however and it is right under
the nose of most employers. Most businesses will have insurance of one sort
or another and usually piggy backing those, will be an ‘add on’
in the form of employment law advice and representation. It that this type
of employment law insurance is only available as a ‘free’ extra
service because not many people are aware of it and thus call on it.
Sometimes, this type of insurance will not only come with a legal helpline
but also free representation and even compensation cover. You must tread carefully,
however, when utilising this cover. It is usually a condition of cover that
you must have referred to the insurer as soon as the employment law issue
arose. It is no good having made a pig’s ear of the early phases of
a redundancy programme, only to ask your insurance company to bail you out
once things are on an inexorable path towards a tribunal.
The most important thing to do when speaking to your helpline advisor, is
to take a note of every word of advice given to you. I have acted as a mediator
between an employer seeking advice and an insurance company advisor. Unfortunately,
the advice I was given changed from week to week and as a consequence, I was
told that we hadn’t followed early advice given and therefore our cover
would be stopped. I was able to retrieve the situation by asking to speak
to a line manager equipped with my early advice notes in hand.
Solicitors, in any event will often give a free first consultation if you
approach them with an employment law question. All solicitors have a duty
to send you a list of their fees charged before any work is commenced. If
you think you have been over charged, negotiation with the fee earner will
usually result in a reduction. In extreme cases you can complain to the SRA
if you think you have been over charged but continual monitoring is the common
sense approach.
If you wish to attempt to avoid solicitor costs new companies are setting
up like http://www.publicbarrister.com/ who have taken advantage of new law
which means that a barrister’s advice may be sought ‘without the
hassle and expense’ of going through a solicitor’. Additionally,
some barristers have taken the vaunted Public Access exams, which allow the
public to go straight to them.
Charles Price is a barrister at no5 Chambers
www.charlesprice.net
