Pricing Transparency
As a law firm regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, we subscribe to a code of conduct that ensures transparency in price and service. As a firm we value honesty and integrity and we always ensure that our clients are fully aware of the scope of the service they receive and the legal costs involved.
We aim to remove that uncomfortable surprise when the bill arrives.
Our fees are calculated by reference to our lawyer’s hourly rates which range from £120 to £550 per hour depending on their level of qualification and expertise. We also offer competitive fixed fee arrangements that we can agree with clients from the outset. Our fixed fee arrangements offer clients exceptional service at a great value and a piece of mind.
Our fees are exclusive of the then prevailing Value Added Tax (VAT) rate. VAT will be charged on our fees and on disbursements where applicable. VAT is a government tax added to most services sold by VAT registered businesses and is not optional; we are VAT Registered with number 349 0278 85. In certain circumstances, a client may be exempt from paying VAT. If you have any questions about whether or not you should be charged VAT, please speak with your accountant or financial adviser.
We do not undertake any Legal Aid work.
Our fees for Immigration Services
Immigration cases vary in complexity. in order for us to offer you a fair competitive fee, we offer a 15-minute telephone/WhatsApp call completely free of charge. During this no obligation call, we will ask questions about your immigration matter and conduct an initial assessment to determine the chances of success, timeframes and fees.
On average our standard immigration cases take between 4-10 hours at a cost range between £800 - £4,000 (ex VAT). More complex cases can take between 8-15 hours at a cost range between £1,500 - £6,000 (ex VAT). The fixed fee offered will depend on the fee-earners hourly rate and complexity of the case. A case may be considered complex due to a number of factors; these may include, the volume of evidence we need to assess, previous adverse immigration history and the urgency of the case.
For advice and representation at the First-tier Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber in relation to appeals against Home Office immigration decision, we will charge an hourly rate of £450 (ex VAT). We estimate the work will take between 15-35 hours. We will also instruct a barrister to represent you at the Tribunal. The barrister fees will likely be in the range of £1,500 - £4,500 (ex VAT).
The scope of service offered as part of our fixed fee arrangement include, but is not limited to, legal research, evidence review and assessment, advice on immigration rules and on available immigration solutions, preparing and submitting applications, drafting cover letters and submissions, file management, representations and follow ups and advice on outcome of the application.
We aim to prepare and submit immigration applications for our clients within 1-2 weeks from receipt of the information and documents we require. You will be informed when the application is submitted and will keep you updated until a decision is made. If the case is urgent we can discuss this with and if possible offer you our priority service which may cost an additional £500 - £1000 (ex VAT).
Disbursements are not included in our fees. Disbursements are costs related to your immigration matter that are payable to third parties such as application and IHS fees payable to the UK government. Depending on your application, we will advise you of the sum you need to pay in advance (where known). Disbursements may also include interpreters and translation fees, fees for independent expert witnesses and counsel’s fees if needed for complex issues or representation at the tribunal. We can handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf, if required (but will be subject to payments on account).
These are our fees to our individual clients and does not cover services offered to businesses. Please contact us if you would like to talk about business rates.
As mentioned above, our fees are exclusive of the then prevailing Value Added Tax (VAT) rate. VAT will be charged on our fees and on disbursements where applicable. VAT is a government tax added to most services sold by VAT registered businesses and is not optional; we are VAT Registered with number 349 0278 85. In certain circumstances, a client may be exempt from paying VAT. If you have any questions about whether or not you should be charged VAT, please speak with your accountant or financial adviser.
To arrange an initial chat about your immigration matter please complete our enquiry form available at https://www.trillium-legal.com/contact-us
Our fees for Employment Services
1. Information
We represent clients on the many different types of claims that can be brought in an Employment Tribunal; from simple claims for wrongful and unfair dismissal, to more complex claims for constructive dismissal and discrimination. What comes with this experience is knowledge of the time that it generally takes to deal with them. As we typically charge at our current hourly rate when advising our clients, the greater the amount of time that it takes to deal with a case then the higher the cost. Where we can, we will agree fixed fees for certain stages of the case, and alert you as to the cost involved in progressing to the next stage. ‘Ordinary’ unfair and wrongful dismissal claims (in respect of unpaid notice) are common in the Employment Tribunal and we’ve set out below a range of potential fees for bringing and defending such claims.
As mentioned above, we are VAT registered and therefore charge VT on our services where applicable. Our hourly rates (and all fees and expenses) set out below are listed exclusive of VAT. You should therefore add the prevailing rate of VAT to these cost estimates.
2. Potential fees
Whilst each case is different, potential fees for a simple case can range from £10,000 to £20,000; fees for a moderately complex case can range from £20,000 to £50,000; and fees for a highly complex case can range from £50,000 to £90,000. This does not include VAT.
The more complex the claim, the more time we have to spend dealing with it, which means higher costs. Examples of factors that usually make a case more complex (and expensive) include the following:
• There being a large number of witnesses (the more witnesses, the more time it takes to interview them);
• There being more than one person bringing or defending the claim;
• The longer the duration of the final hearing (4-7 days in some cases), the more time it will take to deal with the case;
• The nature and extent of the disclosure process (where each party searches for, lists and discloses their documents that are relevant to the claim) entailing a large volume of documents and/or documents in different formats or from multiple sources (e.g. paper and computer records, telephone logs and emails);
• Where we have to deal with:
o applications to amend a claim, cost applications, applications to force an individual to be a witness or requests made by either party for additional documents relevant to the case;
o arguments about whether the Employment Tribunal has jurisdiction to hear the claim or complex preliminary issues, such as whether the person making the claim is an employee or worker or whether a person is disabled;
o requests for more information about an existing claim or defence;
o an individual bringing a claim against our client who isn’t legally represented; or
o claims that the dismissal itself was discriminatory (not including standalone claims of discrimination or allegations that there were a series of discriminatory acts which ended with the dismissal)
o automatic unfair dismissal claims, e.g. if the claim is that the dismissal took place as a result of the person blowing the whistle on their employer;
• If you require face-to-face meetings rather than discussions by telephone.
Cases for anything other than wrongful or unfair dismissal, for example, claims for discrimination not linked to the dismissal, allegations of being treated detrimentally for blowing the whistle, equal pay claims, very complex whistleblowing cases or complex claims for constructive dismissal (i.e. where the employee resigns and claims that their employer’s actions were tantamount to a dismissal) will fall outside of the categories set out above. If you are not clear about whether the claim that you are bringing or defending falls outside of the categories, or want to understand the costs for a claim that you know falls outside of the categories, please let us know. We will be happy to discuss it with you.
3. At the hearing and barristers
We will always instruct a barrister (also known as ‘counsel’) to represent you at the final hearing of the claim. In particular, as Employment Tribunal advocacy is a specialist skill, instructing the barrister is generally more cost effective. However, we will generally need to have one of our team accompany the barrister, to help them with the evidence and documents. If a claim succeeds, and there is a separate hearing to deal with what compensation should be awarded, this will result in further costs being incurred. We will discuss with you what those costs are should the need arise.
Whilst we would generally represent you at any case management Preliminary Hearing (i.e. the preliminary hearing that takes place to decide what steps need to take place before the final hearing and the issues to be addressed at the hearing) there may be issues, such as the Employment Tribunal being outside of the Greater London area, that make it more cost effective to have a barrister closer to the location of the Employment Tribunal to represent you. We will always discuss the best approach with you before we proceed.
Barristers’ fees for attendance at hearings include a fixed element (called the ‘brief fee’) and a variable element. The brief fee covers reading the documents that will be referred to at the hearing, preparing to represent you at the hearing and then representing you on the first day of the hearing. The variable element of the barrister’s fees is the daily fee that they will charge you for each day (after the first day) that they represent you at the hearing. Depending upon the type of claim and the level and experience of the barrister that you want to represent you, barrister’s fees can be expected to be between £1,500 - £10,000 for the brief fee with daily fees thereafter of between £750 to £1,750. Again, we will discuss this with you and ensure that you are clear on the barrister’s fees before we instruct them. We are not responsible for setting counsels fees and so the above fees are only indicative. These fees are in addition to the range of costs that we have set out under the heading ‘Potential Fees’ above.
4. Disbursements
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties such as barristers' fees, couriers' fees (where sending large numbers of or confidential documents) and costs for the likes of travel, accommodation (where necessary), some overseas telephone calls and significant printing or copying charges.
We will not incur any disbursements without your prior authority and approval of the costs which may range from £30 - £50 for printing charges and up to £5,000-£10,000 for Counsel’s fees. You will be advised if those costs also attract VAT.
We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. Prior to incurring those costs mentioned above, we may ask that you put sufficient money on account of those costs in advance. We may, though, arrange for you to be invoiced direct by the third party. This will be discussed and agreed with you throughout the process.
To arrange an initial chat about your employment matter please complete our enquiry form available at https://www.trillium-legal.com/contact-us