PRICE TRANSPARENCY
INTRODUCTION
The below information is designed to allow you to obtain an indication of the fees and outlays that are likely to be charged by Innes Johnston LLP in any work that we carry out for you. Please note that the actual amount that we charge for work carried out may be different depending on the circumstances of your case, the level of complexity, or circumstances that may be outwith our control. The below is a likely indication of cost and is not intended to be a binding contract. If we charge for any work that we do at our hourly rate, that rate will not change unless we tell you in advance. If we indicate that we will carry out work at a fixed fee, we shall let you know if we intend to charge more than the fee quoted to you. We may tell you that our fee will increase after we have begun work for you. That may be because of developments in your case or because the work is more complicated than first anticipated. With regard to our hourly rate, we review our hourly rate from time to time, and therefore the rate at which we charge may increase during the course of the work we carry out for you. Again, we will tell you in advance and the new hourly rate will apply to work carried out after you have been told of the new rate.
For some pieces of work, we elect to charge a set fee. That allows you as a client to know from the outset the likely amount of your fees and outlays. For example, in most cases, we will charge a set fee for buying or selling a house or for making a will or power of attorney. We may elect to charge a higher fixed fee if the work is more time-consuming or complicated than may normally be the case. Or we may elect to charge an hourly rate for that work. If so, we will tell you in advance or when we become aware of the complication in your case. Those cases where we are likely to charge a fixed fee are indicated below.
For some of the work that we do there may be outlays payable to third parties. We will try and make you aware of these either at the outset or when it becomes known to us that the outlay will be incurred. It is not always possible to know the amount of the outlay before a particular piece of work begins. And an outlay may be increased by the third party without our becoming aware of the cost increase. In any event, as we are incurring outlays on your behalf, we expect you to reimburse us for those outlays whether or not they have been flagged to you in advance.
At the beginning of our acting for you, we have to identify you as a client. If we are involved in a transaction on your behalf, we may also have to obtain information and documentation to satisfy the Anti Money laundering Regulations. That may involve charging additional fees where that work may be more than is typically the case. We use a third party, Thirdfort, to help us to meet our requirements to identify a client and obtain other information and documentation. Our fee charges for instructing Thirdfort or Amiqus are £20.00 plus Vat at the rate of 20%.
HOURLY RATE
If not a fixed fee, our fee will be charged at our hourly rate broken down into units. The manner in which we calculate our fee and the hourly rate that we use will either be included in our terms of business sent to you at the outset or otherwise indicated to you in writing. At the present time, our hourly rate for all qualified solicitors is £300 plus VAT charged at the rate of 20%. For trainee solicitors and paralegals, our hourly rate is £180 plus VAT charged at the rate of 20%. The hourly rate is broken down into units. A unit is equivalent to six minutes and a tenth of our hourly rate. For example, the current amount of a unit for a qualified solicitor is £30. Some work is charged based on the length of a document. You will note the number of units attributed to different types of documents and different types of work below.
As stated, the manner in which we calculate our fee based on the hourly rate will be set out in our terms of business. The following is an extract:-
“… our fees will be charged on the basis of time spent on the work which we are carrying out on your behalf. This includes meetings, telephone calls, perusing documents, attendance at court, travelling, and waiting time.
You will be charged as follows:-
a. (i) Drawing and revising deeds intended to have contractual effect, court writs, court pleadings, affidavits, inventories, and the like – 5 units per sheet of 250 words
(ii) Other papers to include transfers, and minutes of meetings – 3 units per sheet of 250 words
b. Copying (no charge up to 50 pages in the whole matter) over 50 pages – 0.02 units per copy
c. (i) Time spent conducting a trial, proof, or debate before a court, tribunal, licensing board, etc. – 12 units per hour
(ii) All other time spent where not otherwise provided for – 10 units per hour
d. Letters (except as aftermentioned), faxes, emails – 1.25 units per page of 125 words.
e. Formal letters (i.e. acknowledgements and confirmatory letters) – 0.5 units
f. Telephone calls – 1 unit per 6 minutes
g. Formal telephone calls (i.e. acknowledging or confirming) – 0.5 units
h. Posts, stationery, photocopying, faxing, and incidents – 5% of the total fee
i. Mileage – 50p per mile
The unit charge is dependent upon the status of the individual carrying out the work within the firm. For solicitors, the unit is £30.00 and for trainee solicitors and paralegals £18.00.”. Please note that VAT will be charged at the rate of 20%. If opening a file for you, our fees will be no less than £150 plus VAT.
Although we attempt to give an estimate of fees and outlays at the outset, it is very difficult to estimate fees in some types of cases.
FIXED FEES
We charge fixed fees for buying or selling property, other conveyancing work, wills, powers of attorney, simplified divorce, an undefended divorce action, some immigration work, applying for civil legal aid, some adoption applications, and for notarising or certifying documents. We may elect to charge higher fixed fees or charge at our hourly rate as narrated above if the work is unusually complex or time-consuming.
Last edited 03/04/2024
