What Lawyers are Entitled to Charge
Lawyers are entitled to receive reasonable fees for work properly done on behalf of their clients.
Non-contentious matters
Under section 108 of the Legal Profession Act (the ‘LPA’) and the Solicitors’ Remuneration Order 2003 (‘SRO’), the remuneration of a solicitor for non-contentious matters shall be the sum that is fair and reasonable having regard to all the circumstances of the case, in particular:
the importance of the matter to the client;
the skill, labour, specialised knowledge and responsibility involved on the part of the solicitor;
the complexity of the matter and the difficulty or novelty of the question raised;
where money or property is involved, the amount or value thereof;
the time expended by the solicitor;
the number and importance of the documents prepared or perused, without regard to length; and
the place where, and the circumstances under which, the services or business or any part thereof are rendered or transacted.
In addition, a solicitor may charge more if he or she is required to perform the work by special exertion on an urgent basis.
Alternatively, a solicitor and his client may enter into an agreement for the solicitor’s charges for non-contentious work. Such agreements can be challenged in Court on the ground that they are not fair and reasonable.
A solicitor may receive a deposit from the client as security for fees to be charged. A solicitor may also charge interest on his disbursements and costs from the end of one month of the date of his demand for payment.
The agreement may be for:
payment of an agreed amount irrespective of the volume of work done (a fixed fee);
a non-refundable retainer (deposit) for work to be undertaken. This deposit will be refunded if the instruction to act is terminated prematurely or if the matter is not proceeded with subsequently; or
payment on a time-related basis.
Such agreements can be challenged in Court on the ground that they are not fair and reasonable. The lawyer is, however, prohibited by law to enter into an agreement with you with respect to the legal costs in a contentious matter which provides for payment only in the event of success in the contentious matter.
If there is no agreement as to the legal costs, the lawyer can charge according to the nature and complexity of the matter, the skill, labour and responsibility involved on the part of the lawyer, the experience of the lawyer, the length of time taken to complete the matter, and the number and importance of the documents prepared and perused by the lawyer.
If you are successful in a contentious matter, the other party will usually be ordered to pay you a sum as partial reimbursement of your lawyer’s charges. This sum will either be fixed by the Court or will be the subject of taxation proceedings. Similarly, if the other party is successful, you may be ordered to pay a portion of their legal costs. Such costs are called ‘party and party costs’.
What Can I Do if I am Dissatisfied with My Lawyer’s Bill of Costs
Contact your lawyer
You should first try to contact your lawyer if you have any grievance concerning your legal fees. Your concerns may be due to a misunderstanding which lawyer can quickly and easily clarify for you.
Sometimes your concerns may be justified and you should give your lawyer an opportunity to rectify the error.
Request an itemized bill
You may also request that your lawyer provide you with a detailed bill of costs if you do not already have one.
A detailed bill of costs is an itemized bill describing the nature of work done by the lawyer since he began to act for you. The itemized bill should describe such items as time spent of research, drafting correspondence, attending court, attendance with you and other persons including telephone attendance and perusing documents. You may not be aware of all the steps taken by your lawyer on your behalf. One of the purposes of a detailed bill of costs is to tell you exactly what work has been done on your break.
