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Can anyone advise me on solicitors charges????


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Hi

I am currently in the middle of trying to claim some sentimental items from my late fathers estate via a local solicitor.

 

When we started the process i asked about her fees...after picking myself up from the floor, she suggested i could pay a block amount for services ( I think, this was in April) and then produced a bill which i duly paid up front

the bill details read as below.....

 

'professional charges in connection with advising you in regard to your fathers estate; to include discussing probate in general; to advising you on action you can take; to contacting Mrs ****; to include all attendances upon you including in person, by telephone and email; to include all care and conduct throughout.'

 

Now the solicitor is asking for more money...was the bill i paid in April not a complete sum for the job....I refer to the... to include all.... wording doesn't that mean the whole job or am I sorely wrong.

 

I have no problem with the work the solicitor has done and we are now close to receiving the items i asked for...they want to wait 6 months after probate before they hand anything over (why???) but as a part time worker who rakes in a cool £500 a month, only, I find the extra cost a bit steep...she may have forgotten about the block payment and I don't want to pay twice as it were...or I could just be living in cloud cuckoo land regards costs of things as my husband says (he earns a lot more than me!)

 

anyhow I would really appreciate if a lawyer/solicitor could analyse the solicitorese and clarify this for me....

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I would want this clarified as well.

 

The original statement / bill seems to encompass all the work they are intending to do. I think perhaps you need to have her qualify this extra bill.

 

I will send an S.O.S. to someone who might be able to advise.

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Perplexed

 

I would expect an itemised bill confirming the hours and costs spent. This CAB info will help you.

 

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/wales/law_w/law_legal_system_e/law_taking_legal_action_e/using_a_solicitor.htm

 

Be aware that if you enter into a dispute about a solicitors bill, the cards are stacked against you. Someone I know made a complaint and the Solicitors Regulatory Authority appointed a case handler, who after 6 months agreed that the Solicitors bill was fair. Just ask the Solicitor for more information and query if there is anything additional to the lump sum you had already paid.

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Further to uncle bulgaria's post - it has been suggested that a politely worded letter might resolve the problem.

 

 

If the Solicitor has stated its a block fee then that is what it is...but look at this wording also " to include all care and conduct throughout.'

The Solicitor needs to be asked to explain any additional fees and a breakdown of its content.

 

A politely worded letter should resolve this matter " It was on the understanding and wording of your invoice I undertake to understand " a Block fee " to be the total charge " and to include all care and conduct throughout " to mean to its conclusion?

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yes.

i don't want to upset her but i thought the fee i paid up front was to cover all the work especially with the wording and all...

tho' she doesn't mention letters to the other party..do you think she would say the additional is for those?

i have no problem with the work, its just that i thought i had paid already and i would prefer the money to stay in my account naturally hahhahah

how would i word the letter?

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Thank you for your letter dated xxxxxxxxxx and I am sorry to bother you. I am a bit confused, as I thought that I had paid a relevant sum upfront to cover the cost of the work.

 

Can you please confirm that I am not mistaken in this and that no further sums are due. If this is not the case, can you please clarify the situation and provide further information.

  • Haha 1

We could do with some help from you.

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Sounds good to me, UncleB :)

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Okay, here a draft of the email i intend to send.

As I said, I don't want to upset her as she has been good to me, but my financial situation is such as her charges are basically a whole months wages for me, which I can ill afford.

 

One thing that worries me is, as this matter isn't quite resolved, I don't want her getting upset and refusing to carry on with the last few communiques or making a mess of it and I lose out.

 

What do you think.....

 

 

Dear ***,

 

Thank you very much for your letter received today, and your email…as you can see I finally got my email fixed!

 

Yes, it does seem to be a very good news letter and I have been in touch with the cemetery’s representative this morning.

Not being regularly involved in legal matters, I’m a little confused, by your comment about ***'s solicitors waiting 6 months to ensure no one makes a claim on the estate; Does that mean other people or me? Is there a 6 month window where you, I or Joe Blogs could say hang on, I would like this, that or the other?

After which they can’t claim?

 

I am also a bit confused as to your extra costs, as I thought that I had paid a relevant sum upfront to cover the cost of the work. It was on the understanding that a Block fee was to be the total charge and I took the wording of your invoice ‘to include all care and conduct throughout " to mean to its conclusion?

Can you please confirm that I am not mistaken in this and that no further sums are due.

 

If this is not the case, can you please clarify the situation and provide further information regards these extra costs if any.

 

Hoping you are well,

Regards

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really?

I suppose she will charge what she wants to charge......

but with that wording (highlighted in my first post) it seemed to include all things, tho she didnt specify letters written.

I think she thought at that time that it would be relatively simple...

do you think she could have just forgotten or ...?

after realising and doing more than she thought ...?

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Letter sounds ok to me. The solicitor should have made notes, as to how their fees were being paid. Perhaps their secretary has just made a mistake.

 

Anyway send the email and you will find out.

We could do with some help from you.

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I don't know if any actual prices are of use to you - but I have a solicitor who generally does letters for me that I write then he once-overs them and sends them for £20. However, recently I obtained prices for work outwith his skills, and the prices were £180/hour out of city centre, £200/hour city centre, which was more than I expected.

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Okay, here a draft of the email i intend to send.

As I said, I don't want to upset her as she has been good to me, but my financial situation is such as her charges are basically a whole months wages for me, which I can ill afford.

 

One thing that worries me is, as this matter isn't quite resolved, I don't want her getting upset and refusing to carry on with the last few communiques or making a mess of it and I lose out.

 

What do you think.....

 

 

Dear ***,

 

Thank you very much for your letter received today, and your email…as you can see I finally got my email fixed!

 

Yes, it does seem to be a very good news letter and I have been in touch with the cemetery’s representative this morning.

Not being regularly involved in legal matters, I’m a little confused, by your comment about ***'s solicitors waiting 6 months to ensure no one makes a claim on the estate; Does that mean other people or me? Is there a 6 month window where you, I or Joe Blogs could say hang on, I would like this, that or the other?

After which they can’t claim?

 

I am also a bit confused as to your extra costs, as I thought that I had paid a relevant sum upfront to cover the cost of the work. It was on the understanding that a Block fee was to be the total charge and I took the wording of your invoice ‘to include all care and conduct throughout " to mean to its conclusion?

Can you please confirm that I am not mistaken in this and that no further sums are due.

 

If this is not the case, can you please clarify the situation and provide further information regards these extra costs if any.

 

Hoping you are well,

Regards

 

It looks fine - I cant see any problems that could arise. You genuinely believed that you had paid for her services and there was no mention in her earlier communique that there would be more charges to follow - rather the opposite in fact.

 

I must admit, I am a little puzzled by the wait as well - perhaps someone else can answer that question. Who is the executor of the estate ?

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3: Feel Bullied by Creditors or Debt Collectors? Read Here

4: Staying Calm About Debt  Read Here

5: Forum rules - These have been updated - Please Read

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1: How can BCOBS protect you from your Banks unfair treatment

2: Does your Bank play fair - You can force your Bank to play Fair with you

3: Banking Conduct of Business Regulations - The Hidden Rules

4: BCOBS and Unfair Treatment - Common Examples of Banks Behaving Badly

5: Fair Treatment for Credit Card Holders and Borrowers - COBS

Advice & opinions given by citizenb are personal, are not endorsed by Consumer Action Group or Bank Action Group, and are offered informally, without prejudice & without liability. Your decisions and actions are your own, and should you be in any doubt, you are advised to seek the opinion of a qualified professional.

PLEASE DO NOT ASK ME TO GIVE ADVICE BY PM - IF YOU PROVIDE A LINK TO YOUR THREAD THEN I WILL BE HAPPY TO OFFER ADVICE THERE:D

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my dads wife and a lawyer guy.

interesting that this will,which left everything to her, was made in 2009, just after he'd completely lost his marbles.

 

Ok Uncle B, i shall send it tomorrow am, hoping i don't upset her.

maybe its a genuine mistake, maybe she wont take it as me trying not to pay...although its v expensive for me.

i don't want her to think i don't appreciate her help

 

Any further advice to me tonight will be appreciated

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should i send this as an email or letter?

 

is it ok?

or will it inflame her sensibilities (I've done all this work,which i had not anticipated and now she doesn't want to pay me: I'm going to refuse to do anymore or (worse) s*** the rest of it up)

 

???????

 

I will be posting/sending at 10 this morning so any observations or advice before then please?!

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Send by email and you may get a quicker response.

 

Don't worry about upsetting the solicitor, which your note would not do anyway, as you are not complaining, just querying. They are probably pretty thick skinned and get used to people querying everything. That is my impression, whenever I have dealt with solicitors.

 

The point is that under the SRA rules, they have to provide clear info on the charges and fees due. They have obviously failed to do this, as otherwise you would not be raising the query.

We could do with some help from you.

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Well I heard back from my solicitor yesterday, and indeed I was wrong.

 

We had spoken about a block payment initially but that is not what happened, and she reminded me of a conversation (and indeed email) that we had about her charges to date.

 

I fully accept this was the case; it has been a traumatic few months and I was not sure when her letter arrived, but now I remember and am fine with it and today duly trotted off with payment.

As I said, I have no problem with her work, quite the contrary in fact and am more than happy to pay.

 

Thanks for all your help and advice, as ever CAG'ers are Tops!

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That is good that you have resolved this without animosity. :)

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1: Making a PPI claim ? - Q & A's and spreadsheets for single premium policy - HERE

2: Take back control of your finances - Debt Diaries

3: Feel Bullied by Creditors or Debt Collectors? Read Here

4: Staying Calm About Debt  Read Here

5: Forum rules - These have been updated - Please Read

BCOBS

1: How can BCOBS protect you from your Banks unfair treatment

2: Does your Bank play fair - You can force your Bank to play Fair with you

3: Banking Conduct of Business Regulations - The Hidden Rules

4: BCOBS and Unfair Treatment - Common Examples of Banks Behaving Badly

5: Fair Treatment for Credit Card Holders and Borrowers - COBS

Advice & opinions given by citizenb are personal, are not endorsed by Consumer Action Group or Bank Action Group, and are offered informally, without prejudice & without liability. Your decisions and actions are your own, and should you be in any doubt, you are advised to seek the opinion of a qualified professional.

PLEASE DO NOT ASK ME TO GIVE ADVICE BY PM - IF YOU PROVIDE A LINK TO YOUR THREAD THEN I WILL BE HAPPY TO OFFER ADVICE THERE:D

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