Solicitors: how much do you charge to open a file?

[RosieMilkJug]

I’ve been quoted £1.500 to start things off. I was hoping the first payment would be around £800.

Is £1,500 the norm just to open the file and read some papers? The hourly rate would then be billed on top.

Negotiate.

Seems expensive just for initial work

Depends on the solicitor and the matter you want them to act on. There is no "normal" across the board.

Mine was £600 to open a file, family solicitor

That’s what I thought. It’s a probate thing. All I need is a couple hours’ worth of advice.

All you think you need is a couple of hours of advice. The solicitor may see this as more complex?

Or say that you just want whatever advice they can give in 2 hours but it is likely it will then be heavily caveated

It's very hard for us to comment. But you could always seek a few more quotes?

I instruct solicitors a lot for work and always get at least three quotes. I definitely don't always go with the cheapest though. Some will under quote to get the work but charge more in the long run. You want one that will be honest about the work involved and the level of complexity. And will offer different options if they are available

There is no standard. It depends on the firm and the work required.

In the large firms I worked in we didn't charge anything to open the file but the matters would usually bill in the hundreds of thousands.

Thanks all.

It’s never just 2 hours of advice.

i had a new enquiry this week wanting an advice on a complex appeal. I offered an overview advice for our standard fee but quoted him 4 hours (at a cost of over £1200) if he expected me to wade through a file of 100-200 pages and then research relevant case law in advance of a 2 hour meeting. He went for the cheaper option but all he’s going to get is my initial feeling as the advice he needs is going to take far more time than he’s willing to pay for.

Thanks.

I have one spreadsheet with supporting bank statements for 2024 for the solicitor to read. Once they’ve read it all they have to do is answer the question “Did this person act lawfully? Yes or no?”

That’s it. It won’t take more than 10 mins TBH.

We don't charge for opening a file, but we do ask for a payment on account before we begin. So would ask for £1,200 or whatever (very normal in this kind of matter) & once that's paid, get to work. But of course you'll only be charged for hours worked. Eg if the hourly rate was £300 and the matter only actually took 3 hours (= £900), you'd get a £300 refund. If it took 6 hours, you'd be asked for another £600. Extra charges shouldn't be a shock though, the solicitor should keep you informed of progress.

Is this what you're describing?

Yes, perfect, thank you.

Except it probably won't take 10 minutes (!) and it may not be possible to give a one-word answer Yes or No...

That still seems like a lot to most people though. Most would probably expect a solicitor to have some idea of case law before they even arrive or enquire if it's a specific matter & you're a specialist. I would have also thought that most of the paperwork wouldn't be expected to be read through & I feel like it'd be an overview of the case.
Lawyers charge way too much for what they offer in a lot of cases. Most people are maxed out with other essential costs & are at their wits end when they feel they have to approach a solicitor for advice.

Could you use an accountant?

I'm a lawyer. I would not charge this much for opening a file - unless it's extremely complex and loads of documents to consider but I would say £600-800 to open a file, consider, take instructions, provide initial advice and do the initial work. I would go to a different solicitors or negotiate. At least ask them to tell you exactly what work they'll be doing under that retainer.

Unless your spreadsheet only has 5 rows and the bank statements are only 1 page it’s going to take more than 10 minutes just to read the information.

Then the advice has to be written. You don’t really expect an email saying “Dear client. Yes, it was lawful”. Kind regards, Solicitor

They have to recap the information you provided and the questions you asked, state any assumptions, explain how they have applied the facts to the law, add any appropriate caveats and make recommendations as to next steps.

That said, I am not familiar with the concept of a fixed file-opening charge in addition to an hourly rate. I’d expect either a fixed/capped fee or an hourly rate.

The time for opening a file would likely be written off at billing time at my law firm, unless there were significant complications around it. Only actual legal work billed.

Thanks for replying. My husband is an accountant and says the person in question is acting unethically but not unlawfully.

I met my lawyer friend this morning for brunch and she says to contact Age Concern first rather than speaking to a solicitor first. Yup, the old chestnut: elderly financial abuse.

Hence why it’s bank statements and a binary answer.

I won’t go into the full details and I hope you understand why. But if anyone wants to DM me then feel free to offer some free advice!

https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate there's a helpline here

I don't charge to open a file. I provide an estimate of the likely work required and then request a payment on account. Whether that will be the full amount or a % depends upon how much work is required over what timescale. Generally I want at least a month up front unless it is a large organisation or an existing client that is trusted.

I explain how I reach my estimate.

I appreciate you may well think you know best and that all the solicitor has to do is “read one document and say yes or no and that takes ten minutes” but as a solicitor I cannot tell you how many times I have heard that (when it is wrong) and how annoying it is. What I gently suggest to clients who balk at my initial estimates is that perhaps they need a smaller/different firm. I have, in the past, allowed myself to be knocked down at an initial stage and then found myself with clients years down the line with a client who either cannot afford or are not prepared to pay my fees properly.

I am afraid those of us in private practice have targets and need to make money for our businesses and if a client wants to nickel and dime over our fees and tell us how long things should take etc. then it does not usually lead to a harmonious relationship. So as one of the posters said, get three quotes and find a firm more in your budget where you can get the relationship off to a good start.

Completely agree that this is not a ten minute job. The only things that take me 10 minutes are easy questions on existing matters that I already know. Couple of hours at least and likely a bit more. Whilst it can be understandable when you don't work in legal practice or with lawyers to have unrealistic expectations of the ask, that's the case here.

@RosieMilkJug

You could try contacting Hourglass if you suspect there is a case of financial abuse.

Contact details in link
Hourglass