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Civil Case Management –
December 2013
Disbursement Training – Private Family Law
Disbursements
• These are sums paid out by the solicitor in connection with
the conduct of the particular case (as opposed to those
which could benefit any of his cases).
• Each and every disbursement must first have been
reasonable to incur and secondly reasonable in it’s amount.
• Guidance on disbursements can be found in section 3 of the
civil costs assessment manual.
• http://www.justice.gov.uk/legal-aid/funding
Evidence Requirements
• Invoices or receipts must be provided in respect of any
disbursement of £20 or more (inclusive of VAT).
• Where the nature of the disbursement, court fees and
mileage, is such that no invoice or receipt is available, this
should be evidenced by a note on file to this effect.
• The Claim form provides for a schedule of the disbursements
incurred, and these must be cross referenced against the
invoice or receipt received, and retained with the bill on
payment.
Types of Disbursements
• The variety of disbursements that can be incurred is
enormous, however they must have context within the
proceedings.
• They may include:
oBarristers fees.
oExperts Fees.
oCourt Fees.
oTravel Expenses.
oInterpreter Fees
Overheads & Administrative
• Disbursements do not include costs which are considered to
form part of the administrative overheads such:
oPhotocopying in-house*
oCourier fees*
oPostage
oStationary
oFaxes
oScanning
oTyping
oThere are exceptions*
Prior Authority
• You must consider whether the solicitor sought a prior
authority before incurring a disbursement.
• If an authority was sought and granted then the
disbursement should not be disallowed on assessment
(although the cost limits on the certificate can not be
exceeded).
• If no prior authority was sought or if prior authority was
sought and refused the decision is whether it was reasonable
to incur the disbursement.
• Prior authorities to exceed the set rates on certificates
granted after 03/10/2011 are dealt with by our Cardiff office.
Reasonableness
• All disbursements are subject to an assessment of whether
these costs are considered reasonable.
• Factors that will be considered are:
o What is it’s purpose and importance to the case?
o What service is involved and is there a choice of
alternative service providers (if so to what extent)
o Are all the elements of the service justified in the
particular case and at the particular time
o Is the time claimed in undertaking the service reasonable
and proportionate?
o Should the fees be apportioned?
Reasonable in Amount
• Historically there were no prescribed rates for the various
disbursements that might be incurred.
• For certificates granted post 03/10/11 the Legal Aid Reforms,
imposed prescribed rates for some types of disbursements
• These rates are mandatory and disbursements must be
checked to ensure that they have been applied.
• These rates can only be exceeded where a prior authority
has been granted.
• Guidance and rates can be found on the website
• http://www.justice.gov.uk/legal-aid/funding/using-experts
Civil and Family Expert Rates – Timeline of rates
No codified expert rates
Community Legal Service
(Funding) (Amendment No.2) Order
2011
Introduced codified rates
Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration)
Regulations April 2013
Pre-October 2011
On/after 3 October
2011
On/after 1 April 2013
On/after 2 December
2013
Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration)
Regulations December 2013
New rate for surveyors and removed London differential for some experts
Reduced most expert fees by 20%.
Maximum rates for experts have been in place since October 2011. The case start date
will determine which set of rates applies.
London and Non London Rates
• There are some rate differences between London and Non
London based experts
• London rates are payable when the expert is based within a
London borough
• You can enter their postcode or address in the following link
to determine whether they are based in a London borough
• http://local.direct.gov.uk/LDGRedirect/Start.do?mode=1
• The rate payable is based on the registered office of the
expert
• Where the expert has more than one office the office closest
to the client or provider should be used to determine the rate
No Expert Rate
• Where an expert is not listed the LAA or the court will assess
the rate payable
• In considering the rate at which to fund the expert service the
commission
oMust have regard to the rates set out in section for
other experts, and whether there are experts of a similar
nature
oMay require a number of quotes to assess the
reasonableness of the rate payable
oWhere necessary have access to the experts CV
Other Experts
• No cancellation fee is payable for an expert where the
hearing or appointment was cancelled more than 72 hours in
advance
• Travel time rates capped at £40 per hour.
• The rate payable for travel should never be more than the
hourly rate charged
• Mileage limited to 45p per mile
• No separate payment for administration costs such as typing,
consulting room or courier fees although the telephone calls
may be allowed if they progress the case.
Reasonableness – Time Spent
• There are no set times for expert reports in terms of what is
reasonable
• The factors that might influence the time spent are
oNumber of parties
oChildren and their vulnerability
oMental health problems
oCultural or language factors
Process Servers
• Generally we will see the following steps for process
serverso Collecting documents from the solicitors office or the
courto Travel to the address of the respondent or area given
(usually when the respondent does not have a fixed
address)o Service of documentso Travel back to the officeo Preparing and swearing affidavits
14
Solicitor Travel• Travel by a solicitor is claimable based upon time (Profit
Costs) and also as to costs of travel (disbursement)
• Consideration should be given to
oWas there a reasonable need for the journey
oWas the appropriate form of transport used.
oWould it have been reasonable for the client to instruct
a more local provider
• If either aspect is considered inappropriate consideration
should be given to whether this impact upon the other aspect
of the cost.
Travel and Subsistence Rates
Standard Mileage Rate 45 pence per mile
Public Transport Mileage Rate 25 pence per mile
Train Travel Standard fares only
Overnight hotel (London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool and Newcastle upon tyne)
£85.25 per night
Overnight hotel (all other areas) £55.25 per night
Overnight (other than hotel) £25
Night subsistence allowance £21 per night
Personal Incidental allowance £5 per night
Other Client Travel
• The Commission may also be required to pay the funded
client’s travel costs to attend upon experts however the
solicitors will have to show that:
o The client was impecunious, and
o Travelling to the expert was necessary in order to make or
keep the case viable.
Court Fees
• These are fees paid to the court in respect of the issuing
of proceedings• They are a set amount but the amount differs depending
on the nature of proceedings• Details of the court fees can be found on the justice
website• http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/fees
18
Evidence Requirements
Payment on Account Bill
Disbursement (unless specified below)
•Voucher for any disbursement over £20 (including VAT)•Voucher should contain breakdown of work undertaken and hourly rate
•Voucher for any disbursement over £20 (including VAT)•Voucher should contain breakdown of work undertaken and hourly rate•Schedule of disbursements to be provided
Drug and alcohol testing
•Invoice is required (no requirement for hourly rates)•Check POA matches invoice
•Invoice required with details of work undertaken•Court Order detailing what is to be tested
Court Fees •Voucher or copy of ledger detailing payment
•Voucher or copy of ledger detailing payment
Cost Assessment Guidance
Other Guidance
Requirement for voucher over £20 3.1
What disbursements can be incurred
3.2 Funding code criterion 1.3
Fee earner travel Costs 3.10 – 3.21
Funded client travel costs 3.22 – 3.31
Photocopying 3.36 – 3.38
Experts Fees 3.39 - 3.47 CLS (funding) order 2007Part 14 Payment Annex6.62 Contract Specification
Admin charges and cancellation fees
3.44 4.24 contract specification