Places of Business	Telephone	Fax
35 Bury New Road Sedgley Park, Prestwich Manchester M25 9JY	0161 798 9000	0161 773 6578
59 York Street, Heywood OL10 4NR	01706 628008	01706 620236
Sankey Street, Bury, BL9 0JE	0871 288 9000	0161 765 3649
13 Square Street, Ramsbottom, BL0 9BL	01706 824811	08712 889010

1. Our Aim
We aim to offer our clients a professional licensed legal advice service at a fair cost, and in this is a statement the basis upon which we will provide you with our professional legal services.

2. Places of Business, People Responsible 

The fee earner named on the accompanying letter is primarily responsible for the conduct of your case under the control of their Department Supervisor. Other trained staff will deal with your general queries and will be pleased to assist you in the progress of your case.

The normal office hours are between 9:00 am to 5:15 pm on weekdays. Appointments can be arranged outside those hours when essential to the interests of a client. The place of business is provided in the attached client care letter.

3. Our Charges

If you already have insurance cover for your own or another’s legal fees, then you must tell us straightaway. We will ask you if you have any relevant insurance. If you do not tell us we will assume there is none but you may lose the right to be covered by your policy or any other policy.

We charge either by hourly rate or an estimated fee. Whatever the agreed basis for charging, we will add VAT at the rate that applies when the bill is issued.

You will be personally responsible for payment of our legal charges even if you have entered late an agreement with another to pay or share of your legal costs.
Our Fees are payable whether or not a case is successfully concluded or a transaction completed. If any case or transaction does not proceed to completion for any reason during the period in which the Firm is instructed, then the Firm shall be entitled to

charge for the work to date.
When in possession of all the relevant facts/information then when it is practical to do so and when requested by you we will, give you an estimate of the likely costs involved and will revise the estimate from time to time if practical. Also we will give you an estimate for of the disbursements that are likely to be incurred. Such an estimate is however only a guide to assist you in budgeting and should not be regarded as a fixed quotation.
In property transactions, in the administration of estates, and in transactions involving a substantial financial consideration or benefit to the client, fees may be calculated both by reference to the time spent and also by reference to a value element based on e.g. the price of the property, the size of the estate, or the value of the financial benefit.

Disbursements are any payments made by the Firm on behalf of the client e.g. court fees, counsel’s fees, fees for medical reports, search fees, Land or Probate Registry fees, etc. The Firm will not effect such payments unless funds have been provided by the client in advance for that purpose. VAT is payable on most disbursements.
Fixed Fee: We may agree to carry out work for a fixed fee. It will be quoted in our engagement letter to you. If at any stage it becomes impractical to complete the matter for the fee agreed we will inform you and seek your agreement to a revised fee prior to incurring additional charges.

Hourly Rate: Each client has a unique number. Case handler’s time is recorded in six minutes on a computerised time- recording unit system or manually. Rates are reviewed every 30th April. The rate is applied to time spent, for example, on research, meetings, making and receiving telephone calls, correspondence and travel.

We reserve the right to ask you to pay us money on account of both profit costs and disbursements.

The current hourly expense rates are set out below. These rates do not include VAT which will be added when an invoice is prepared.

Notaries Public £325
Consultant Partner £325
Senior Associate
Solicitor £325
CILEX £325
Chartered
Accountant £325
Associate Solicitor £295
Legal Executive £275
Costs Clark £275

Legal Assistant £205
Trainee Solicitor £205
Support Assistant £165

Additional Legal Services Offered by Latimer Lee Solicitors Limited:

Our fixed fee quoted in our statement of fees cover all the standard works associated with the conveyancing of a registered freehold or leasehold house.

Accelerated Completion required by client £150+VAT Acting for Company
£100+VAT
Auction
£175+VAT
Auction Pack preparation of Normal fee but 50% in advance
Bridging Finance
£250+VAT
Cheque production
£20+VAT
Cheque returned unpaid
£20+VAT
Cheque re-issue
£20+VAT
Cheque stop Cheque
£20+VAT
Contract Race
£150+VAT
Deed of Covenant
£100+VAT
Deed of Postponement
£150+VAT
Deed of Trust (Simple)
£250+VAT
Deed of Trust (Bespoke)
£On Request
Deed of Variation (Approval)
£200+VAT
Deed of Variation (Draft)
£500+VAT
Discharge of multiple charges
£75+VAT
Electric Transfer of Money
£39+VAT
Forwarding Title documents
£25+VAT
Gift/ Source of funds
£100+VAT

Help to Buy/HCA/Target (Sale/Purchase)
£200+VAT
Help to Buy ISA/Lifetime ISA
£50+VAT
Indemnity Policy
£30+VAT
Independent Legal Advice
£150+VAT
Key Undertaking
£125+VAT
Lease Extension
£700+VAT
Leasehold Flat (Sale and Purchase)
£200+VAT
Leasehold House (Sale and Purchase)
£75+VAT
Licence to Assign
£95+VAT
Management Company
£200+VAT
New build
£200+VAT
Notice of Charge/Transfer
£50+VAT
Obtaining retrospective Covenant consent
£150+VAT
Removal of Personal Charge
£150+VAT
Restriction/Notice/Caution dealing with
£150+VAT
Retention
£100+VAT
Returning Deeds from storage
£125+VAT
SDLT Forms
£75+VAT
SDLT Processing refund
£95+VAT
Septic Tank
£125+VAT
Shared Ownership
£250+VAT
Solar Panel Lease
£100+VAT
Specialist Lender dealing with
£150+VAT
Statutory Declaration/ Statement of Truth
£150+VAT
Tenancy Sale/Purchase subject to existing
£75+VAT
Tenants in Common in Transfer
£75+VAT
Unregistered Title
£150+VAT
Third Party Solicitor Lender
£250+VAT
Third Party Solicitor
£150+VAT
Additional work not noted
£To be advised

Preparation of Contract Package for Auction (our normal fee for estimated Value but NB 50% is payable in Advance of the auction.)

4. Funding

Property Transactions: An account will normally be rendered following the exchange of contracts and payment is required prior to or upon completion. Where sufficient funds are payable to the client upon completion, amounts due to The Firm shall be deducted from such funds unless otherwise agreed.
. Administration of Estates: we are entitled to deliver interim accounts at intervals during the Administration An interim bill can be submitted when the Grant has been obtained. If it then transpires that it will take some time to complete the Administration, further interim accounts will be rendered periodically and the final account will be presented when the estate accounts are delivered for approval
. For the above Non-Contentious matters we shall apply the charging guide lines in accordance with the Solicitors (Non- Contentious Business) Remuneration Order 2009, a copy of which will be provided to you upon your written request for the same. Also please visit our website for where updates and or variations to these terms are published.
. Other cases or transactions: It is normal practice to ask clients to pay sums of money from time to time on account of the fees and disbursements which are anticipated in the following weeks or months. It is helpful if clients meet such requests with prompt payment to avoid any delay in the progress of their case. In transactions or cases likely to continue for more than one month, interim accounts covering the work already carried out can be rendered at least quarterly (as this procedure enables clients to budget for costs as the matter progresses.) In the event of any account or request for payment on account not being paid, then the Firm reserves the right to decline to act further in the case. The full amount of work done up to that date will be the subject of a final account rendered and will be a debt due from you the client.

. In cases of transactions continuing for some period of time, many clients find it

convenient to arrange regular payments on account by way of Bank Standing Order. Clients who wish to make use of any of these facilities should discuss it with the person having the conduct of their file.

. If your matter is to be dealt with on a conditional, and or, no win no fee arrangement then this must be in writing and signed by a Partner of the Firm and be subject to the Firm’s Terms and Conditions. Please note that the terms provide that in the event of termination of your retainer with the Firm in respect of the matter, then the Firm’s normal fees will apply for all work done to the date of termination.

5. Billing Arrangements

Unless otherwise agreed, we can submit a statutory interim bill for our charges and expenses at the end of every 30 days while the matter progresses. We may submit other invoices if we need to incur a substantial expense on your behalf. We will send you a final bill after the matter has concluded.
Payment is due within seven days of date of the invoice. If full or part payment is late;
. It is our right to suspend work on all matters where you instruct us and to claim statutory interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate as at the date the debt became due or the fixed sum (where relevant in accordance with the amended Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest Act ) 1998) and

. We can charge interest on unpaid bills and we will do so at the rate payable on Judgment Debts, from one month after delivery of our bill in accordance with Article 5 of the Solicitors (Non-Contentious Business) Remuneration Order 2009.
. The firm has the right to exercise a lien and to withhold your file pending payment.

If you have a query about the bill you should contact the supervising partner

immediately. If you have a complaint about a bill, you should deal with it under our Complaints procedures referred to in this document. There may also be a right to object to a bill by making a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman and or by applying to the court for any assessment of the bill under Part lll of the Solicitors Act 1974.

6. Limited Companies and Limited Liability

In are cases where instructions are given to the firm by Directors and/or Shareholders and/or Members on behalf of a Limited Company and/or Limited Liability Partnership, then all (unless otherwise agreed in writing), such instructions are only accepted by the Firm on the basis that the Directors and/or Shareholders and/or Members concerned shall be personally responsible for the payment of the Firm’s costs and disbursements if the Limited Company and/or Limited Liability Partnership shall fail to pay the same.

7. Interest on Client Account

Any money received on your behalf and will be held in our general client account. Will have interest calculated and paid to you at the prevailing rate applied by the Natwest Latimer Lee Client account.

Mortgage: Where clients obtain borrowing from a lender the Firm will request the lender to arrange for the advance to be received by and credited to the Firm a minimum of 4 working days prior to the completion date so as to ensure that cleared funds are available in time for completion. Clients should note that the lender may charge interest from the date of issue of the advance.

8. Client Care

The Firm aims to offer all clients an efficient and value effective service. If however any difficulty should arise, or you have any problems with the service provided, please first raise them with the named case handler with day to day responsibility for the matter or with their supervisor. If this does not

resolve the issue to your satisfaction then you must contact Mrs. Patricia Latimer at the Sankey Street office (telephone no. 0871- 288-9000) who is the firm’s appointed Client Care Manager. The Firm has a written procedure in place which details the way in which we handle complaints, a copy of which will be made available to you upon request. If after we tell you that we have finished investigating you are still unhappy with our conclusion then you may write to the Legal Ombudsman www.legalombudsman.org.uk or at PO BOX 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ or by telephone number 0300 555 0333 to further consider the complaint. Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us about your complaint.

9. Storage of Papers and Documents

Following the conclusion of a transaction or case on behalf of a client, the Firm will retain the client’s file of papers for a minimum period of 3 years and thereafter for such period as the Firm, in its absolute discretion, shall deem to be appropriate if you require the file then you must notify us in writing.

The Firm provides a safe custody and storage service for clients’ Wills, Deeds and other securities and will charge for the work carried out in dealing with the same. The fee currently charged for the retrieval is £50

10. Anti-money Laundering

In order to enable us to satisfy our obligations under these Regulations and related legislation, it will almost always be necessary to supply appropriate proof of identity before we are able to act or continue to act for you or for any principal whom you may represent. We will also not be able to receive any funds from, or pay any funds to, you or on your behalf unless all necessary identification and other procedures have been satisfied for the purposes of the Regulations.

We may use electronic identification service providers to confirm your identity, and that of any beneficial owners.

11. Termination and Suspension

You may terminate your instructions to us in writing at any time but we will be entitled to keep all your papers if there is any money owing to us for our charges and expenses on this or any other matter.

We may decide to stop acting for you (permanently of temporarily) only on reasonable notice and with good reason. Examples are if an unforeseen conflict of interest arises, we are unable to obtain instructions from you, you do not pay an interim bill or comply with our request for payment of anticipated expenses, if there is a breakdown of the relationship of trust and confidence or if your instructions might put us in conflict with our Code of Conduct or the law.

Our charges and expenses will be payable on the date of termination.

12. Distance Selling/Off-Premises Contracts

If we have not met you and our retainer is concluded away from our premises the Consumer                Contracts      (Information Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 may apply to our retainer. If so, you can cancel your instructions to us within 14 days of receiving this letter without giving any reason. To exercise your right to cancel, you must inform us of your decision either by using the attached cancellation form or by letter sent by post, fax or email. Once we have started work you may be charged if you then cancel your instructions.

13. Insurance mediation activities

This Firm is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. However, we are included on the register maintained by the Financial Conduct Authority so that we can carry on insurance mediation activity, which is broadly the advising on, selling and administration of insurance contracts. This part of our business, including arrangements for complaints or redress if something goes wrong, is regulated by SRA. The register can be accessed via the Financial Conduct Authority website at www.fca.org.uk.

14. Tax advice
Any work that we do for you may involve tax implications or necessitate the consideration of tax planning strategies. We may not be qualified to advise you on the tax implications of a transaction that you instruct us to carry out, or the likelihood of them arising. If you have any concerns in this respect, please raise them with us immediately. If we can undertake the research necessary to resolve the issue, we will do so and advise you accordingly. If we cannot, we may be able to identify a source of assistance for you.

15. Insurance Arrangements
The Firm maintains Professional Indemnity Insurance in excess of the minimum required by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Our Insurer is Amelin The Leadenhall Building 122 Leadenhall Street London EC3V 4AG.The Legal Ombudsman (see paragraph 17 above) may provide a non judicial dispute resolution procedure.
We are obliged by our insurers to notify them of any circumstances known to us which may give rise to a claim against us. That may require us to tell them (and our brokers) information about you and your instructions to us which is privileged and to supply documents to them. We will only

pass on privileged or confidential information in good faith to ensure your legal rights to claim against us are preserved. Our insurers and brokers are contractually obliged to keep all information we pass to them strictly confidential. They may only use it for the purposes of administering our insurance arrangements including any claim you might make. Accordingly disclosure is important for you to protect your interests. We will assume you consent to our sharing information in this way unless you tell us you do not.

16. Data Protection Act
We are data controller and bound by the Act. We are entitled to obtain, process, use and disclose your personal data to enable us to discharge our duties to you, to liaise with third parties on your behalf and to comply with the law, update client records, produce management data, prevent crime and comply with regulatory requirements. You have a right of access under data protection legislation to the personal data we hold about you.

17. Equality and Diversity
Consistent with our internal policies and procedures we will not discriminate in the way we provide our services on the grounds of race, colour, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, gender, age, disability or marital status.

18. Communication

We will not be liable to you should any funds of yours or money received on your behalf be lost as a result of the failure or any other event beyond our reasonable control. Please be vigilant to fraud, we will NEVER notify you of a change of banking details by email, post or text message. If you receive such a notice, even if it appears genuine,

always speak to the person dealing with your matter by calling their main office number, this is printed on any official letter- headed correspondence received from us. Please be alert to the fact that fraudulent communications could contain fake contact telephone numbers. Please always speak to the person dealing with your matter before transferring any money. If you receive an email from Latimer Lee requesting your bank details or requesting monies always telephone your Solicitor immediately to confirm the details before making payment. Latimer Lee Solicitors Limited will not take responsibility if you transfer money to a wrong bank account.

19. Security of e-mails

Our e-mail is unencrypted. Whilst we take all reasonable security measures, there is a risk of interception. We cannot accept responsibility for any loss arising from a third party gaining access to e-mail between us. We will assume that you consent to the use of e-mail unless you tell us in writing that you do not.

20. Agreement
Your continuing instructions amount to your acceptance of these terms and conditions of business. In addition please sign and date the enclosed copy of these terms, and return it to us immediately. Unless otherwise agreed, these terms of business apply to any future instructions you give us.

21. Status
Latimer Lee Solicitors Limited is a Limited Company registered in England and Wales (registered number 05776773) and its registered office is 35 Bury New Road Prestwich Manchester M25 9JY. A full list of Directors is available from the registered

office. We use the term ‘Partner’, to refer to a Director of Latimer Lee Solicitors Limited. We are authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (Number 597229).

BASIS OF CHARGING IN NON-CONTENTIOUS BUSINESS
When charging for non-contentious work, consideration must be given to Article 3 of the Solicitors (Non-Contentious Business) Remuneration Order 1994 (SI 1994/2616). Article 3 states:
“ A solicitor’s costs shall be such sum as may be fair and reasonable to both solicitors and entitled person*, having regard to all circumstances of the case and in particular to:
a) The complexity of the matter or the difficulty or novelty of the questions raised;
b) The skill, labour, and specialised knowledge and responsibilities involved;
c) The time spent on the business;
d) The number and importance of the documents prepared or perused without regard to length;
e) The place where and the circumstances in which the business or any part thereof is transacted;
f) The amount or value of any money or property involved;
g) Whether any land involved is registered land;
h) The importance of the matter to the client; and
i) The approval (express or implied) of the entitled person* or the express approval of the testator to
i) the solicitor undertaking all or any part of the work giving rise to the costs or
ii) the amount of the costs”.
Practitioners are referred to the client care and costs information within this booklet and particularly to the information relating to charging rates. Best modern practice is to use an inclusive charging rate (including care and conduct) rather than to show the hourly rate separately from the care and conduct element.
Article 3 above contains those factors that need to be considered when calculating the care and conduct element of the charging rate.
For assistance in calculating the time element of the charging rate please see The Law Society publication “The Expense of Time” (details at the front of this booklet). * Entitled person as defined by Article 2 means the client and certain residuary beneficiaries (see Article 2 of the Solicitors’ (Non-Contentious Business) Remuneration Order 1994 at Appendix 1 of this booklet).
Value element
In certain areas of work, such as probate, mortgages, commercial leases and domestic conveyances amongst others, it may be appropriate to include a value element in the method of charging. Information on these specific areas is discussed in the subject areas below.
However, the question of whether a value element is used is a matter for agreement between the solicitor and the client; it is not mandatory. Where a value element is used, practitioners may wish to use the guidance that follows, which has been distilled from the decisions made by assessors in dealing with applications for remuneration certificates.
Where no specific information is given in the individual subject areas, the table below may assist:
Band Value Percentage
Up to £400,000 0.5%
On next £600,000 (maximum value £1million) 0.375%
On next £1,500,000 (maximum value £2.5 million) 0.25%
On next £2,500,000 (maximum value £5 million) 0.125%
On next £5,000,000 (maximum value £10 million) 0.1%

CHARGING IN PROBATE AND IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF ESTATES
Fair and reasonable
In all cases the overall consideration must be that the charges are fair and reasonable, having regard to all the circumstances of the matter. The figures below should not be regarded as scale charges in any way must always be exercised with discretion. In Jemma Trust v Liptrott [2003] EWCA Civ 1476, the Court of Appeal stated that it would be best practice to agree the charging regime in advance with not only the executors but also, where appropriate, with any residuary beneficiary who is an entitled third party under the Solicitors’ (Non-Contentious Business) Remuneration Order 1994. The Court of Appeal held that a value charge can either be made in addition to an hourly rate, or it can be included in the hourly rate, but the value element must not be reflected in both charges. The comments of the court are reproduced in Appendix 5 below but it is recommended that practitioners read the Jemma Trust judgment in its entirety.
Where appropriate, charges may consist of two elements:
(a) Hourly Rate
This should be an inclusive figure incorporating the fee earner’s expense rate and any appropriate care and conduct uplift.
(b) Value Element
Account may be taken of the value of the assets in the estates. In calculating the value element of the charge, the following approach may be helpful:
Consider the value nature and number of assets
It is unusual to divide the estate (i.e total value of the assets left after death) into two parts:
i) The deceased’s residence
The value of the deceased’s home, or as much of it as he or she owned, if it was shared with another person. For example, where the property is jointly owned, the value is reduced by half.
ii) Value of the rest of the estate

Apply an appropriate percentage
An appropriate percentage should be considered in the light of the circumstances of the case but the following may be helpful.
Solicitor not acting as an executor
Value of gross estate less residence 1%
Value of residence 0.5%
So for example if the residence was valued at £200,000 and was owned by the deceased alone this would be calculated as follows: £200,000 x 0.5% = £1,000.
Then consider the value of the rest of the estate, which say is, £50,000 ignoring the value of the residence then apply 1%. The remaining calculation therefore is:
Rest of estate is £50,000 the apply 1% = £500
Therefore total value element = £1,000 + £500 = £1,500.
Solicitor acting as sole executor or joint executor with another person
Value of gross estate less residence 1.5%
Value of residence 0.75%
Worked Example 2 – Solicitor acting as Executor
So for example if the residence was valued at £200,000 and was owned by the deceased as a joint tenant this would be calculated as follows:
Value of residence (£200,000 divided by 2) = £100,000 x 0.75% = £750. Note the value of the residence is reduced by half as the deceased owned it jointly with another person.
Then consider the value of the rest of the estate which is say £50,000 ignoring the value of the residence the apply 1.5%,
The remaining calculation is therefore:
Rest of the estate is £50,000 then apply 1.5% = £750
Therefore total value element = £750 = £750 = £1,500.
Solicitor not acting as an executor but acting for a corporate executor
General conduct of matter
Probate application only
Gross estate less residence 0.5% 0.06%
Residence 0.25% 0.12%
Solicitor acting as a joint executor with a corporate executor
Value of gross estate less residence 0.75%
Value of residence 0.375%
High value estates
When dealing with high value estates, consideration should be given to reducing the value element percentage charged in order to ensure that the overall level of charge is fair and reasonable. For general guidance on this point, see the case of Jemma Trust v Liptrott [2003] EWCA Civ 1476. In that case the Court of Appeal held that an appropriate charging regime was as set out in Appendix 4 of this booklet.
In the case of Jemma Trust, the Court of Appeal also noted that in the appropriate circumstances a regressive scale may also need to be applied to the value element related to the principal residence.

It is for individual practitioners to exercise their own professional judgment as to whether or not to apply the value element when charging for the administration of an estate.

CHARGING IN PROPERTY WORK
The following methods of charging may be appropriate.
Domestic Conveyancing
Two methods are suggested:
i) Calculate hourly expense rate
Add value element outlined in the table
Or
ii) Take a broad look at the circumstances of the transaction.
Calculate a single charging figure incorporating the time spent and what is fair and reasonable in all the circumstances. This single charging figure may comprise a fixed fee or an estimate. If an estimate is provided consideration should be given to updating costs information regularly see paragraph 6 of Solicitors’ Costs Information and Client Care Code 1999 (as amended) at Appendix 2 of this booklet.
In practice the second method is more commonplace.
Leasehold work
Hourly rate
This should be a single figure incorporating the time spent together with what is fair and reasonable in all circumstances.
Value element
The suggested formula for calculating the value element of charges for leasehold work is as follows:
i) take half the yearly rent
ii) multiply it by the unexpired term of the lease (limited to 20 years)
iii) add any premium payable by the lessee and deduct any payable by the lessor
iv) apply the following regressive scale to the value as calculated:
Value Band Percentage
Up to £400,000 ½% 0.5%
On next £600,000 (maximum value £1 million) 3/8% 0.375%
On next £1,500,000 (maximum value £2.5 million) ¼% 0.25%
On next £2,500,000 (maximum value £5 million) 1/8% 0.125%
On next £5,000,000 (maximum value £10 million) 1/10% 0.1%

Is the formula applicable to an assignment as well as a grant of a lease?
In “An Approach to Non-Contentious Costs” the above formula is described as a formula for establishing a capital value. It does not discuss whether or not a value element is applicable. If on an assignment the circumstances suggest a value element is justifiable, the formula can be used to calculate it.

Fair and Reasonable
Please note that these figures do not constitute a recommended scale. The final figure should still be reviewed to ensure that the charges are fair and reasonable having regard to all the circumstances.