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.

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: o Barristers fees. o Experts Fees. o Court Fees. o Travel Expenses. o Interpreter Fees

Overheads & Administrative Disbursements do not include costs which are considered to form part of the administrative overheads such: o Photocopying in-house* o Courier fees* o Postage o Stationary o Faxes o Scanning o Typing o There 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

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 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 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 o Must have regard to the rates set out in section for other experts, and whether there are experts of a similar nature o May require a number of quotes to assess the reasonableness of the rate payable o Where 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 o Number of parties o Children and their vulnerability o Mental health problems o Cultural or language factors

Process Servers Generally we will see the following steps for process servers o Collecting documents from the solicitors office or the court o Travel to the address of the respondent or area given (usually when the respondent does not have a fixed address) o Service of documents o Travel back to the office o Preparing and swearing affidavits 13

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 o Was there a reasonable need for the journey o Was the appropriate form of transport used. o Would 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 Rate45 pence per mile Public Transport Mileage Rate25 pence per mile Train TravelStandard 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 17

Evidence Requirements Payment on AccountBill 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 FeesVoucher or copy of ledger detailing payment

Cost Assessmen t Guidance Other Guidance Requirement for voucher over £203.1 What disbursements can be incurred 3.2Funding code criterion 1.3 Fee earner travel Costs3.10 – 3.21 Funded client travel costs3.22 – 3.31 Photocopying3.36 – 3.38 Experts Fees CLS (funding) order 2007 Part 14 Payment Annex 6.62 Contract Specification Admin charges and cancellation fees contract specification