Check My Legal Fees News
Gaskell -v- R J Gill Solicitors : refund of £1,750 legal fees deducted following a tripping accident
If you have received a "statute bill" from your solicitors after any sort of legal case, you should get in touch with us quickly. In most cases you will only have a month from receiving that bill in which to challenge it, and your opportunity to get a refund of any legal fees paid may be lost
Mark Carlisle, Checkmylegalfees.com
Mr.Gaskell instructed R J Gill Solicitors of Skelmersdale following an accident on 17th November 2017 when he tripped on uneven paving stones outside his daughter's school. It was winter, dark and round about 5 pm when he went to collect her. He stubbed his toe on some uneven paving stones, fell and went over breaking his wrist. He was put in a cast and then had an operation to fix the fracture with pins and plates.
He instructed R J Gill Solicitors who agreed to represent him under a Conditional Fee Agreement (often called a "no win, no fee" agreement), which provided for a success fee to be payable by Mr.Gaskell should his case be successful.
The local authority, who were responsible for the paving stones, admitted very quickly that they were at fault and - once Mr.Gaskell had waited for the break to heal, seen a specialist and undergone physio - a final medical report was obtained and the case was settled on 22nd July 2019 for compensation of £18,500. This was made up of £17,500 for the injury, £800 for care that had been provided to Mr.Gaskell, and £200 for miscellaneous travel costs.
Mr.Gaskell only received £15,000 however, R J Gill Solicitors having deducted a total of £3,500 including VAT for legal fees including their success fee. That figure was precisely 20% of the injury element of the compensation.
Mr.Gaskell instructed us on 13th August 2019 and an initial review led us to believe that he had been overcharged. We had to act quickly because on 29th July R J Gill Solicitors had sent him a "statute bill" (which is a final bill setting out what they had charged him, along with the amounts that they had received from the other side in the form of fixed costs). There are strict time limits for making any application to have the court assess a bill, and we had to get proceedings issued within a month of him receiving the bill.
We were able to do that and court proceedings were issued on 27th August 2019.
On 23rd October 2019 we received an offer from R J Gill Solicitors to refund £1,750 of the amount that they had deducted and that offer was accepted on 29th October 2019.
As part of the settlement R J Gill have also paid our costs, Mr.Gaskell has received his refund in full, without us deducting a single penny for fees.
