Paying for legal services

No win, no fee agreements

Apart from family or criminal matters, many types of claim are suitable for a Conditional Fee Agreement, commonly known as 'no win, no fee'.

If your claim is successful

In a 'no win, no fee' agreement your solicitor will only be paid if the claim is successful. He or she will also be entitled to an extra fee (known as a success fee). Both the basic fee and this extra fee are normally paid in whole or part by the losing party.

There are other incurred costs (such as court fees or the fee for a medical report). These are normally known as disbursements. Again, the losing party should pay all or part of these costs.

You are liable to pay your solicitor for any costs that the losing party is not ordered to pay.

If your claim fails

You will not have to pay your own solicitor, but you will still probably have to pay the costs of the successful party - the other side. Also, you will have to pay any other incurred costs (such as court fees or the fee for a medical report). These are normally known as disbursements. However, your solicitor will normally be able to arrange insurance to cover this risk. This is known as 'after the event' insurance. You may have to pay the insurance premium.

For a 'no win, no fee' arrangement to be valid, the solicitor has to complete a number of formalities and give you pieces of information at various stages.

Follow these links for more information on choosing and using a solicitor.