An example Conditional Fee Agreement can be found at the Law Society’s website at http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/support-services/documents/model-conditional-fee-agreement. Conditional Fee Agreements should always include guidance notes on “what you need to know” before entering any such agreement. They require specific contractual provisions to make them enforceable, as otherwise you could be liable for your solicitor’s legal costs.
An example of a Conditional Fee Agreement which would be appropriate would most commonly be where you have a claim for recovery of damages or a loss which you could not otherwise afford to pay the legal costs of litigating. With a Conditional Fee Agreement, there will be very little or no costs incurred in taking the legal proceedings through to the end of trial, and the legal costs that become payable in the event of success (comprising standard hourly rates plus a % uplift in the event of success) will be recoverable at the standard rate and the award or damages recovered will be sufficient to more than pay for the premium or uplift.
This example is very popular, although is not the only example of where a Conditional Fee Agreement is appropriate.
For example, particularly in litigation concerning non-money claims, there may be a situation where the outcome would pay for the increased cost of a Conditional Fee Agreement.
We commonly deal with Director Disqualification claims, where the successful defence (and thus ability the continuing acting as a Director) provides a sufficient financial benefit to outweigh the additional cost of the uplift on the otherwise standard legal costs.
At Francis Wilks & Jones we are extremely familiar with all types of funding models and will seriously consider entering into a CFA, subject to a risk assessment. We can also discuss alternative forms of litigation funding applicable to your situation.
Please call any member of our commercial litigation team for your consultation now. Alternatively e mail us with your enquiry and we will call you back at a time convenient to you.
