Legal costs

This content applies to England only.

Housing laws vary between England and Scotland. Get advice relating to Scotland

Getting legal advice and representation can be very expensive. Some people are eligible for legal aid, and the other party in the court case can be ordered to pay your legal costs in some circumstances. This section outlines how legal costs and legal aid are calculated.

What legal costs might I have to pay?

Depending on the complexity of your case, the legal costs involved might include:

Court fees
Solicitors’ fees
Barrister’s fees
Expenses
Expert witnesses’ fees
VAT.

Solicitors usually charge in one of three ways:

by agreeing a fixed fee at the beginning of the case
by charging a percentage of the value of your claim (this is the case in many 'no win, no fee' arrangements - see below)
by calculating their fees based on how much time has been spent working on your case - where this is the case, they are entitled to charge you for all phone calls, meetings, letter writing, representation in court etc.

Always ask your solicitor for a written quote before they start working for you, and ask them to keep you updated if the cost of your case is going up (eg if there are complications and/or, your case takes longer to resolve than originally thought).

Is there a limit to what solicitors can charge?

Your solicitor should always explain any costs to you in advance. If you think their bill is too high, you should contact her/him immediately and ask for an explanation of the costs involved.

If you can't come to an agreement about the bill, it can be independently checked by the Legal Complaints Service. This service is free but there are strict time limits for applying, so it's important to speak to your solicitor immediately. You can't usually apply more than a month after you get the bill.

Ask your solicitor to apply for a remuneration certificate (you can't apply for one yourself). Your solicitor will have to fill in a form and send it to you for your comments. S/he will then send the application form, your comments and the original paperwork to the Legal Complaints Service . If the Legal Complaints Service believes that the service you received was unsatisfactory, it can:

reduce the bill
order your solicitor to pay you compensation (up to £5,000)
make your solicitor correct a legal error and pay any costs involved.

If it's too late to ask the Legal Complaints Service to check your bill, you may want to consider taking your solicitor to court. If you want to do this, you should get advice from an independent solicitor first.

Who pays the legal costs at the end of a court case?

If you win your case, the judge will often make the other party pay your legal costs. But this is not guaranteed. The judge might think that you should pay some of them yourself, or the other party may not have any money to pay at all.

Obviously, the opposite also applies if you lose your case. If this happens, you may have to pay some or all of the other party’s costs, as well as your own. A solicitor can advise you about insuring against this risk.

What about ‘no win, no fee’ arrangements?

Some solicitors work for you on a ‘no win, no fee’ agreement. If you employ a solicitor in this way, you will only have to pay if you win your case. But bear in mind that you may still not get all of your costs paid (see above). In most cases, the fees you will have to pay if you win are a percentage of any compensation that is awarded by the court.

Can I get legal aid?

Legal aid (or 'public funding') is government money that can help people to pay for legal advice and representation if they cannot afford it. Legal aid is controlled by the Legal Services Commission and is only available if:

you satisfy a means test (a financial assessment), and
you have a good chance of winning your case.

Emergency legal aid can be granted in very urgent cases.

The financial assessment

If you are receiving means tested benefits such as income support, income-based job seekers’ allowance, or employment support allowance, you are probably eligible for legal aid. However, you still have to show that you have a good chance of winning.

If you are not receiving one of the qualifying benefits, there is a complicated means test (a financial assessment). This takes into account your income and capital, and some of your expenses such as housing costs and the costs of looking after dependants. In some cases you may be asked to pay a monthly contribution towards your legal costs.

You can use the legal aid eligibility calculator to check whether you are eligible, or call the Community Legal Advice helpline on 0845 345 4 345. You can also try contacting a local advice centre. Use our directory to find one in your area.

You must keep the Legal Services Commission informed if your financial situation changes, particularly if your pay is increased or if you come into money. You may have to contribute to your legal aid costs, or lose your legal aid. Talk to your solicitor or adviser as soon as possible if your financial circumstances change.

The assessment of your case

If you apply for legal aid, your solicitor has to inform the Legal Services Commission about your case. When they do this they must tell them about any possible problems that might reduce your chances of winning, as well as about the good points of your case. They must be able to show that there is a legal basis for your case.

Legal aid will generally only be available in cases where there is a good chance of winning. For most cases, that means a better than 50:50 chance of winning.

Costs covered by legal aid

You will normally only be eligible for legal aid if you have a good chance of winning. However, if you are facing eviction or repossession, as long as you have a defence you can qualify, even if you have a low chance of winning. The outcome of some eviction and possession cases depend on whether it is 'reasonable' to order possession. Where this is the case, it is almost always possible to argue that it would not be reasonable, so legal aid can be available, as long as you satisfy the means test.

Your case can only get legal aid if it is worth going to court about it. If your case is worth less than £5,000, or £1,000 in a housing disrepair case, it is within the small claims limit, and legal aid is not available. And larger cases may be refused legal aid if the amount that you are likely to gain by going to court (eg in damages or compensation) is small in comparison with the likely legal costs.

Are there different types of legal aid?

At first, legal aid may be given for 'investigative help'. This will allow your solicitor to investigate your case and work out what your chances of winning are.

If the Legal Services Commission is satisfied that you have a good chance of winning your case you may be given 'full representation'. Even with full representation, your solicitor will only have permission to do work up to a financial limit, or up to a certain point in the case, and will have to ask the Legal Services Commission to extend its funding if more is needed.

Other kinds of legal aid are available called 'legal help' and 'help at court'. They can be used to pay your legal costs, for example:

if you face a possession case as a result of rent arrears or mortgage arrears and the only disagreement is the amount of the arrears or the terms of a suspended possession order
to make a complaint to your landlord
for advice about alternative dispute resolution.

What costs will legal aid not cover?

If you are eligible, legal aid can cover most housing-related courts, but many other kinds of legal work are excluded. For example, it will not cover the legal costs of:

selling your home
a case about your business premises, unless you also live there (eg a farm or pub)
a case about property that you rent to someone else
a claim that goes to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal.

The rules about what is covered are complicated and it is best to get advice from a solicitor, adviser or the Legal Services Commission about your particular case.