Legal fees

busybibi

If you agree fees to perform a certain action and don't do it can you still charge the agreed fee...... i liken it to painting a house and then not putting on the final coat .....any thoughts on this...... i am going to pay an amount but not the fee being charged ....thoughts anyone

eagle_&_bear

there's no easy answer to this.

On the surface of it you'd be inclined to say no. But in legal issues, sometimes certain issues arise which prevent matter from being concluded but which may have taken a practitioner down alternative paths and may have required numerous hours of research/fillng etc which may have raised the costs to what they currently are.

this is really a loaded question. It really depends on what the original work was? it also depends on problems that may have arisen during the work? why the work can not be finalised? Bare in mind, you can ask for a break down in the costs! If you are not happy with the full invoice, refer it to the Law Society who have a complaints department who can assist you further

But do be careful in plain outright refusing to pay a bill. By part-paying, that would not stop the person who is owed the money from seeking ''liquidated damages'' against you in the district court and getting an order against you for the amount of money due.

It may be easier in the initial outset to write to whomever is doing this work for you and ask then all the questions, once you have a response, work off that: whether that means more questions or lodging a complaint etc, or, paying the bill. you might be surprised just how quick costs rise

But think rationally before you leap (and in doing so, you might make the other persons case against you all the more easy)

dermot_sheehan

The issue is whether you can claim a set off for breach of contract.

You start off having a right of setoff under statute, but this can be removed by agreement and a court would look at the terms of the agreement to see if their was an agreement to remove the right to setoff.

If it's legal fees you are paying, if it's a costs order the other side has got against you this is enforceable once a certificate has issued from the taxing master and can be enforced against you in the same way as a judgment.

If it's your own legal team, they can sue you for the amount they claim due and owing. You are entitled to ask for your own legal bill to be taxed though which means a court officer goes through it to make sure it is reasonable.

Tom Young

In support of the post immediately above this one. You must be presented with a bill of costs and there are certain time limits which subsist in relation to same.

This is derived from The Solicitors (Ireland) Act 1894, Section 2. The provision prevents a solicitor from seeking to enforce a bill of costs unless and until the following conditions are met:

1. A bill of costs must have been delivered to the client;
2. One months must have passed since the delivery of the bill; and
3. The client can, within that one-month period, refer the bill to taxation.

This needs to be read with Section 6 of the above act.

The case of State (Gallagher Shatter & Co) v De Valera [1986] ILRM 3, per Mc Carthy J. Sets the test out in 4 points and is approved by Blayney J in Smyth v Montgomery Unrep, (High Court) July 7, 1986.

Equitable Off-Set subsists, and it is further available in the RSC under Order 99 Rule 4.

My view is that you must take great care before doing anything here and make sure a proper bill is available to you. In certain circumstances, such as instruction fees, the rules and statute is loose in relation to what can and must be stated.

The analogy above may not at all be appropriate if you do not understand and do not have the ability to prove the breach of agreement. I am not suggesting either, but making the point that you must be careful.

Tom