E-mail:info@beforethejudge.co.uk 
Dear Client
 
RE: Your Case
 
Thank you for instructing me to work on your case.  I shall do my best to ensure that everything proceeds as smoothly as possible.  I have enclosed a copy of the Bar Standard Board’s (BSB) guidance which explains how the Public Access scheme works.
 
This letter is to confirm the work I have agreed to do for you and to set out the terms on which I have agreed to do it.  It is very important that you read through this letter carefully and let us know immediately if you have any questions about its content. 
 
This letter is very important as it will form a contract between us.  If you agree with the terms as set out in this letter, then please sign and date the duplicate copy in the space provided on the final page, and return the signed copy to my clerks as soon as possible.  In doing so, a contractual agreement will be created between you (the client) and me (the barrister).
 
Work I have agreed to do
 
The work I have agreed to carry out in your case is as follows:
 
Telephone consultation up to 30 minutes. (no reading of any prior documents)
 
After I have completed the work described above, your instruction to me is brought to an end.
 
Please note that the work specified above does not include any email or telephone correspondence with me. If you need to instruct me to do additional work for you (above and beyond that noted above), there will need to be another letter of agreement between us and an additional fee paid.  Any such additional work must be agreed with my clerks prior to being undertaken. 
 
As I carry out all my work personally and cannot predict what other professional responsibilities I may have in the future, I cannot at this stage guarantee that I will be able to accept instructions for all subsequent work that your case may need.  We can of course discuss this further if and when the situation arises.
 
My Fees / Making Payments
 
As already discussed, my charge for the agreed work described above is a fixed fee of £115 plus VAT (if payable). 
 
 
Therefore, the total amount payable, including VAT, is £138. This fee must be settled no later than 24 hours after booking.
 
Please note that the fees above do not include applications fees to third parties (including the Home Office), court and tribunal fees, and fees owed to instructed experts.
 
By signing this letter you are agreeing to be responsible for paying my fees in full and in advance of my undertaking any work on your case, including the considering of any relevant paperwork. 
 
You can make payment in the following ways:
 
Paypal (link to be sent once this agreement is signed)
 
 
Responsibility for the Work
 
I am a barrister and therefore a sole practitioner.  I practice, however, alongside other barristers based at Garden Court Chambers at the above address.  I am the only person you are instructing and I shall therefore personally carry out the work agreed.  Where appropriate, however, I may delegate tasks of an administrative nature to my clerks. 
 
Please rest assured that no other barrister will work for you unless and until we have your agreement. There may be times when I am not available to you, for example, if I am in court for a day or for several days in a row.  In these circumstances, you will be able to contact my clerks and, in an emergency, they should be able to get a message to me or otherwise assist.  Please note, however, that my clerks are not able to carry out any legal work or give any legal advice to any client in any case.
 
The range of work I can carry out
 
There are only certain types of legal work that barristers are able to undertake.
 
For example, I am able to:
 
                i.         Advise you, in person or in writing, on the merits of your case as well as legal options available to you and steps that may need taking;
 
              ii.         Draft letters on your behalf and send them to another person;
 
             iii.         Appear on your behalf to argue your case at Court or before a Tribunal;
 
             iv.         Draft witness statements on your behalf and, in certain circumstances, help finalise witness statements being prepared on behalf of another person based on information already provided.
 
              v.         Advise you on the need for expert evidence and on the choice of a suitable expert.
 
             vi.         Draft formal court documents for you.
 
 
Unlike solicitors, however, I am not able to:
 
                i.         Correspond with you by email or over the phone regarding the daily administration of your case;
 
              ii.         Actively collect evidence in your case;
 
             iii.         Find or initiate contact with a possible witness;
 
             iv.         Actually instruct an expert on your behalf;
 
              v.         Handle your money (other than accepting fees for payment of services to you);
 
             vi.         Undertake the administrative management of a case proceeding through a court.
 
            vii.         Serve or file at court documents on your behalf.  You will need to take responsibility for serving formal court documents on other parties and filing them at court.  Serving court documents is the process by which papers relating to the case are put before the court or tribunal and the parties, e.g. individuals or organisations, involved in the case.  This usually signals the start of formal proceedings.
 
          viii.         Go on the court record or provide my address to the court as the “address for service” of documents (that is, the address which you are required to provide to the court for receipt by you of formal court documents sent by the court or other parties).  You will need to be listed on the court record as a litigant in person.  You will need to provide your own address as the “address for service” of documents.
 
As you are instructing me without a solicitor, you must be sure that:
 
                i.         You are able to deal with whichever matters I cannot; or
 
              ii.         You have made an arrangement with another person of suitable competence and experience to undertake any such work on your behalf.
 
Using a Solicitor
 
In all my professional work I must follow the Barrister Code of Conduct. As a result, if I consider at any stage that it is required and/or in your best interests that a solicitor be instructed in your case, I will have to stop working on your case until such a time as you instruct a solicitor and they in turn instruct me.  If I foresee such a situation arising, I will of course give you as much notice as possible.
 
It is also important that you understand that I cannot do legal aid work unless I have been instructed by a solicitor.  Further details regarding legal aid work are set out below.
 
Legal Aid / Public Funding
 
If you would like to investigate the possibility of your being eligible for public funding (or “legal aid” as it is commonly known), you will need to contact a solicitor who undertakes work for the Legal Aid Agency.  If required, we can refer you to such solicitors. Public funding is generally only available for work carried out for a client by a solicitor, although this solicitor may in turn instruct a barrister to carry out certain pieces of work in the matter.
 
Even if you are not eligible for or do not want to investigate whether or not you are eligible for public funding, there may be other reasons why you would feel happier with the services provided by an organisation (rather than an individual).  If so, you may wish to consider instructing a firm of solicitors to handle your case.  Please let us know immediately, and before signing this agreement letter, if you would rather instruct a solicitors’ firm.  We will happily refer your case on to an appropriate firm for solicitors.
 
Documents
 
In signing this letter you are agreeing to my keeping copies of any documents you give me as part of my own professional records.
 
Only copies of your documents should be provided to us. Please note that we can scan your documents or produce photocopies of your original documents if you attend chambers in person with the original documentation. However, I may have to charge you (separately and in addition to my above-noted fixed fee) for producing photocopies Please do not post original documents to us as we cannot accept responsibility if they are lost.
 
Confidentiality
 
The information which you give me will be treated with the utmost professional confidence. The only exception to this is if a statutory or other legal requirement leaves me obliged to disclose information which I have received from you to governmental or other regulatory authorities and to do so without obtaining your consent to such disclosure or telling you that I have made it.
 
In signing the contract we are making between us will be governed by English law, and any dispute will be subject to the jurisdiction of the English courts.
 
Right to Cancel
 
You have the right to cancel this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.  The “right to cancel” period will expire after 14 days from the day on which the contract is entered into.  To exercise this right to cancel, you must inform me of your decision to cancel within 14 days from the date of agreement by sending me a clear statement e.g. by letter, fax or email using the details provided at the top of this letter.
 
Effect of Cancellation
 
If you cancel this contract within the cancellation period, I will reimburse to you all the payments received from you, subject to a deduction of a proportionate amount for any work I have already carried out on your case during the 14 day period.
 
However, if you have booked me to attend a court hearing the following refund provisions will apply:  
Cancellation more than 10 full working days prior to the hearing: full fees   
Cancellation less than 10 working days but more than 5 full working days prior to the hearing: 50% of fees paid   
Cancellation less than 5 full working days prior to the hearing: No fees refunded  
In the event that you book my attendance at court for more than 1 day no refund will be paid in the event of your case concluding in a shorter period than that booked save as set out above.  
 
If you book me for a conference/consultation, your fee is non-refundable unless you are within the cancellation period (14 days)
 
 
Complaints
 
We aim to offer all our clients an efficient and effective service and I am confident that we will do so in your case. 
 
Should there be any aspect of our service with which you are unhappy, however, please contact me or my clerks in the first instance.  If we cannot resolve the issue between ourselves you can make a formal complaint to: 
 
The Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6167
Slough
SL1 0EH
 
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Phone: 0300 555 0333
Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
 
Next Steps
 
As explained above, before I can commence any work of any description on your case, I need you first, as soon as possible and certainly by any specifically agreed deadlines to:
 
Sign and date a copy of this letter in the space provided
 
Pay my agreed fee; 

As soon as you have done the above you will be re-directed to a page to book an available slot for your conference.
 
I look forward to working with you and thank you again for choosing to instruct me.
 
Should you have any questions regarding this letter, please do not hesitate to contact my clerks on the number provided above.
 
Yours sincerely,
 
 
           
Luke McLean
Direct Access Barrister (Before the Judge)         
At Garden Court Chambers
 
 
I confirm that I have read, fully understood and agree to the terms as set out in this letter.