HOW ARE LEGAL COSTS IN PROCEEDINGS CALCULATED? WILL I RECOVER ALL OF THESE?
Friday, May 14, 2010 @ 12:01 PM
Legal costs are generally calculated using the local college of lawyers' tariffs, however these are non binding. This booklet, published by the college of lawyers in the court and province where the matter is being handled, sets out the legal costs that a lawyer could charge you for the many types of legal services and actions carried out on your behalf.
The tariff booklet is only a guide for lawyers when setting out their fees. Actual legal fees could be higher or lower depending on the firm acting or defending the matter, the expertise and experience of the particular lawyers handling the matter. The courts usually rely on these tariffs when assessing how much as far as legal costs should be awarded.
So, will you recover all of your legal costs if your claim is 100% successful?(*)
Well you could be faced with the scenario that you instructed a firm with a dedicated and specialist litigation department whose legal fees are higher than those of the local college. Under these circumstances you may recover the fees set by the college of lawyers for the matter in question and in the province where the matter is being heard. However the difference between these costs and your lawyers costs (if any), would be payable by you. Of course, the reverse position could also apply. You instruct a firm and the claim is successful and their costs are lower then those set by the local college of lawyers, you could receive the positive difference from.
If you are considering issuing legal proceedings, it is important to consider that you will only be able to sue once for the same matter. So when instructing lawyers, regardless of who you instruct, ensure that they are specialists in their area, communication is not an issue and their fee structure is transparent!
(*) See earlier post on legal costs and recoverability.