Divorce Costs and Fixed Fee Divorce

The court fee for a divorce is presently £593. A family law solicitor may charge you a fee of £500-750 plus VAT at 20% for their services. Some clients wish however to undertake the actual divorce itself to save some costs. That is fine but it is important to keep your divorce solicitor informed about what is happening. 

However, there can also be some good legal reasons not to apply to the decree absolute/final divorce order, for example, because of loss of pension rights.

Equally, at the outset care is needed for example is there is an international dimension to your case and jurisdiction issues to consider and get right.

There will also be other legal costs, for example, in relation to any financial agreement or children. The costs can be more difficult to estimate because it depends on the extent of the family law issues, any complexity, what actual works needs to be done, the stances that you and your partner have taken and so on.

At your first appointment, your family law solicitor should make you aware of:

• The likely cost of the case
• How they will charge for their service
• Your divorce solicitor should also provide you with a terms of engagement letter which sets out the scope of your retainer with them and how they bill together with details of hourly rates.

Moving forward your family law must keep you updated on your legals costs throughout your case and give you a clear bill detailing the work completed and the amount charged.
Estimating costs is not an exact science especially because there could be changes in the case, for example, something happens halfway through the case that needs to be dealt with, a problem may arise, an application to court may be necessary or you wish to change your instructions.

That said, your solicitor should be able to give you a broad estimate of the likely fees to conclude your case or at least to a relevant stage. You are also entitled to ask for an estimate in terms of what the costs might be if you are able to reach an early divorce/financial agreement or in relation to the children.

This is all with a view to you and your divorce solicitor performing what is called a cost/risk/benefit analysis eg. do the costs and risks outweigh the benefits in taking a particular step?

If so, you may decide not to take that step if it is going to be a waste of time and money. This is to help you make an informed decision about how to proceed with your case, how to reach a family law agreement.

Sometimes this involves making a commercial decision or to reach a compromise with your partner on a particular issue.

You should choose a family law solicitor who you feel comfortable dealing with and you can speak to more than one solicitor before appointing one to act for you. If you choose a solicitor you’re unhappy with, you are entitled to change your solicitor.

It is always best to make an appointment to see your solicitor and be prepared for the first consultation.

Before you meet your solicitor, you should:

• Ask if you need to prepare any background information to your case
• Also ask if you need to bring any documents or papers with you
• Prepare a list of questions you want to ask and to help jog your memory
• Let your solicitor know if you would like to bring someone with you
• Tell them if you have a disability and need a reasonable adjustment

At the first appointment your family law solicitor should:

• Introduce themselves and put you at ease. The meeting is private and confidential
• Ask you to explain want legal advice you want, what is important to you and what you wish to achieve
• Spot the relevant legal issues and explain different options to you and advise
• This might a discussion about the strengths and weaknesses of you case
• Explain what other type of advice you may need, for example, about pensions, companies, tax or if there are specific professionals who might be able to help with the children
• Answer your questions
• Make you aware of the cost and time it might take to conclude you case
• Set out what next steps are and to look at prioritising any urgent issues

After the first appointment, your divorce solicitor should follow up with a letter or email, setting out their terms of engagement and any separate advice. This should include:

• The name and details of the family law solicitor instructed on your behalf
• The issues you discussed, the legal advice and the next steps
• An estimate of the legal costs together with any agreed spending limit and the time to conclude matters
• Details of how your solicitor is regulated and how you can complain

You should keep your solicitor updated about any changes to your personal or financial circumstances that may affect your case. For example, changes to your financial position may affect your entitlement to legal aid.

Your family law family law solicitor should be transparent and explain:

• How much your case is likely to cost at the outset or to a relevant stage
• Keep you updated about costs during the family law process
• Provide you with bill(s) clearly showing what work was done and when, and the amount charged

We are specialists and experts in divorce and family law. We provide a fixed fee first consultation and will provide you with proper advice at the outset and with cost information.

We are solution drive and will explain the costs and risks in a case to our clients. This is to ensure you can make an informed decision about how to proceed. Most of our work comes from past or present client recommendations and this is reflected in our testimonials.