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Statutory Instrument 2000 No. 692
The Conditional Fee Agreements Regulations
2000
© Crown Copyright 2000
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STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS
2000 No. 692
LEGAL SERVICES, ENGLAND AND WALES
The Conditional Fee Agreements Regulations 2000
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Made
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9th March 2000
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Laid before Parliament
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10th March 2000
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Coming into force
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1st April 2000
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The Lord Chancellor, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by
sections 58(3)(c), 58A(3) and 119 of the Courts and Legal Services Act
1990[1] and all other powers
enabling him hereby makes the following Regulations:
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1. - (1)
These Regulations may be cited as the Conditional Fee Agreements
Regulations 2000.
(2) These Regulations come into force on 1st
April 2000.
(3) In these Regulations -
"client" includes, except where the context otherwise
requires, a person who -
(a) has instructed the legal representative to provide the advocacy or
litigation services to which the conditional fee agreement relates, or
(b) is liable to pay the legal representative's fees in respect of
those services; and
"legal representative" means the person providing the
advocacy or litigation services to which the conditional fee agreement
relates.
Requirements for contents of conditional fee agreements: general
2.
- (1) A conditional fee agreement must specify -
(a) the particular proceedings or parts of them to which it relates
(including whether it relates to any appeal, counterclaim or
proceedings to enforce a judgement or order),
(b) the circumstances in which the legal representative's fees and
expenses, or part of them, are payable,
(c) what payment, if any, is due -
(i) if those circumstances only partly occur,
(ii) irrespective of whether those circumstances occur, and
(iii) on the termination of the agreement for any reason, and
(d) the amounts which are payable in all the circumstances and
cases specified or the method to be used to calculate them and, in
particular, whether the amounts are limited by reference to the
damages which may be recovered on behalf of the client.
(2) A conditional fee agreement to which
regulation 4 applies must contain a statement that the requirements of
that regulation which apply in the case of that agreement have been
complied with.
Requirements for contents of conditional fee agreements providing for
success fees
3.
- (1) A conditional fee agreement which provides for a
success fee -
(a) must briefly specify the reasons for setting the percentage
increase at the level stated in the agreement, and
(b) must specify how much of the percentage increase, if any, relates
to the cost to the legal representative of the postponement of the
payment of his fees and expenses.
(2) If the agreement relates to court
proceedings, it must provide that where the percentage increase becomes
payable as a result of those proceedings, then -
(a) if -
(i) any fees subject to the increase are assessed, and
(ii) the legal representative or the client is required by the court
to disclose to the court or any other person the reasons for setting
the percentage increase at the level stated in the agreement,
he may do so,
(b) if -
(i) any such fees are assessed, and
(ii) any amount in respect of the percentage increase is disallowed
on the assessment on the ground that the level at which the increase
was set was unreasonable in view of facts which were or should have
been known to the legal representative at the time it was set,
that amount ceases to be payable under the agreement, unless the
court is satisfied that it should continue to be so payable, and
(c) if -
(i) sub-paragraph (b) does not apply, and
(ii) the legal representative agrees with any person liable as a
result of the proceedings to pay fees subject to the percentage
increase that a lower amount than the amount payable in accordance
with the conditional fee agreement is to be paid instead,
the amount payable under the conditional fee agreement in respect
of those fees shall be reduced accordingly, unless the court is
satisfied that the full amount should continue to be payable under it.
(3) In this regulation "percentage
increase" means the percentage by which the amount of the fees
which would be payable if the agreement were not a conditional fee
agreement is to be increased under the agreement.
Information to be given before conditional fee agreements made
4.
- (1) Before a conditional fee agreement is made the legal
representative must -
(a) inform the client about the following matters, and
(b) if the client requires any further explanation, advice or other
information about any of those matters, provide such further
explanation, advice or other information about them as the client may
reasonably require.
(2) Those matters are -
(a) the circumstances in which the client may be liable to pay the
costs of the legal representative in accordance with the agreement,
(b) the circumstances in which the client may seek assessment of the
fees and expenses of the legal representative and the procedure for
doing so,
(c) whether the legal representative considers that the client's risk
of incurring liability for costs in respect of the proceedings to
which agreement relates is insured against under an existing contract
of insurance,
(d) whether other methods of financing those costs are available, and,
if so, how they apply to the client and the proceedings in question,
(e) whether the legal representative considers that any particular
method or methods of financing any or all of those costs is
appropriate and, if he considers that a contract of insurance is
appropriate or recommends a particular such contract -
(i) his reasons for doing so, and
(ii) whether he has an interest in doing so.
(3) Before a conditional fee agreement is
made the legal representative must explain its effect to the client.
(4) In the case of an agreement where -
2]
(recovery where body undertakes to meet costs liabilities) applies, and
(b) there are no circumstances in which the client may be liable to pay
any costs in respect of the proceedings,
paragraph (1) does not apply.
(5) Information required to be given under
paragraph (1) about the matters in paragraph (2)(a) to (d) must be given
orally (whether or not it is also given in writing), but information
required to be so given about the matters in paragraph (2)(e) and the
explanation required by paragraph (3) must be given both orally and in
writing.
(6) This regulation does not apply in the case
of an agreement between a legal representative and an additional legal
representative.
Form of agreement
5. - (1)
A conditional fee agreement must be signed by the client and the legal
representative.
(2) This regulation does not apply in the case
of an agreement between a legal representative and an additional legal
representative.
Amendment of agreement
6. Where
an agreement is amended to cover further proceedings or parts of them -
(a) regulations 2, 3 and 5 apply to the amended agreement as if it
were a fresh agreement made at the time of the amendment, and
(b) the obligations under regulation 4 apply in relation to the
amendments in so far as they affect the matters mentioned in that
regulation.
Revocation of 1995 Regulations
7. The
Conditional Fee Agreements Regulations 1995[3]
are revoked.
Irvine of Lairg, C
9th March 2000
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
Section 58(1) of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 provides that a
conditional fee agreement is not unenforceable if it satisfies certain
conditions. These include conditions to be specified in regulations
under section 58(3) of that Act. Regulations 2 and 3 specify those
conditions. Regulation 2 applies to all conditional fee agreements.
Regulation 3 sets out further requirements applying only to agreements
which provide for success fees.
Section 58A(3) enables the conditions which may be prescribed for
conditional fee agreements to include requirements for the person
providing advocacy or litigation services to have provided prescribed
information before the agreement is made. Regulation 4 imposes such a
requirement and specifies what information is to be given. It does not
apply where the agreement is between legal representatives.
Regulation 5 requires that agreements other than those between legal
representatives must be signed by the client and the legal
representative.
Regulation 6 provides for similar requirements to apply as respects
amendments of agreements.
These regulations replace the Conditional Fee Agreements Regulations
1995, which are revoked.
Notes:
[1] 1990 c. 41; sections 58 and 58A are substituted
by section 27 of the Access to Justice Act 1999 (c. 22); section 119 is
an interpretation provision and is cited because of the meaning given to
the word "prescribed".back
[2] 1999 c. 22.back
[3] S.I. 1995/1675.back
ISBN 0 11 098922 8
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