Individual practising fee levels for 2021/22 are to fall, the Legal Services Board (LSB) has agreed. Proposed fees were set by our Board in July and the LSB has approved these recommendations. The individual fee will be £266, down £12 from last year. Firm fees are calculated based on turnover. Practising fees are used to pay statutory levies to the LSB, the Legal Ombudsman, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal and Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision, and to fund representation by the Law Society, as well as our work. Fees are set at a level necessary to meet this total funding requirement. Our funding requirement for 2021/22, is £56.8m. The funding requirement for all organisations is £104.3m, a £3.1m increase from £101.2m in 2020/21. However, the continued rise in the number of practising solicitors means that individual fees will be less than last year. Compensation Fund contributions for the next practising year are also set to fall, from £50 last year to £40 this year and for firms holding client money from £950 to £760. The fund makes discretionary payments to those that have lost money in certain circumstances, when a solicitor misappropriates or fails to account for money when providing legal services. It is a key part of the regulatory framework and helps to maintain trust and confidence in regulated law firms. Paul Philip, SRA Chief Executive, said: ‘This has been the second year of what has been a difficult time for everyone. I am pleased to confirm a fall in both practising fees and compensation fund contributions at a time when we know that the long-term implications of the pandemic are uncertain for many businesses.’ - [Read More]

With over 20 years of experience in the legal industry, Tracey Miller Family Law provides quality services and advice covering all areas of family law. Established in 2009, the business is situated in Liverpool, but covers most of the North West of England. - [Read More]

Joel Mark, ESQ offers Legal Litigation Malpractice Expert Witness & Consulting located in Los Angeles California (CA). Serving Worldwide Call: (805)701-7731. Mr. Mark has lectured on and has served as a consultant and expert witness concerning attorneys’ fees, legal ethics, litigation practice and procedure and law practice management issues in over 110 cases, including being retained as an independent expert by the Los Angeles County Superior Court and the State Bar of California. Specialty Focus: Attorney’s Fees, Attorney Fee Disputes, Legal Malpractice, Attorney Ethics, Law Practice Management, Law Firm Dissolution. Mr. Mark has lectured on and has served as a consultant and expert witness concerning attorneys’ fees, legal ethics, litigation practice and procedure and law practice management issues in over 110 cases, including being retained as an independent expert by the Los Angeles County Superior Court and the State Bar of California. As a member of the California State Bar Committee on Mandatory Fee Arbitration (Member 1993-1997, 2002-2008, 2014-2019; Chair 1997 and 2008; Presiding Arbitrator 2009-2012), Mr. Mark wrote the lesson plan for and moderated over thirty-five arbitrator training sessions and has presented numerous Section Education Institute, State Bar, CEB and other provider programs regarding attorneys’ fees, attorney ethics issues and litigation skills. Mr. Mark was the lead editor for the 1997 edition of the State Bar Form Attorneys’ Fee Agreements publication and participated in the update of the document in 2004, 2005 and 2010. Mr. Mark was a sole author or significant contributing author of approximately 15 of the Mandatory Fee Arbitration Committee’s published Arbitrator Advisories. Mr. Mark also has served on the State Bar Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (2000-2002). From 2010 to the present, Mr. Mark has been serving as a Special Deputy Trial Counsel in State Bar disciplinary matters, where he has handled over 20 such matters to date. Mr. Mark served two terms on the Baker & McKenzie Los Angeles Office Executive Committee (including acting as ethics partner for the merger of MacDonald, Halsted & Laybourne with Baker & McKenzie), as Chair of the Nordman Cormany Hair & Compton Litigation Group from 2002 through 2011, and as the Firm’s Managing Partner from 2010 through 2013. - [Read More]