Lux Law Limited is a private limited liability Company registered in England and Wales under Company number 08662734. Its registered office address is 148 Rochford Way Frinton-on-sea Essex CO13 0AZ. Lux Law Limited is regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority ref 607700.
1 DEFINITIONS
the "Firm" means Lux Law Limited ('Lux Law') the trading name of Lux Law Limited is Lux Law.
the "Client" means the person, firm or company purchasing services from the Firm.
The Client relationship is solely with Lux Law, and Lux Law has sole legal liability for the work done for you and for any act or omission in the course of that work. No member, consultant or employee of Lux Law will have any personal legal liability for that work whether in contract, tort or negligence. In particular, the fact that an individual member, consultant or employee signs in his or her own name any letter or other document in the course of carrying out that work does not mean he or she is assuming any personal legal liability for that letter or document.
We use the word "partner" to refer to a member of Lux Law, or an employee or consultant with equivalent standing and qualifications.
No reference to a "partner" is to imply that any person is carrying on business with others in partnership for the purposes of the Partnership Act 1890.
2 Basis of the retainer
The Firm contracts on the basis of these Conditions only and acceptance by the Firm of any instructions from its Clients shall be upon such Conditions and shall override any other terms and conditions stipulated or incorporated by its Clients in their instructions or in any negotiations (save as shall have been expressly agreed in writing by the Firm). No variation or representation will be binding on the Firm unless confirmed in writing by a duly authorised representative of the Firm.
3 Fees and disbursements
3.1.1 Charging Policy – Non Fixed Fee
3.1.2 At the outset of a matter, the Firm will have been able to agree as far as possible the work which it is to undertake on behalf of its Client and will give its Client an estimate of the total time which it thinks this will take, and the total charges which it envisages will apply, including any disbursements (i.e. payments to be made to third parties in connection with its work) to the extent that the Firm is able to do so. Please note that the Firm's quotation is set out in the Project and Costing Outline.
3.1.3 The Client may at any stage set an upper limit for the amount the Firm is able to charge the Client, by notice in writing to the Firm. Once the Firm has done work whose value is up to that limit, the Firm will cease to do any further work, unless the Client authorises the Firm to proceed.
3.1.4 Charging Policy – Fixed Fee
3.1.5 In some cases, it may be more appropriate for the Firm to agree a fixed fee with its Client. In such a case the amount charged will not vary accordingly to the amount of work done. This is contained in the Project and Costing Outline.
3.1.6 The Project Cost Outline will identify if a fee is only payable upon the successful completion of the matter. In any event all disbursements incurred to date are payable by the Client whether or not a matter proceeds to a successful completion.
3.1.7 If any unexpected extra work becomes necessary, the Firm will agree with the Client what the nature and extent of that work is, and the reasons why it is outside the scope of what it originally agreed. The Firm will give a supplementary estimate of the likely costs of the extra work and agree with the Client before commencing the work. If the Firm cannot reach an agreement it will not be able to carry out the extra elements. If that prevents progress being made with the main work, and that has to cease, the Firm will be entitled to be paid for the work done to date according to the above principles.
3.2 Non-Contentious Work
3.2.1 Where non-contentious business is particularly complex or involves substantial value or responsibility there may be an additional element in the fee to reflect this.
3.3 Contentious Work
3.3.1 Following the issue of court proceedings charges are governed by the Solicitors Act 1974 which provides for the Court in the event of adjudication to decide what charges are reasonable, a procedure known as taxation.
3.3.2 In all other cases prior to the issue of court proceedings charges are governed by the principles set out in Clause 3.1 above.
3.3.3 If successful in litigation, the Firm's Client may be entitled to recover costs from the other party to the proceedings. However, the Court's taxation of these costs rarely results in a full recovery by the successful Client. In those circumstances Clients are responsible for the payment for any shortfall to the Firm. If the other party is funded by the Legal Services Commission (formally "Legal Aid"), no costs are likely to be recovered.
3.3.4 Costs awarded against the other party may attract interest from the date of the Court's order to the extent that the Client has paid the Firm's fees and disbursements, the Firm will account to the Client for any interest paid by the other party, but will otherwise be entitled to retain it.
3.3.5 The Client may be liable for his or her own costs even if they are 100% successful.
3.3.6 The amount recovered from the opponent will be taken to discharge the Firm's costs before being paid to the Client.
3.3.7 If the Client withdraws from the action he or she will be responsible for their own costs as well as those of their opponent.
3.3.8 If the case is funded by an insurer the Firm is under a duty to report the prospects of success and as a result of that report funding may be withdrawn.
3.3.9 A costs order does not mean automatic recovery of the Client's costs as the opponent may not be able to pay and enforcement proceedings will then cost extra.
3.3.10 The Client is liable for their opponent's costs in addition to their own costs even if he or she loses.
3.3.11 Where the opponent makes a payment into Court of part of the Client's claim, if that payment is not accepted and the final judgment is for the same amount or a lesser amount, then the Client will have to pay the opponent's costs from the date of payment in addition to the Client's own costs.
3.4 General
3.4.1 If disbursements (including, but not limited to, Court fees, Counsel's fees, fees for medical report, Stamp Duty, search fees and Land Registry fees) are incurred by the Firm on behalf of the Client, they are payable by the Client to the Firm immediately on request. These disbursements are to be collected by the Firm prior to the collection of any monies due pursuant to the Firm's invoice.
3.4.2 In the event that the Client terminates the Firm's instructions or for any reason the business does not proceed to completion then, subject to the exception referred to above. The Firm will be entitled to charge in accordance with the foregoing provisions for the time spent in dealing with the business.
3.4.3 The Client bears primary liability for the payment of the Firm's charges and disbursements either in the cases where an order for costs or contractual indemnity has been obtained or it is expected that an order for costs or contractual indemnity will be obtained against another party.
3.4.4 The Client is responsible for payment of the cost of seeking to enforce any order for costs or contract for indemnity against another party.
3.4.5 The Firm's fees attract Value Added Tax at the rate currently applicable.
3.5 Payment
3.5.1 Payment of an invoice is due on presentation unless an extended payment time has been agreed by prior arrangement. The Firm will normally deliver invoices in between exchange of contracts and completion on a Conveyancing transaction or otherwise at intervals of between six and twelve weeks in respect of cases or transactions continuing for more than three months. Disbursements are however, payable to the Firm by the Client pursuant to Condition 3.4.1.
3.5.2 In the case of invoices remaining unpaid for a period of fourteen days or more after the date of presentation, the Firm may charge interest to the Client on the amount unpaid, calculated on a daily basis at the statutory rate from time to time in force from the date of delivery of the account without prejudice to any other rights of the Firm. The Firm also reserves the right to recover any reasonable legal or third party fees in connection with the collection of debts due to the Firm.
3.5.3 Payment on or before the due date is of the essence of the Contract and in the event of a Client failing to make payment on the due date the Firm reserves the right to decline to act any further.
3.5.4. If the Firm is working on behalf of the Client and anyone else as well, the Client's liability to the Firm will be joint and several i.e. the Firm will be able to claim the whole amount owed to it from any single party.
3.6 Public Funding
3.6.1 In certain cases the Client may be eligible for Community Legal Services Funding (formally known as "Legal Aid") and the Firm will discuss this possibility with the Client whenever appropriate.
3.6.2 Clients entitled to Community Legal Services Funding will have to instruct an alternative firm of Solicitors, appropriate details of which will be supplied on request.
4 Clients money
4.1 If the Firm holds money on the Client's behalf, interest will be paid to the Client in accordance with the Solicitors' Accounts Rules 1998 (subject to the minimum amount and periods of time therein prescribed) at the rate or rates from time to time recoverable by the Firm from its bankers. The period from which interest will be paid will normally run from the date on which cleared funds are received by the Firm until the date of payment by the Firm of funds to or on behalf of the Client.
4.2 In the cases where the Firm is to make a payment on behalf of the Client (for instances in a Conveyancing transaction) the Firm requires to be placed in cleared funds at least one working week before the proposed date for payment. If payment to the Firm is by cheque, one working week from receipt should be allowed for clearance. Where the client is obtaining a loan from a third party, the Firm will request the advanced payment from that third party two working days before completion. The third party may charge interest from the date of issue of a cheque.
5 Concerns about the service
If the Client is dissatisfied with the handling of his or her instructions by the Firm, the Client may register the concern with his or her fee earner. If, following such reference, the Client still remains dissatisfied, the Client may refer the matter to the Firm's client care partner Ann Luxford, who will cause it to be thoroughly investigated and will make a ruling and you will receive a written response. The Firm will provide a copy of its complaints procedure on request. Should this procedure notresolve your concern then you have a right to refer the complaint to the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman's contact details are as follows:
T: 0300 555 0333
E: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806 Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ
A complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must be made within 6 months of you receiving a full written response to your complaint by this firm or within 6 months of you discovering a problem whichever is the later.
6 Lux Laws Liability
Despite the Firm's best efforts it may make a mistake, by which the Firm means any breach of its duties to its Client. If the Firm does, and is liable to compensate the Client, the Client agrees that its liability is limited in the following respects:
It is Lux Law that is liable, not an individual partner or member of staff; the Client agrees to make no claim against an individual except for fraud;
The Firm's maximum liability for any mistake (except for fraud) is £3 million (unless a different amount is agreed with the Client in writing);
This overall limit applies whether the mistake affects just one piece of work the Firm does for its Client or several, so long as it is the same or a similar mistake;
For the purpose of the overall limit, more than one mistake on a matter or transaction is considered as one mistake;
The Firm is liable for loss that it directly causes and for any indirect or consequential loss or loss of anticipated profit or other benefit where that total liability does not exceed £3 million. Otherwise the Firm has no liability for any indirect or consequential loss or loss of anticipated profit or other benefit;
The Firm is not liable to the extent that its mistake results from something the Client does or fails to do (such as giving the Firm the wrong information, or not giving the Firm information at the time the Firm asks for it);
If others are also responsible for the Client's loss, the Firm's liability is limited to its fair share, whether or not the Client is able to recover the rest from the others.
These limits apply to the extent that they are permitted by law. The Firm cannot, for example, avoid full liability if our mistake causes death or personal injury.
If the Firm thinks it has made a mistake the Firm has no liability for any breach of its duties unless the Client lets the Firm know in writing about the mistake within 24 months of becoming aware of it, and starts any legal proceedings about it within 12 months of giving the Firm that written notice.
7 Storage of Deeds, Papers, and Data
7.1 The Firm will, following completion of each matter store the Client's working papers without charge to the Client for as long as it reasonably considers necessary upon where it will confidentially destroy them. Generally, this will be 6 years after the file is completed.
7.2 The Firm provides a custody service in respect of Wills, Deeds and other securities. A nominal charge may be made for this service, currently the Charge is £20 + VAT per annum. We will inform you in advance if a charge is to be made.
7.3 Where stored papers, Wills, Deeds or securities are retrieved from storage by the Firm in connection with continuing or new Instructions to the Firm, a fixed charge will normally be made for such retrieval of £10 + VAT. However, the Firm reserves the right to make a further charge in connection with perusal, correspondence or other work necessary to comply with any instructions given by or on behalf of that Client.
7.4 If a client requests a copy of the Deeds or other documentation on the clients file then the firm will charge 20p per sheet subject to a minimum charge of £5 + VAT.
7.5 Without prejudice to any other remedies, the Firm shall have a general right to retain all Deeds, working papers and other property in it's possession and belonging to the Client until all sums due from the Client to the Firm have been paid in full.
8 Termination
8.1 The Client may terminate its instructions to the Firm in writing at any time but the Firm will be entitled to keep the Client's papers and documents while there is money owing to the Firm for the Firm's charges, expenses and disbursements.
8.2 In some circumstances the Firm may consider that it ought to stop acting for the Client, for example, if the Client cannot give clear or proper instruction on how the Firm is to proceed or if it is clear that the Client has lost confidence in how the Firm is carrying out its work. The same would apply if it appears to the Firm that there is a conflict of interest between the Client and another one of the Firm's Clients or an error has been made which makes it inappropriate for the Firm to continue to act and to provide the Client with proper independent advice.
8.3 If the Firm decides to stop acting for the Client, the Firm will give the Client reasonable notice of such a decision. On any termination for any reason, the Firm will retain our rights to payment under these terms.
9 Financial services and investments
Sometimes, legal work of the nature we do involves investments. The Firm is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and so may refer the Client to someone who is authorised to provide necessary advice. However, the Firm can provide certain limited services in relation to investments, provided they are closely linked with the legal services it is providing to its Clients, as it is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
10 Anti Money Laundering provisions
10.1.1 If the Firm is undertaking work on behalf of its Client which is regulated work, as defined by the legislation governing money laundering, the Firm will be obliged to carry out identity checks on its Client. The Firm would ask its Client for its co-operation in this regard, if the Firm is unable to complete these checks it will not be able to carry out work on its Client's behalf.
10.1.2 It is important that the Client should understand that, in certain circumstances, the legislation referred to above may oblige the Firm to report suspicions involving possible money laundering transaction to the authorities.
10.1.3 If, as a result of the Firm complying with the terms of legislation, the Firm would be obliged to do, or refrain from doing, anything in relation to the Client's work, the Firm shall not be liable for any consequences of that.
11 Data Protection
The Firm is registered under the Data Protection Act 1998. The Firm is therefore authorised to collect and store personal data as to its clients. Please note that the following terms of this paragraph apply to the data the Firm holds at any time: Personal data relating to the Client is being held electronically and in paper records and files. The only uses the Firm will make of that data are to carry out work on the Client's behalf and for marketing purposes (unless at any time the Client indicates that it does not want to receive any marketing contact from the Firm) The Firm takes reasonable steps to secure access, storage and transmission of any data collected and stored by the Firm. The Firm will process data which it will collect in a way which is accurate, fair and lawful.
12 Force Majeure
The Firm shall bear no liability for loss, damage or delay howsoever arising caused by circumstances outside its control of whatsoever kind.
13 Invalidity
If any part of these Conditions is held by any Court or competent authority as invalid, the validity of the remainder of these conditions and of the remainder of the provisions in question shall not be affected thereby.
14 Jurisdiction
The construction, validity and performance of this contract shall be governed in all respects by the Laws of England. The Firm and the Client submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.
© Lux Law Ltd 2017
