Dispute Resolution
Any dispute, whether commercial or personal, is often stressful and time consuming. At Ridley & Hall we aim to offer practical solutions which may involve court proceedings -but often not as our experienced solicitors can often help to resolve a dispute by negotiation.
Our advice is always governed by what you, as our client, want to achieve bearing in mind that prolonged litigation often suits neither side in any dispute.
If court proceedings are inevitable, then will advise and assist you through the court process and, if necessary, we can take action quickly for you.
We specialise in:
- Contract Disputes
- Debt Recovery
- Insolvency
- Commercial Litigation,
- Property Disputes, including Landlord & Tenant
Commercial Disputes
In any work environment, as a Company or Sole Trader, it is important to have good relationships with third parties on whom you can rely for the smooth running of your business.
Unfortunately, sometimes that relationship breaks down not only with third parties but also your business partners.
At Ridley & Hall we can advise on the options available to you in those situations.
As with all our clients we always provide practical no nonsense advice free of legal jargon.
Where possible, we try to achieve a resolution to any dispute by negotiation without the need for Court proceedings.
However, if any Court proceedings are necessary, we can advise and assist with that process including the costs implications of such Court action.
Examples of recent cases where Ridley & Hall helped our client were a claim over mislabelling of a mass produced product and resolving a dispute between a property developer and his site foreman.
Debt Recovery
As the saying goes “turnover is vanity, profit is sanity, but cash is king”.
Cashflow is crucial in any organisation and whether your business is a Company or Sole Trader it is important that you are paid in accordance with the trading arrangements with your customers or clients.
If you are having difficulty with your debtors not paying monies owed on time, then Ridley & Hall can help with debt recovery either through negotiations or Court proceedings and enforcement where appropriate.
Obviously, the level of outstanding debt will always influence whether to instruct Solicitors to assist in recovery of that money. Whilst there is no hard and fast rule generally (by virtue of the Court Rules on recovery of legal fees) on a debt of over £10,000 you should always instruct Solicitors to advise and assist on recovery.
We will advise you on the best options to maximise recovery including use of the Late Payment of Commercial Debts. (Interest) Act 1998.
Our advice will also include the best way to enforce any Court Judgment and this is always considered at an early stage as there is little point in chasing debtors when they have no money to pay.
At Ridley & Hall we can also provide general advice on credit control to maximise cashflow and hopefully avoid the need to resort to any Court proceedings.
Examples of recent cases where Ridley & Hall helped our client include a claim for monies owed under a Share Purchase Agreement and related Guarantee. Also recovering monies owed following Statutory Demands and enforcement using High Court Enforcement Officers.
Please see below for further details about timescales and costs.
Timescales
Our services include pre litigation work to prompt early payment and obtaining and enforcing a money Judgment.
As with all litigation, timescales to a resolution of any matter depend on several factors for example a cooperation (or otherwise) from the debtor. The timescales below are only an estimate and we update all clients on any issue that arise which result in a delay.
| Stage | Timescale |
| Letter before action to a business. | 10 days to respond |
| Letter before action to an individual | 30 days to respond |
| Court sending money claim to a debtor | 14 days to respond (If not Judgment can be obtained) |
| Enforcement | One to six months (Dependant on type of enforcement) |
Costs
We always work with our clients to discuss and agree pricing structures which include hourly rate fixed fees and contingent fees. For money only claims we have a fixed fee structure.
Fixed fee structure
Before litigation we send an initial letter (as required under the pre-action protocol for debt recovery) to the debtor and (if necessary) spend up to an hour negotiating with the debtor before starting proceedings for a fixed fee of £150 plus VAT at 20%.
If proceedings are issued for money only claims which are in defended (Judgment in default of defence) we charge the fixed fees and disbursements set out below. Please note that VAT at 20% is added to all our fees below.
| Value | Our fee. | Timescale |
| Up to £300 | £100 | £35 |
| £300 to £500 | £100 | £50 |
| £500 to £1000 | £100 | £70 |
| £1000 to £1500 | £150 | £80 |
| £1500 to £3000 | £200 | £115 |
| £3000 to £5000 | £200 | £205 |
| £5000 to £10000 | £250 | £455 |
| £10000 to £100000 | £400 | 5% of value of claim |
The court fee is added to the Judgment, as is an amount towards our fees.
Enforcement
| Type | Our fee | Court fee and disbursements |
| Attachment of earnings
(Court order where debtor pays debt by monthly instalments from employment income) |
£300 | £119 |
| Charging Order
(Court order where Judgment is secured against a debtor property) |
£350 | £142 |
| Writ of Control
(Using High Court Enforcement Officers under an order for debtor to be seized and possibly sold) |
£250 | £71 (plus £75 VAT if HCEO do not make assets recovery) |
| Third Party debt order
(A court order against a third party. who owe money to debtor to pay debt direct) |
£400 | £221 |
Where a case becomes defended (or example filing of a defence or an application to set aside Judgment) as well as providing advice on the merits we will provide costs estimate based on the following hourly rates
Partner £320 plus VAT at 20%
Associate £300 plus VAT at 20%
Trainee/Paralegal £200 plus VAT at 20%
Insolvency
Our services include preparing and serving a statutory demand and then (if payment of the debt is not made in full or by instalments) then issuing a winding up petition against either a business or an individual.
As with any litigation, resolution of any matter depends on a variety of factors for example cooperation (or otherwise) from the debtor. the timescales below are only an estimate and we of course update all clients on any issues which may result in any delay.
Timescales
| Stage | Timescale |
| Service of statutory demand | 21 days to respond |
| Issue of petition | 10 weeks to court hearing |
Costs
Our fee for preparation and service of statutory demand our fixed fee is £250 plus VAT at 20% plus the process servers fee of £100 plus VAT at 20%
If the statutory demand is disputed, then our hourly rates set out below will apply
Partner £320 plus VAT at 20%
Associate £300 plus VAT at 20%
Trainee/paralegal £200 plus VAT at 20%
If a winding up petition is issued, our fixed fee for preparation of the petition and dealing with the first hearing is £550 plus VAT at 20% together with the court fee of £1802 and process servers fees of £100 plus VAT at 20% and the London Gazette fee of £115.
Contract Disputes
We are all involved whether individually or in business or indeed whether we realise it or not in numerous contracts on a daily basis from buying products in a shop as an individual or negotiating a new IT deal in your business.
The majority of these transactions proceed without any issue but where a problem arises, for example you have been sold an item based on a misrepresentation of the facts or a supplier to your business is not providing the service you expected, Ridley & Hall can provide practical advice on the best way to resolve that dispute.
Often in these situations, an early meeting with the other side (particularly where there is an ongoing business relationship to consider) is helpful, but Ridley & Hall can also advise and assist if Court proceedings are necessary or if a claim is brought against you or your Company.
Our advice is always tailored to our client’s individual and/or business needs as appropriate.
Examples of recent cases where Ridley & Hall were able to help our clients include a claim for misrepresentation in a sale by auction and a dispute between a racing driver and his commercial agent
Landlord & Tenant
David Wilson in our Dispute Resolution Team represents landlords of both commercial and residential properties in connection with tenant disputes including advising when a landlord wants to end a tenancy and (if necessary) evict a tenant.
This is an area where the correct procedure is vital and is often a case with dispute resolution, early advice is crucial.
For further information please see our frequently asked questions on this subject or contact David Wilson.
