IV. Appellate Intervention: legal fulcrum
"A second bit at the apple."
Superior advocacy in an appeal focuses on identifying specific legal mistakes, not re-arguing facts.
When a lawyer finds a significant legal error made during a trial (a reversible error), it can lead to a powerful form of review called de novo review.
Here is a simplified and descriptive explanation of the core concepts:
The Anatomy of an Appeal
- Trial Judgments are Transitions: A trial court's decision isn't the final word; it can be challenged through an appeal.
- Focusing on the Process, Not the Facts: While some focus on challenging witness testimony or factual interpretations from the original trial, effective appellate work scrutinises the legal rules and procedures the lower court used.
Key Legal Tools
Standard of Review
This is the "lens" an appeals court uses to look at a lower court's decision.
It determines how much respect or "deference" the higher court gives to the original ruling.
Reversible Errors
These are serious legal mistakes made during the trial that are significant enough to have potentially changed the outcome of the case. Identifying these is crucial for a successful appeal.
De Novo Review
This Latin term means "a new" or "from the beginning". When an appellate court grants de novo review, it examines the legal issue with a fresh perspective, giving no deference to the lower court's legal conclusion. This is a powerful tool because it allows the higher court to substitute its own legal judgment for the trial court's, effectively providing a clean slate on that specific legal issue.
V. Legal Practice
Employment Law.
- Unfair Dismissals
- Constructive Dismissals
- Wrongful Dismissals
- Direct Discrimination
- Automatic Unfair Dismissals
- Redundancy Claims.
- Formal Grievances
- Disciplinary Hearings
- Acas Representation.
- ET1 Submission Forms
- ET3 Submission Forms.
- CTO3 Settlement agreements.
- Tribunal Representation
Landlord & Tenant Law.
- Advisory & Transactional Support.
- Lease interpretations.
- Managing legal documents.
- Portfolio management for landlords
- Drafting tenancy agreements.
- Serving notices, section 8 (rent arrears), section 13 (rent increase).
- Drafting letters before action
- Dispute Resolution & Mediation.
- Ombudsman support for landlords & Tenants.
- First-Tier Tribunal Representation in matters of HMO's & RRO's.
- Debt Recovery Claims.
- Commercial Contractual agreements
- Mckenzie's Friend for (LIP).
- Non Disclosure Agreements (NDAs).
- Consumer Contracts.
- Intellectual Property (IP).
Family Law.
- Family & Private Client matters.
- Drafting wills & Codicils & Trust Documents.
- Divorce & Separation (outside of proceedings.
- Financial remedies and child arrangement (outside of proceedings).
- Miam mediation.
- Mckenzie's Friend for (LIP).
- Domestic abuse/violence Non-Molestation Applications.
- Scott schedules.
- Child arrangement (C100 forms).
- Occupation Applications.
VI.
Our Pricing Structure:
Consultation & Preparation
Initial Consultation (e.g., 30 mins): Fixed Fee (Often free or low fixed fee)
General Advisory & Transactional Support: Hourly Rate (£150 - £350 per hour depending on experience)
Case/Bundle Preparation: Hourly Rate / Fixed Fee (per stage) (Varies greatly, can be part of overall case fee)
Employment Law
Unfair/Wrongful/Constructive Dismissals, Discrimination, Redundancy Claims: Fixed Fee (per stage) or Hourly Rate (Simple cases £4,000 - £10,000+ total)
Acas Representation, Formal Grievances, Disciplinary Hearings: Hourly Rate / Fixed Fee (Varies)
ET1/ET3 Submission Forms: Fixed Fee (£750 - £2,500+), including assistance with COT3 agreements for settlements.
Settlement Agreements: Fixed Fee (£350 - £1,500+, often employer contributed)
Landlord & Tenant
Lease Interpretations, Managing Legal Documents, Portfolio Management: Hourly Rate (£150 - £350 per hour)
Drafting Agreements/Notices (Section 8, Section 13), Debt Recovery: Fixed Fee (e.g., £2,000+ eviction matter), especially relevant for Rent Repayment Orders.
Dispute Resolution & Mediation, Ombudsman/First-Tier Tribunal Support: Hourly Rate / Fixed Fee (per hearing) (Varies)
Pricing can be structured in several ways:
Hourly Rates: The traditional method where charges accrue in units (e.g., 6 minutes), with rates varying by the experience level of the consultant (e.g., £150-£350 per hour).
Fixed Fees: Provides cost certainty for defined tasks like drafting documents, initial consultations, or specific application forms, including assistance with HMO disrepair cases.
Disbursements: These are additional costs paid to third parties (like barrister's fees or court fees) that are passed on to the client, which may include costs for a McKenzie’s friend in certain cases.
VIII. Direct Access Referrals.
Where specialist advocacy or litigation rights are required, to ensure the highest standard of representation, we reserve the right to refer your case to a Direct Access Barrister in accordance with the Legal Services Act 2007.