Fees & Admin

We act for a wide range of commercial and individual clients worldwide, including major city, national and international institutions, governments, private companies and individuals. Work comes from domestic and overseas law firms, and from in-house legal teams. Accountancy practices, Trademark and Patent Attorneys and other professional firms may instruct directly under licensed access, as well as members of the public (in appropriate instances) through the Public Access Rules. Barristers do not have to comply with the ‘Cab-Rank’ rule when instructed through the Public Access Rules.

Fees and Payment

In accordance with our values, Swan Chambers operates an ethical transparent approach to fee negotiation and billing. We accept privately paid work,  casework through the direct licensed access and public access scheme. Our fees are always transparent and fair. Fees for privately funded court appearances will be agreed in good time and usually in advance of the hearing.

Fee are usually based on hourly rates that vary according to the complexity and urgency of the case. If possible we will provide a fixed price for hearings, advisory and drafting work in advance. Where we do provide a fixed price for a piece of work we will never exceed the amount we have quoted without express prior client authority.  We usually charge fixed-rate fees for advocacy work, especially for court work, and we will usually agree those fees before appearing on the clients’ behalf. We can provide a more accurate and flexible assessment of fees for your individual case and possibly provide a fixed price for an agreed amount of work on request. Do contact the clerks (clerks@https://www.swanchambers.com) to discuss fees further and complete the enquiry form.

Fee arrangements are agreed separately for each case according to their length and complexity. Our fees are flexible and competitive, while reflecting our high standard of advice and service.  The current rate of VAT will be added to all fees, unless exemptions apply, for example international clients not resident in UK.

Service Protocols: Swan Chambers is committed to developing new ways of delivering legal services efficiently (while maintaining its professional obligations under the Bar  Code of Conduct) and  in collaboration with solicitors and other providers. We are interested in discussing the development of service protocols with providers.

Terms of business: Standard Terms of Business for Authorised Persons: Barristers at Swan Chambers provide legal services to Authorised Persons (solicitors) under the Bar council’s approved Standard Contractual Terms (“SCT”) of Work as set out in Annex T to the Bar Code of Conduct as published on the Bar Councils’ website, unless expressly amended by written agreement. You may download the PDF version of  Swan Chambers’ Standard Terms of Business  of England and Wales

For Public Access Clients– We will agree fees in accordance with the individual agreement prior to accepting instructions. Fees are just one of the fundamental terms we will agree as well as methods of payment in the public access agreement.  If fees are agreed on an hourly rate, we will agree an estimated figure, and if the estimated figure needs to be increased we will inform the client and get express prior client authority to increase the estimated figure. Our intention is to keep the client informed and fee transparent. We will be able to provide a detailed schedule of the work completed upon request. Contact the Clerking Team: clerks@https://www.swanchambers.com