Legal
These terms govern the relationship between you and Co-op Probate Services, a trading name of GLCS Probate Services Ltd.
1.1 These terms and conditions are provided to comply with certain standards recommended by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers and the Law Society of England and Wales and also to indicate as clearly as possible the level and standard of service you can expect from us and how we will charge for the work we do.
1.2 These terms and conditions do not affect statutory and common law rules which govern solicitors business, but if there is a conflict between the rules and these terms and conditions, the terms and conditions will prevail as far as it is possible for them to do so.
1.3 When “we” and “us” are used in these terms and conditions they mean GLCS Probate Services Ltd, trading as Co-op Probate Services and Later Life Planning, a limited company registered in England and Wales under registration number 16260877. Our registered office is located at The Beehive Building, City Place, Beehive Ring Road, Gatwick, United Kingdom, RH6 0PA. A list of Directors is available for inspection at this address.
1.4 We are regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers and our registration number is 14742. You can access the professional rules applicable to us by visiting the Council for Licensed Conveyancers website at www.clc-uk.org.
1.5 We are registered for VAT. Our VAT registration number is 491806763.
2.1 By signing and returning the Acknowledgment Form, you are agreeing that we can start work on your matter. If you have asked us to start work on any matter on your behalf immediately without signing our Acknowledgment Form, it is deemed that you have accepted our Terms and Conditions. If we do not receive your signed Acknowledgement Form, and you continue to instruct us it is deemed that you have accepted our Terms and Conditions.
2.2 Where we are instructed on a matter by joint clients, we have the right to accept instructions from one of the clients on behalf of all of the clients unless you instruct us otherwise. Liability to pay our costs is joint (all the clients together) and several (each may be liable for the whole amount). This includes situations where one person or company instructs us on behalf of another.
2.3 If instructions are given on behalf of a client, we are entitled to assume that the person giving the instructions has lawful authority to instruct us on behalf of the client. If this is not the case, then the person giving the instructions will be liable to us as if they were our client.
3.1 Our responsibilities include advising you on the law, following your instructions, reviewing your matter regularly, and discussing with you whether the potential outcomes justify the expense and risks involved with your matter. You need to provide us with clear and timely instructions, the information and documents required for us to do our work, and the funds required.
3.2 In some circumstances, it may be appropriate for some work to be carried out by other members of staff, such as paralegals, secretarial or support staff. This allows us to provide a more efficient service to you and also to charge you the appropriate amount for the work done. All work by such staff is carried out under the supervision of a solicitor or legal executive.
4.1 Our fees are based on the amount of time we spend in dealing with your matter or a fee agreed with you. The time we spend will include (but not limited to) the following types of activities: meetings with you, members of your staff, experts and maybe others; drafting documents (such as statements of case, witness statements and letters, instructing advocates and experts); attending court; considering, preparing and working on various documents; correspondence; and making and receiving telephone calls.
4.2 Our current hourly rates are fully set out in the engagement letter.
4.3 Routine letters or emails that we write and receive, and routine telephone calls that we make and receive, are charged as units of 1/10th of an hour.
4.4 We review our hourly rates regularly. We will let you know of the new rates and when they shall start to apply.
4.5 In addition to the time we spend we also reserve the right to charge an uplift on our fees having taken into account a number of factors which include the complexity of the issues involved in the matter, the speed at which action must be taken, the expertise or specialist knowledge which the matter requires and, if appropriate, the value of the property or subject matter involved. Our rates may be adjusted upwards if a matter has to be carried out in an emergency or out of hours.
4.6 If you require more information or have a concern regarding our rates after a review, please do not hesitate to contact us.
4.7 Please note that, in litigation matters, the amount of fees plus expenses (sometimes called disbursements) which you will have to pay may be greater than the amount you can recover from another party to the matter.
4.8 As we are registered for VAT, we add VAT to our charges at the rate that applies when we carry out the work.
4.9 You will also need to pay for expenses we incur on your behalf. These include a variety of expenses such as court fees, fees for expert witnesses or for the preparation of expert and other reports, Notices published under S27 Trustee Act 1925, fees for advocates, property search fees, land registry fees, plus other expenses (such as photocopying charges and travel-related costs). VAT is normally payable on these items.
4.10 If we need to carry out some unforeseen additional work, we will let you know about this (normally before we carry it out), and also provide you with the estimated cost of carrying it out. This can arise because of unexpected difficulties, a change in your requirements or a change in circumstances during the course of the matter.
4.11 If the matter is not concluded we will still charge for the time we spend and the disbursements and expenses we incur on your behalf, and you will have to pay these.
4.12 You can set a limit on our charges and the expenses we incur on your behalf. If you set such a limit, we can charge for work carried out and expenses incurred up to the limit without us needing to refer to you for approval to carry out the work, and you must pay our charges and expenses up to the limit. If it appears that the limit you have set is likely to be exceeded, we will inform you.
4.13 We will ask you to pay certain sums in advance of us carrying out work and incurring expenses on your behalf. From time to time we will ask for further sums in advance, during the course of the matter. We will offset such payments made in advance against the invoices we will send to you from time to time and the final invoice. However, you should be made aware that the total charges and expenses may exceed the advance payments you have made to us.
4.14 We reserve the right to clear any cheques or other forms of payment you provide to us before carrying out any work on any aspect of your matter. We will ask you to provide us with details of a Credit or Debit Card in your name to be held on our secure system for the duration of your matter. Once your matter is finished and your file has been closed, your details will be deleted. If any invoice for this matter is unpaid in accordance with 7.2 of these Terms and Conditions, you agree that we will debit the outstanding balance from your Card upon at least 7 days’ notice to you.
4.15 If we have agreed a Fixed Fee with you, the fee will have been calculated on the usual time required to complete the matter. If the matter becomes unusually lengthy or complex requiring more work than was envisaged when the Fixed Fee was agreed, then we reserve the right to charge further fees based on the hourly rate. We will, of course, discuss this with you prior to making any changes to the Fixed Fee Arrangement.
4.16 If arrangements are made for a third party to pay any of our fees or disbursements, or a court order, you remain liable to pay them to the extent that the third party does not pay them when due.
5.1 We will hold your money in either a general client account or a designated deposit account at such deposit-taking institution as we choose from time to time. We will account to you for any interest earned on the money we hold for you when it is fair and reasonable to do so in all the circumstances. We have a written policy on the payment of interest, which seeks to provide a fair outcome. If you require a printed copy of the policy, please ask the person handling your matter to send you a copy.
5.2 It is unlikely that we will be held liable in the event of the failure of a deposit-taking institution (e.g. a bank or building society).
5.3 In the event of a deposit-taking institution failure we can make a claim under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) on behalf of our clients in respect of the funds we are holding for them in our client account. The FSCS will limit the compensation payable to each individual client. Please refer to the FSCS website www.fscs.org.uk/what-we-cover/ for details of how much compensation you will be entitled to.
5.4 If you hold other personal monies yourself in the same deposit-taking institution as us, please refer to the FSCS website for clarity on how much compensation you will be entitled to.
5.5 Some deposit-taking institutions have several brand names. You should check with your deposit-taking institution, the Financial Conduct Authority or a financial advisor for more information.
5.6 By instructing us to act on your behalf in any matter you are expressly consenting to us disclosing your details to the FSCS in the event that a claim needs to be made to that body following a deposit-taking institution failure.
5.7 If a corporate body client is not considered a small company by FSCS, then they will not be eligible for compensation.
5.8 Once your matter has come to an end, we shall account to you for any surplus funds we are holding on your behalf. In certain circumstances it may be necessary for us to retain funds after your matter has completed. If this is necessary, we shall inform you of the reason for this and confirm the amount of the funds being retained. We shall also update you as to the position with the retained funds at least once every 12 months. It is your responsibility to ensure you inform us in writing in the event your contact details change at any time.
5.9 When the time comes to release the retained funds, we shall contact you to arrange this. Where the sum to be released is less than £4.00, we reserve the right to send you postage stamps to the appropriate value in accordance with our regulator’s guidance.
5.10 If we are unable to contact you, we will use all reasonable efforts to trace you taking into account the value of the retained funds to be released to you. If we are still unable to trace you, we reserve the right to donate the retained funds to a charity of our choice if they are £50 or less or, where the retained funds are more than this, to apply to the Council for Licensed Conveyancers for their approval to release the retained funds to a charity of our choice.
6.1 You confirm that you are instructing us on a private fee-paying basis unless agreed otherwise by us in writing.
6.2 There are many different types of funding options to cover legal costs. These include:
6.2.1 Legal Expenses Insurance — Many people have legal expenses insurance within their home contents or other insurance policies. This may provide full or limited cover. You must provide us with copies of your relevant insurance policies so that we can assess whether any of your policies will cover the legal costs in your matter.
6.2.2 Conditional Fee Agreements (CFA) — This is an arrangement we can choose to offer in some litigation matters. If we decide that the matter is suitable to be funded under a CFA, we shall prepare a separate document to set out the terms of the CFA between us. Generally speaking, if you enter into a CFA with us then you only have to pay our costs if your claim is successful.
6.2.3 Trade Union Funding — You may be a member of a Trade Union that offers to fund its member’s legal costs in cases arising out of the member’s employment. If you think this is likely to be the case, you must inform us so that we can contact your Trade Union and secure an agreement for your fees.
6.2.4 Public Funding (Legal Aid) — You may be eligible for legal aid if you receive Income Support, have a low disposable income and little capital. If you think you may be eligible you must inform us immediately so that we can advise you accordingly.
6.2.5 “After the Event” Legal Expenses Insurance — ATE Insurance provides cover for the costs incurred in the pursuit or defence of litigation. The policy is purchased after the cause of a legal dispute has arisen. If we consider that your case may be eligible for this type of insurance, we can advise you and make an application for a quotation on your behalf.
6.2.6 Damages Based Agreement (DBA) — This is an agreement whereby you do not pay us at an hourly rate but instead agree to pay us a percentage of your damages. We do not offer DBAs for Personal Injury work. We will discuss with you whether a DBA is a suitable method of funding other types of litigation.
6.3 If you fail to inform us of the existence of a method of funding that would have covered your legal expenses, we will not be liable for any loss you may suffer as a result.
7.1 Unless we expressly agree otherwise, we will send you invoices for our charges and expenses on a regular basis during the course of the matter, normally monthly. This will enable you to budget. All invoices sent to you are statute bills unless otherwise stated.
7.2 You should pay our invoices within 7 days of receipt. We will charge you interest at 15% per year from 7 days from the date of the invoice on any unpaid bills or, in the case of bills which have been partly paid, on that part remaining outstanding. Interest is charged on a daily basis.
7.3 If you have any queries about any invoice you receive, please contact us immediately and, in any event, within 7 days of the date of the invoice.
7.4 If you are unsatisfied with any invoice for our charges you can make a complaint in accordance with the procedure set out at clause 17 and you may have a right to object to the invoice and apply for an assessment of the invoice under Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974.
7.5 We do not accept cash as payment. If you circumvent this policy by depositing cash direct with our bank, we reserve the right to charge for any additional checks we deem necessary regarding the source of the funds.
7.6 We will charge a late payment fee of £40 (debt under £1,000), £70 (debt under £10,000), or £100 (debt over £10,000) per invoice.
7.7 If an account remains unpaid and we commence legal proceedings against you in order to recover the sums you owe, then we will be entitled to recover from you the legal costs we incur in connection with those proceedings at our standard hourly rate, together with all other disbursements.
Your file may be chosen for audit. If you have any objection, please do not hesitate to let us know, in which case we will ensure that your file is not chosen for audit.
9.1 Co-op Probate Services (GLCS Probate Services Ltd) is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). We are regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC), which is an independent regulatory arm. We are not authorised to give any advice on taxation, pension or insurance.
9.2 If while we are acting for you, you need advice on investments we may have to refer you to someone who is authorised to provide the necessary advice. However, we may provide some limited investment advice services where these are closely linked to the legal work we are doing for you. This is because we are regulated by the CLC, which is a designated professional body for the purposes of the Financial Services and Markets Act (FSMA).
9.3 Our role in any transaction is that of legal adviser and it is not part of our function to give advice on the merits of any transaction in investments.
9.4 Insurance distribution: We are not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. However, we are included on the register maintained by the Financial Conduct Authority so that we can carry on insurance distribution activity, which is broadly the advising on, selling and administration of insurance contracts. This part of our business is regulated by the CLC. The register can be accessed via the Financial Conduct Authority website at www.fca.org.uk.
10.1 Electronic mail enables us to communicate more quickly with our clients. However, not every client finds this method of communication acceptable. Please inform us if you do not want us to contact you by email.
10.2 Unless you tell us otherwise, you agree to us communicating with you, including sending bills and other confidential information, by normal, unencrypted email, using the email address(es) you have given us from time to time. You should be aware that there is a risk that emails may be intercepted, delayed or corrupted or may fail to be delivered.
10.3 We make reasonable attempts to exclude from our emails any virus or other defect that might harm a computer or IT system. You undertake to act likewise with any electronic communications you send to us. Neither you nor we shall have any liability to each other in respect of any claim or loss arising in connection with such a virus or defect other than where such claim or loss arises from bad faith or wilful default.
You will receive the Firm’s Privacy Policy and Notice with your Engagement Letter. The Privacy Policy and Notice is deemed to be incorporated in these Terms and Conditions. It can also be found on our website.
12.1 The law now requires solicitors, as well as banks, building societies, and others, to obtain satisfactory evidence of the identity of their clients. This is because solicitors who deal with money and property on behalf of their client can be used by criminals wanting to launder money. We will carry out electronic verification of your ID using the information you provide to us which may show as a search on your credit history. Normally until we have received satisfactory evidence of identity, we will not be able to act for you.
12.2 If you are an organisation, these requirements will apply to each individual who deals with us on behalf of the organisation (such as directors, shareholders, managers and employees) and Beneficial Owners, that is, persons with more than 25% ownership of the organisation and/or persons with significant control of the organisation.
13.1 You acknowledge and agree that if you wish to make a claim relating to or in connection with the services provided by us, the claim can only be brought against GLCS Probate Services Ltd (trading as Co-op Probate Services and Later Life Planning) and not against the individual directors, officers or employees. We believe this is reasonable as it corresponds to modern business practice and that we have in place indemnity insurance in excess of the minimum cover required by The Law Society of England and Wales. “Claim” means any claim whether arising out of this agreement or otherwise and whether such claim is in contract, tort, breach of trust or on any other basis.
13.2 Our maximum liability to you for loss or damage for breach of contract, breach of trust, negligence or otherwise (other than fraud) is £3 million for any one transaction or matter or series of connected transactions or matters.
13.3 We will not be liable for any consequential, special, indirect or exemplary damages, costs or losses or any damages, costs or losses attributable to lost profits or opportunities.
13.4 Any provisions of these terms which have the effect of excluding or limiting the liability of us for breach of the terms implied by the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 shall not apply where you are entering into this agreement as a consumer.
13.5 We can only limit our liability to the extent the law allows. In particular we cannot limit our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence.
13.6 Details of our professional indemnity insurance can be inspected at our registered office.
13.7 If you start proceedings against us for loss or damage and there is another person who is liable (or potentially liable) to you in respect of the same loss or damage, then you will (if we so request) join them into the proceedings.
13.8 Where we and/or third parties are responsible for any loss suffered by you, our liability for that loss will be limited to a fair proportion of your total loss calculated by reference to the extent of our responsibility.
13.9 Our advice is for your benefit only. Save as expressly set out, our agreement with you is not intended to confer rights on any third parties whether pursuant to the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 or otherwise.
13.10 The limitations on our liability set out in this clause 13 are in addition to any specific limitations or exclusions we have agreed with you including those set out in the engagement letter.
14.1 You are responsible for paying our charges and the expenses incurred on your behalf in all circumstances. We will discuss with you whether and when another party or person may be legally required to pay them.
14.2 If you succeed in court proceedings or through a form of settlement, another party or person may be required to pay our charges and expenses instead of you or may be required to pay only a part of such charges and expenses.
14.3 Although another party may be required to pay all or part of our charges or expenses incurred, they may refuse to pay or not have the funds to pay.
14.4 If another party is legally aided or has community legal funding it is unlikely that the party will be required to pay our charges and expenses incurred even if you succeed in a case against them.
14.5 In all these circumstances you will be responsible for paying any or all of our charges and expenses incurred which are not, in fact, paid by another party or person.
14.6–14.10 Please refer to your Engagement Letter for further details regarding the recovery of charges, interest, and insurance cover for legal costs.
15.1 We are entitled to keep all the papers and documents generated by us or received from you or other persons (including original documents) if some or any sums owing by you to us have not been paid at the end of our work on the matter or after the termination of the retainer.
15.2 After the end of the relevant matter, please let us know if you would like us to send your file to you. Otherwise, we will keep your file in storage. We will destroy it no sooner than six years after the date of the final bill we send to you for the matter without further reference to you. We will not destroy documents you ask us to hold in safe custody, such as deeds, Wills and other important original documents. A one-off storage fee will be set out in the Engagement Letter.
16.1 You can terminate your instructions to us in writing at any time. But if you have not paid all the sums owing to us, we are entitled to keep your papers and documents until you do so.
16.2 During the course of the matter we may come to believe that we should stop acting for you, for example if you cannot give us clear or proper instructions on how we should proceed, or it is clear that you have lost confidence in the way in which we are carrying out work on your behalf.
16.3 We will only stop acting for you when we have a good reason to do so; for example: if you do not pay one or more of our invoices; if you do not make an advance payment promptly when we require you to do so; or if you provide instructions that are unreasonable or would require us to breach a duty to the Court or involve the commission of a criminal offence.
16.4 If we decide to stop acting for you, we will give you reasonable notice. The precise length of the notice will depend on the circumstances.
16.5 If you decide that you no longer wish us to act for you, you will pay us for the time we spend based on hourly charges plus any expenses incurred up to the date of our ceasing to act for you.
If you are not happy with our service or the bill, we hope to be able to resolve the matter to your satisfaction. Details of our Complaints Resolution Procedure are available on request.
However, if you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint, you may be able to ask the Legal Ombudsman to consider your complaint. Address: PO Box 6167, Slough, Berkshire, SL1 0EH. Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk. Telephone: 0300 555 0333. Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us about your complaint.
We are regulated by the CLC and so are subject to the provisions of the CLC Code of Conduct and the CLC Handbook. Copies can be obtained from the CLC website at www.clc-uk.org.
If you provide us with further instructions concerning other matters, these general terms and conditions will apply, unless we agree otherwise.
This agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales and each party agrees to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
We are committed to promoting equality and diversity in all of our dealings with clients, third parties and employees. Please contact us if you would like a copy of our equality and diversity policy.
Co-op Probate Services and Later Life Planning is a trading name of GLCS Probate Services Ltd
Company No: 16260877 · CLC Licence: 14742 · VAT: 491806763
Registered Office: The Beehive Building, City Place, Beehive Ring Road, Gatwick, RH6 0PA