5.160These fees are always additional to a litigator’s fee. While litigator’s fees have been reduced, advocacy fees have remained unchanged for all representation orders dated on or after 1 April 2013.22013 SI No 435.

5.161This includes committals for sentence, appeals against conviction and sentence, and committals for breach of Crown Court orders, Civil (prescribed) proceedings are dealt with in chapter 10.

Figure 5.2 Summary of calculation of advocate’s fee

5.162The following fees are prescribed for the main hearing, ie the hearing at which sentence is imposed or the appeal against conviction is heard in routine cases. The order also allows fees for a QC and leading juniors but such cases would always fall into the exceptional group described below.

5.165The order also allows for subsidiary fees (see table below).

5.166Fixed fees are provided for advocacy for contempt in the face of the court. The fee for contempt proceedings is limited to contempt arising during the course of the criminal proceedings and not those that are identified as prescribed proceedings. The fees are for cases -started on or after 1 April 2016.

5.167Where two or more cases involving the same advocate are heard concurrently, the advocate is paid an additional 20 per cent of the fixed fee for each additional case, whether that involves separate allegations or separate defendants.

5.169Paragraph 20(4) of Schedule 1 to the Remuneration Regulations 2013 allows for fees greater than these fixed fees:

5.170There is now no requirement for exceptional circumstances. At a time when that was a requirement, National Taxing Team (NTT) guidance indicated that a reasonable fee beyond the fixed fee could be paid if work was carried out substantially in excess of that required in an average case of the same type when:

5.172Appeals in relation to football banning and similar orders referred to in Criminal Legal Aid (General) Regulations 2013 reg 9 are payable at hourly rates in accordance with the SCC, set out in chapter 10. Advocacy fees must fall within the total fees limit of £1,368.75 and consideration must be given in appropriate cases to obtaining an authority on Form CRM5 to exceed that limit.

5.173The normal rules, for cases where the magistrates’ court declines jurisdiction, are set out below. Those rules also apply if a trial takes place following a defence election, or if, following such an election, the Crown offers no evidence in relation to all matters.

5.177These rules apply whenever there are

5.178Although these will now be phased out of use they are defined by the Remuneration Regulations as a ‘standard appearance’.

5.180If a defendant is arrested for breach of Crown Court bail conditions and produced before a magistrates’ court the hearing is Crown Court proceedings and will receive a standard appearance fee,5R v Richardson [2008] 2 Costs LR 320; R v Bailey (X16). which under the arrangements set out below may merely form part of the brief fee. It may be better for these arrests to be handled by the duty solicitor (which is permitted as there is a new arrest) although if the trial advocate (see para 5.244) is not employed by the firm an invoice for £87 (subject to the Bar protocol) may be delivered to that person.

5.182To calculate the correct graduated fee it is necessary to collect a quantity of basic data about the relevant case.

5.183See para 5.3 and appendix G.

5.184See para 5.20.

5.185See para 5.51.

5.186See para 5.77. The length of trial uplifts depends on the total length of the trial undergone by the particular defendant represented, whatever the length of the overall trial.6Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs v Stork [2006] 1 Costs LR 69.

5.188This includes witnesses served under CJA 1967 s9 and whose evidence is read as admissible hearsay as well as those who, by whatever method, give live evidence. It includes witnesses in notices of additional evidence.

5.189Categories are:

5.190It is then necessary to identify, for each case, the main hearing, as it is for the hearing that the primary fee is payable.

5.191A basic fee, varying in amount, is always payable. The fee is payable for a single trial advocate representing one assisted person on one indictment in a trial. If the trial exceeds 40 days, the table at appendix I applies.

5.196‘Standard appearance’ is defined in Sch 1 para1(1) as:

5.197Where the main hearing is a trial, the appropriate basic fee is -selected for the offence(s) in question, depending on the advocate making the claim, from the tables in the Remuneration Regulations 2013.

5.199Where the main hearing is a guilty plea, select the appropriate basic fee for the offence(s) in question depending on the advocate making the claim.

5.201It is necessary to know at which point the case cracked: whether in the first third, second or last third.

5.207A trial under Bail Act 1976 s6 no longer attracts a separate fee but is paid as if it were a bail hearing.

5.210Where a hearing is held to decide whether a defendant is fit to plead or stand trial (the fitness hearing), the following apply under Sch 1 para 31:

5.211The Remuneration Regulations 2013 Sch 1 para 2(2)–(7) make special arrangements for the payment of fees for advocates in relation to retrials depending whether the same advocate appeared on both occasions. A fixed fee is paid if there was a defence election and at the retrial there is a cracked trial or guilty plea. In other cases, if a new advocate appears a full fee is paid. If the same advocate appears the advocate will have the fee for retrial (or if they elect for the trial) reduced by a percentage:

5.212It is then necessary to add to these figures any relevant supplementary fees. Advocates seek particularly to classify hearings as one of those for which daily or half daily rates or hourly fees are payable as these will generate additional fees. As any issue as to admissibility of evidence or disclosure falls into such payments, this will not uncommonly be possible. These supplementary fees are considered as follows:

5.213

Hearing type	Para no (Sch 1)	QC rate	Leading junior rate	Other advocate rate
Standard appearance not included within basic fee	12(2)	£173 per day	£130 per day	£87 per day

5.214

Hearing type	Para no (Sch 1)	QC rate	Leading junior rate	Other advocate rate
Deferred sentencing hearing	15(2)	£324 per day	£238 per day	£173 per day

5.215Note that a half day ends before lunch or begins after lunch. Mark-ups for additional defendants are payable for the first four groups.

5.216If a Newton trial is listed but does not proceed due to the absence of a prosecution witness, the defence version then being accepted, it is the fee under para 13 that is payable (see R v Ayres11[2002] 2 Costs LR 330 (X32).).

5.217

Scenario	Para no (Sch 1)	QC rate	Leading junior rate	Other advocate rate
Conferences and views	19	£74 per hour	£56 per hour	£39 per hour

* See CCFG 2.17

5.221This fee is payable where:

5.227

Scenario	Para no (Sch 1)	QC rate	Leading junior rate	Other advocate rate
Wasted preparation	18	£74 per hour	£56 per hour	£39 per hour

5.229Under Crime and Disorder Act 1998 s51 if proceedings are sent and the Crown discontinues, or such proceedings are dismissed:

5.232For confiscation hearings, a special scheme applies where the number of pages involved in the confiscation proceedings exceeds 50. Under that figure the advocate is just paid the daily or half daily fees.

5.236If a case is properly defined as a retrial (see para 5.61) and if the same advocate (but not otherwise) appears at original and retrials and:

5.237An advocate appointed solely to cross-examine a witness under Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 s38 is paid a trial graduated fee with a daily fee calculated by reference to the number of days actually attended by the advocate after the first two days.

5.238An advocate appointed solely to mitigate is paid the supplementary fee for a sentencing hearing but in addition a special preparation fee.

5.239Where an advocate is instructed solely to advise, a special preparation fee will be payable for the reasonable number of hours of prepar-ation for that advice using the hourly rates set out above for special preparation.

5.240A hearing at which a warrant is issued is a ‘standard appearance’. If there is no main hearing the standard appearance fee remains payable.27R v Metcalf [2010] 4 Costs LR 646. If the defendant absconds, claims for advocates’ fees may unusually be made prior to the conclusion of the case, it seems as a cracked trial (where there is to be no trial in absence). This will be the position if the case can be regarded as effectively at an end.28R v Ajufo [2013] 2 Costs LR 369 confirming the decision, under the earlier Regulations, in R v Al-Goni and Ateya [2009] 2 Costs LR 356. CCFG 2.12.8 suggests that the standard appearance fee may be paid after six months, and the cracked trial fee after 12 months, but these periods appear to be very long if it can be shown that a particular case is unlikely to revive.

5.241The fee payable would appear to depend on the state of the case at the moment of discharge. Standard appearance fees are payable if there is no main hearing before legal aid is withdrawn.29R v Muoka [2013] 3 Costs LR 523.

5.242Travel expenses are payable to advocates for all reasonable attendances at conferences30R v Carlyle [2002] 1 Costs LR 192. and views permitted for the relevant proceedings (see para 5.218).

5.244Only one fee will be paid for advocacy in each case to junior counsel; and one to leading counsel if any. Payment is made to the ‘trial advocate’, that is the advocate who appeared at the main hearing. The Bar has established a protocol which provides a workable basis for distribution in the absence of any other arrangement. Between solicitors, an advocacy fee is often ‘protocol minus a percentage’ to cover administrative costs.

5.249Because the basic fee covers a number of preliminary hearings, a method of distribution is required and is provided by the protocol. The essential concept is that if the basic fee is reduced below 70 per cent then all fees are reduced by the same percentage (whether the work is done by that advocate or others and including the main hearing). Fees added to the basic fee (eg page count) are always paid to the advocate attending the main hearing.

5.252If in the same case there are a PTPH and two other standard appearance fees:

The abatement is: