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14.8A bill should be submitted at the end of the investigations class, even if the case continues into proceedings. One bill should be submitted for all work done in the class (subject to the exceptions set out below).
Police station telephone advice only
14.9Where a client is at the police station and you provide telephone advice but do not attend, you can claim the telephone advice fee.
1Specification para 9.111.14.10The fee is not claimable in a case in which Criminal Defence Direct were involved,
2Specification para 9.110. and is triggered by a telephone call during which you speak to the client. Only one fee is payable per investigation.
3Specification para 9.112.14.11The value of the fee is set out in the Remuneration Regulations, and is currently £27.60 (£28.70 for London firms).
Advice and assistance
14.12In cases where you provide advice and assistance to a client outside the police station, but do not attend the police station with the client, you can claim for the costs of the advice and assistance at the hourly rates set out in the contract. Where the case also involves attendance at the police station, the costs of advice and assistance are included within the police station fixed fee and must not be claimed separately.
4Specification para 9.135.14.13A single claim for all work done (except advocacy assistance, which should be claimed separately) in the investigations class should be submitted when:
•the investigation has concluded, whether by charge, summons or other disposal; or
•it is known no further investigations work will be undertaken for the client; or
•it is unclear whether further work will be required but at least one month has elapsed since the last work (unless the client has an outstanding bail back); or
•post-charge work at the police station has been undertaken (in circumstances in which such work is not otherwise funded).
5Specification paras 9.104 and 9.136. 14.14Where you have acted for more than one client in the same investigation, you should make a separate claim for each client, apportioning the work between them if necessary.
6Specification paras 9.108, 9.137.14.15The hourly rates applicable to this work are set out in the Remuneration Regulations. You should apply the rates to all work done, subject to any costs limit. The costs limit for advice and assistance is £273.75 for both profit costs and disbursements; this limit can be extended on application to the LAA.
7Specification para 9.139.Police station attendance
14.16All work done at the police station is subject to a fixed fee regime. The fee is triggered whenever there is attendance upon the client at the police station. However, it does not include attendance for an ineffective bail to return if you did not check whether it would be effective prior to attending.
8Specification para 9.2.14.17Where triggered, the fee will cover all work done in the investigations class. Therefore, where, for example, you carry out advice and assistance outside the police station for eligible clients, such as between bails to return, that work will also be covered by the fixed fee.
14.18There is a separate fee for each duty scheme area, and the fees are set out in the Remuneration Regulations. Only one fee is payable per client per matter (even if you attend the police station on more than one occasion).
9Specification para 9.86. Where, however, work is a genuinely separate matter then a separate claim may be made, if you attend the client at the police station on a separate occasion in relation to one of the matters after another has concluded. It will be a separate matter if the client has genuinely separate legal problems requiring separate advice
10Specification para 9.80. on more than one occasion. If, for example, the client is charged with one offence and you reasonably attend on the bail to return to the police station on another, separate fees could be claimed in relation to each offence.
11Specification para 9.82.14.19A file note should be made setting out any justification for claiming more than one fixed fee
12Specification para 9.80. and separate Defence Solicitor Call Centre (DSCC) reference numbers must be obtained.
Case study
I had a client who was arrested for theft and taken to the police station, where it was found he was also wanted for a separate incident of criminal damage, and he was further arrested for that. Is that one matter or two?
It depends on the outcome of the case. If he were charged with both offences and bailed to the same court date, that would be one matter and one claim. This is because the two allegations required advice on one occasion only, and resulted in one set of proceedings.
However, if he were charged with theft and you reasonably attended on the bail to return on the criminal damage, that would constitute two matters since they require separate advice on more than one occasion.