Alderson Law

Road Traffic Offences Pricing

The following information relates to cases involving driving offences in which we will be acting for you.

Who will be handling my case

There are a team of lawyers dealing with cases of this type within the office but principally your case will be dealt with by Paul Dunn who is a Solicitor /Advocate and Partner in Charge of the criminal team at Alderson Law and John Monkhouse.   Both Paul and John have extensive experience of all aspects of criminal case work, are Duty Solicitors with a combined experience of almost 80 years of dealing with cases of this type in the South East Northumberland area and beyond.

For most of the cases, Paul and John will represent you at the Court but for more lengthier complex cases which proceed principally to the Crown Court, we would employ a specialist Barrister and we would need to discuss the separate payment of Barristers’ fees with you and agree a reasonable fee before instructing them.

A different range of fees applies in road traffic cases depending on the type of case that you have which can broadly be dealt with as follows:-

GUILTY PLEA IN COURT

If you are intending to plead guilty and if your case is dealt with at the first hearing then we can attend Court and represent you.    If the case is dealt with at our local Court at Bedlington then the cost is likely to be a fixed fee usually limited to £350 plus VAT.  This will cover taking instructions from you in the office and advising you on plea, an analysis of the Prosecution case against you and attendance at one Court hearing.

The fixed fee does not cover disbursements such as travel time to Court, mileage to Court, other disbursements such as parking or any other fees that we have to pay on your behalf, such as for example forensic reports.

If for any reason your sentencing case is adjourned, the fixed fee will not cover the second hearing and we will discuss a further fixed fee with you for that hearing.

The fee also inherently suggests that there are no substantial disputes between yourself and the Prosecution version of events or no other offences become apparent.

NOT GUILTY PLEA OR SECOND HEARING

The second category of cases is where there is a Not Guilty plea entered or a second hearing is required.

This can arise in a number of different situations, if your case is a particularly serious allegation such as dangerous driving or a high level drink drive reading, then this case can often be adjourned for Pre Sentence Reports to a second hearing.   More commonly in cases of road traffic there is to be legal arguments about exceptional hardship or special reasons to prevent a driving disqualification.    A different charging rate will apply at that stage and we will advise you of that at the outset.

Where a second hearing is involved, then the fixed fee becomes £500 plus VAT.  This is based on the factors we mention above and again does not include travelling, disbursements such as mileage and parking, expert fees for forensic reports, collision investigation reports and any other reasonable disbursements we incur on your behalf.

It does cover us attending for the initial hearing when the plea will be entered and the following hearing where contested evidence is put before the Court.   It covers attending upon you to take instructions, analysis of the Prosecution case, interviewing witnesses if necessary.   We will discuss the outcome with you.   The fixed fee will cover advice on an appeal either against sentence or conviction or both, but will not cover the cost of appeal itself.

HOW LONG WILL A NOT GUILTY PLEA OR CONTESTED HEARING TAKE

It is difficult to predict this from the outset.   It will depend on Court availability to hear the case and witness availability but we will keep you advised.

Generically there may well be situations where the fixed fee regime in cases of this type cannot apply because of complexity and length of listing.  We will identify this at a very early stage and if it becomes necessary to charge you on a different basis, on a time basis or agree a different fee, then we will write to you separately having discussed the matter with you and agree a way forward before you are committed to any additional costs with the practice.

Contact Us

Telephone Blyth:

01670 352293

Telephone Morpeth:

01670 519714

Email

reception@aldersonlaw.co.uk

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Alderson Law LLP is a Limited Liability Partnership registered in England and Wales under company number OC307338.
Registered office: Pethgate House, Castle Square, Morpeth, Northumberland, NE61 1YL

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Mary was born and has lived all her life in the North East of England. Her first interest was science and she originally studied Biomedical Science at Northumbria and worked in the scientific research field and the NHS, before studying part time, again at Northumbria University, to obtain her degree in Law. Since then she has enjoyed a varied career covering many different areas of law, before specialising in Children Law, which she has done almost exclusively for the past 5 years.

Mary loves reading and history and at a weekend can often be found at one of the many historical sites the North East has to offer and has even been known to play video games when she can find the time.

Chris was originally a Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives from 1997 and qualified as a Solicitor in 2001.

He has over 25 years experience in private client work comprising Wills, Trusts, Probate, Powers of Attorney and other Court of Protection Work such as Deputyship applications. Chris has been a Partner in several firms in the North East, being Head of Wills, Trusts and Probate.

He brings a wealth of experience to his role and works closely with clients, providing them with a service tailored to their needs

Susan was born and bred in the North East, spending all of her working life in Blyth. She qualified in 1981 and, after some years at Alderson Law, began to specialise in family law, covering both private and legal aid. Susan was a member of the Law Society Family Panel and an accredited Resolution specialist, specialising particularly in private children law and domestic violence.

Susan took part-retirement in December 2018 but still works as a Solicitor here at Alderson Law. Outside of work she enjoys cooking, walking, reading, and spending time with her family. She has also been a Brownie leader for over 40 years.

Originally from East Yorkshire, Jasmine moved to the North East in 2012 to study at Northumbria University undertaking the M Law Exempting (BPTC) course (the only undergraduate course in England and Wales which incorporates the Bar Professional Training Course), graduating in 2016 with a First Class Honours and a Very Competent in the Bar Professional Training Course. Prior to joining Alderson Law Jasmine specialised in RTA Fraud in a Personal Injury firm, before moving to another firm to work as a Family Law Paralegal.

In 2018 she joined our team as a Family Law Paralegal and before qualifying as a Solicitor within the Family Law Department based at our Morpeth office. Jasmine represents clients in a wide range of matters including; divorce and matrimonial finance, disputes regarding the arrangements for children as well as parents who are subject to Local Authority involvement both before and during Court proceedings.

In her spare time Jasmine likes visiting the beach, going to the gym, watching live music and looking after her pet rabbit.

Julie is a highly experienced property solicitor. She studied Law at Northumbria University and, after qualifying in 2000, went on to work at national and international firms prior to joining the team at Alderson Law in 2017. She works alongside her clients, advising on residential and commercial property development, property investment, portfolio management, property finance, landlord and tenant, easements and restrictive covenants.

Fiona is a specialist private client lawyer providing advice and assistance with wills, trusts, tax planning, probate & estate administration, lasting powers of attorney, court of protection and elderly client work. Having previously worked with a number of Newcastle-based firms listed in The Legal 500, Fiona brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the role. She is a full member of STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners), the association for specialists in family inheritance and succession planning.

Fiona grew up in Northern Ireland and studied law at Durham University, and has remained in the North East ever since. She enjoys spending time with her family at their cottage in Northumberland.

Mark Hipkin, partner at Alderson Law LLP, has been advising businesses and claimants since he qualified as a solicitor in 1982.

Mark’s passion is for representing claimants on two wheels in complex, serious and catastrophic motorcycle, scooter and cycle injuries, but he also has extensive experience of acting for claimants in many other personal injury areas including occupiers and public liability work and accidents at work. He specialises in challenging and complex cases. Mark always puts the client first, looking from the first day of instruction to obtain the best and fairest outcome for a claimant, no matter how long a case may take. He is a fan of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and early neutral valuation as alternatives to litigation. Sometimes, however, litigation is the best option, together with the necessary drive to see every matter through to a fair conclusion.

Mark also, having started his own business, advises business clients, often with motorcycle-, scooter- or cycle-related businesses and also deals with complex commercial disputes, professional negligence cases, and general civil litigation.

Mark likes to spend what free time he has with his family and practising Tai Chi and Tang Soo Do (Korean Karate – in which he is a second Dan).

Having worked in family law for over 25 years, Julie is a highly accomplished specialist in her field. She has a vast body of experience in dealing with family law, from divorce and related financial issues to complex child-related cases. Julie was the first person in North Tyneside to achieve the status of an accredited advanced family law specialist, and is a member of the Law Society Advanced Family Panel, which demonstrates her experience in complex contested family cases and other subject-specific matters.

Though multi-talented and highly experienced, Julie’s particular speciality is in complex ancillary relief (financial settlement) claims and complex residence and contact disputes.

In her spare time Julie enjoys relaxing and spending time with her family and three grandchildren. She attends clients at our Whitley Bay and Blyth offices.

Tracey is one of our Partners and qualified as a solicitor in 1997. Throughout her career she has had a varied caseload undertaking matters in most areas of civil and private client law. Tracey can assist clients in a wide range of matters including: Wills, Probate, Powers of Attorney, Debt Recovery, Residential and Commercial Conveyancing as well as Licensing and Landlord and Tenant matters.

Tracey is one of our most senior practitioners with over 20 years of local experience, having graduated from both Newcastle University and Northumbria University. When not in the office she enjoys walking, cycling, and cooking with her family.