Primary Sources First
Rules, rates, fees and time limits are taken from the primary source wherever one is published:
- the Civil Procedure Rules and Practice Directions, on justice.gov.uk;
- legislation, on legislation.gov.uk;
- GOV.UK guidance, such as the civil court fees in form EX50 and the solicitors’ guideline hourly rates;
- judgments, on Find Case Law at The National Archives.
Where nothing official is published, for example when a government department’s position is reported in the legal press, the guide says where the information comes from. Our guides link to the sources they rely on, most in a Sources section at the end, and our tools cite the rules they apply.
Checked Before Publication
Before a new guide or tool is published, it is checked in a separate review against the sources it cites: the rules quoted, the dates and figures, and how the rule applies in practice. Tools are also tested against worked examples, and the tests are run again before any change to a tool is published.
Kept Up to Date
Every guide and tool shows when it was last updated or reviewed. Once a month we re-check every source the site cites, from the rules and legislation to GOV.UK fee pages, and review any page whose source has changed. Tables that follow official figures, such as court fees, guideline hourly rates and the Bank of England base rate used in interest calculations, are updated when the official figures change.
What Our Tools Do, and What They Don’t
Our tools fill in court forms and work out dates, fees and figures from the rules. They are not legal advice on a particular case: whoever has conduct of the matter decides how the rules apply to its facts.
Who Is Responsible
Every guide names the practitioner responsible for it, with a link to their profile. Our practitioners are:
- Diellza Nika Hyseni, Law Costs Draftsperson & Managing Director
- Mentor Nika, Law Costs Draftsman, Head of Housing Disrepair Costs
Corrections
If you find an error, email info@dmdcosts.co.uk with the page and the point. We check it against the source, correct the page if it is wrong, and update the page’s date.
What We Never Do
- Invent figures, case results, reviews or testimonials.
- Describe ourselves as solicitors or Costs Lawyers: DMD Costs is a firm of law costs draftsmen.
- Republish the text of judgments: we quote what a point needs and link to the judgment.