If you are involved in an equine dispute (whether claiming or defending) please contact us for help. We are happy to give an initial 10-15 minutes free telephone consultation. Please note the following before you call:-
- We will want to know the potential value of your claim. As a rule of thumb, we advise that most claims under £10,000 may be uneconomic to pursue through a solicitor. The reason for this is that if your claim goes all the way to trial and you lose, you could end up spending double or triple the value of your original claim in legal expenses. It is therefore, very important that you weigh up the value of your claim with potential legal costs. Sometimes, it is better to cut your losses now and save on the future time, stress and money.
- Claims worth less than £5,000 are small claims and can be brought by individuals privately through the Courts without legal representation. It is generally uneconomic to instruct a solicitor for a small claim and you should visit Citizens Advice (CAB) for assistance in making a small claim.
- If you choose to instruct us, our main aim is to try to settle the dispute for you without the need for court action. To deal with your initial instruction and settlement correspondence with the other party we require £500 on account from you before we begin to cover our legal fees plus VAT. If we cannot settle the claim within this figure we will let you know. You would then have the option of (1) entering into Alternative Dispute Resolution with the other side or (2) issuing court proceedings. At this stage we would provide you with a new costs estimate. The losing party is generally required to pay a majority proportion of the winning party’s legal costs, however, this is not a stedfast rule.
- Before we start work for you, it will be necessary for us to ask you for identification so we may comply with our money laundering obligations. And we will also require you to sign our terms and conditions of business.
- If your dispute relates to the purchase or sale of a horse or pony it would assist us when giving our initial consultation if you could complete our Horse Sale Questionnaire or Horse Purchase Questionnaire and forward this to us before we talk.
TIP: check the small print of all insurance policies you hold as they may cover you for legal expenses e.g. horse, home & contents, car, travel. Please give us details if this is the case.
If you are interested in knowing more about our services please contact Sarah Jordan on 01730 262816 or by email: sarahj@daltons-law.co.uk
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