This workshop will provide you with the necessary skills in drawing and opposing Bills of Costs together with the relevant ethical background and rules and provide a better understanding between the difference between civil litigious and non-litigious matters and the consequences of this difference.

Who will benefit from this training?

• Practising legal practitioners
• Non-practising legal practitioners
• Support staff who wish to achieve greater efficiency working for a legal practice; and
• individuals who want to enter this legal field.

Purpose of the training

This workshop will provide you with the necessary skills in drawing and opposing Bills of Costs together with the relevant ethical background and rules and provide a better understanding between the difference between civil litigious and non-litigious matters and the consequences of this difference

Course content

• After completion of this training the participant should be able to:
• Briefly explain the concept of “legal costs”.
• Distinguish between litigious and non-litigious matters.
• Explain the legal principles that are applicable to contingency fees and retainer fees.
• List the various forms of record keeping that are important to ensure proper office administration.
• Ethics and relation to cost
• Explain the nature and impact of the following concepts: overreaching; undercharging; recovery/attempted recovery of costs for work not strictly necessary;
• Non-litigious matters, explain the approach towards non-litigious matters.
• Define the concept “determination”.
• Indicate what the effect is of Section 69(d) and (h) regarding costs in non-litigious matters.
• Civil litigious matters
• Explain the concept “Attorney and client” costs.
• Indicate the types of the costs orders that a magistrate may grant in terms of the Magistrate’s Court rules.
• Distinguish between: party and party costs; attorney and client costs;
• Indicate the circumstance in which a party must apply for a “specific costs order” in:
• Indicate the instances in which an offer to pay costs will be taxable, as if it had been awarded by the Court.
• Prescribed tariffs
• Explain the application of rules 48, 67, 68 and 70 of the Uniform Rules of the High Court, with regard to:
• Explain the application of sections 80 and 81 of the Magistrate’s Court Act, Rules 33, 34 and 35 thereto and Tables A and B of annexure 2 to the rules to: party and party costs;
• Bills of costs
• Indicate the importance of drawing appropriate bills of cost.
• Indicate and explain the various pre-requisites for drawing a bill.
• Distinguish between “fees” and “disbursements”.
• Settling a bill of cost
• Taxation
• Review of taxation
• Recovery of costs
• Legal aid matters
• Indicate the basis for remunerating attorneys in respect of legal aid matters.
• Value added tax; Indicate how VAT can be levied.
• Statement of account (transfer)

Course facilitators

The facilitators are experts in these fields.

Course queries

merlin@LSSALEAD.org.za | Tel: 012 441 4652/00