Operational Overview

Our main business activities

We are a medium sized costing business, with comprehensive and ongoing involvement in all areas of civil costs. Our clients range from high street legal practices through to police authorities and the legal department of a national retail pharmaceutical company.

We have experience of all areas of civil costs including legal aid, conditional fee agreement work, claims for costs in the magistrates’ courts through to the House of Lords, including various tribunals. We act for both Claimants and Defendants and for receiving and paying parties.

In addition to our general costing work, we also have specialised experience of group action work both in relation to “holidays from hell” litigation and group litigation arising out of the abuse of children in care homes.

We are used to receiving instructions from client departments, individual fee earners, in-house costs draftsmen and, on occasion, litigants in person.

We can become involved at any stage during the course of the litigation and have extensive experience of advising on costs issues as they arise during the course of ongoing litigation, particularly in relation to the initial award of costs to a party and the format and wording of costs orders as well as post litigation costs work.

A particular strength is our technical expertise which is evidenced by our newsletter “Costs Recovery News”. This newsletter was first published in 2005 to provide solicitors with practical information on the implications of the latest costs law and changes to legislation and practice and has gone from strength to strength. The current edition will be sent out to over 8,000 targeted clients and other fee earners. A copy of the most recent edition is enclosed.

We have been extremely successful in building lasting relationships with our clients, some of whom have been with us since we first began trading in 1998.

We have a broad base of approximately 25 clients who send us regular work. In addition, we have over 25 additional firms for whom we carry out work as and when required.

For individual civil inter-partes work, we have experience of all types of claims for costs. All of our draftsmen have also been involved in multi-party/group work where the claims for costs are quantified in terms of millions of pounds. As part of the process of quantifying the claim for costs, we always investigate the retainer position and other technical issues and we also provide early warning information to the client in relation to matters of potential difficulty. Our clients know that they will be forewarned and forearmed in any subsequent negotiations.

We also have extensive experience of challenging bills of costs on behalf of paying parties, both as to the right of the receiving party to recover costs in principle (we always investigate the retainer position etc) and the quantum of the costs being sought. Our clients rely on us to provide them with clear, sensible and pragmatic advice – we advise them on when cases should be settled without a hearing and when the matter should proceed to detailed assessment.

Our draftsmen regularly attend costing courses and we meet monthly to discuss both our own workload of cases and developments in the costing world at large. All of our draftsmen have well developed research skills and are used to looking at matters from “first principles” when the need arises.

We operate a comprehensive system of gathering, recording, amending and updating instructions received from clients. On first instruction, the client completes a “client information sheet” which gathers information for future work. This is updated and information circulated as changes are made and we also build up a body of “standing instructions”. This ensures a consistent approach between our draftsmen and that our high standards of service are maintained. It also minimises the time required checking instructions received from clients.

We operate extensive quality control systems within our office to ensure the safe return of files, the logging of any resultant queries and the outcome of the same (which must be seen and signed off by a director). We operate a follow up system for new clients as well as a review system for clients sending us regular work.

Key personnel

Deborah Burke is a non-practising solicitor and co-director with more than fifteen years’ experience of costing work. Deborah has been a Fellow of the Association of Law Costs Draftsmen since July 2002 and is a member of the Council of the Association of Law Costs Draftsmen. She has completed the ALCD’s advocacy course to gain rights of audience and the right to conduct litigation. She has extensive experience of all types of costs work including complex multi-party group action work.

Victoria Hopkins is a costs lawyer and advocate with a particular interest in commercial and solicitor/client costs. She has also developed additional roles such as assessor for the Law Society's Remuneration Certificate Department, tutor for the Association of Law Costs Draftsmen's training course and speaker at various conferences and seminars.

Karen Holdsworth joined Deborah Burke Costing Limited in July 2005 and as Office Manager is responsible for the smooth running of all office systems. She is responsible for the day to day running of the office. Since January 2009 Karen has been a costs draftsman and in this time has gained considerable experience and skill in preparing claims for costs in both civil and legally aided cases. She is about to undertake a course of study to gain ALCD qualifications.

Madeleine Smith is a law graduate with almost five years’ experience of working as a costs draftsman. Madeleine passed the Associate exams for the Association of Law Costs Draftsmen (ALCD) in December 2008. She has extensive experience of all types of costs work including complex multi-party group action work with a particular emphasis on high value, complicated claims for costs, particularly substantial personal injury cases and clinical negligence claims.

Sharene Hourd is a Member of the Institute of Legal Executives having qualified in 2005 in tort and family law.  She has been working as a costs draftsman since September 2004 and has a wide experience of claims for costs including civil and legally aided matters.

Michelle Farlow is a law graduate who successfully passed her legal practice course in September 2009. Michelle joined Deborah Burke Costing Limited in July 2009 as a trainee costs draftsman. As well as becoming familiar with our office procedures, Michelle is increasing her knowledge of all aspects of our costing service on a daily basis.

Martin Burke is a co-director and has a background in management. As well as being responsible for the development and marketing of the business and our publication Costs Recovery News, he also ensures that high standards of content and presentation within our bills of costs are maintained.

Maria Jenkinson is a legal secretary and has been with Deborah Burke Costing Limited since April 2002. Maria co-ordinates the production of Costs Recovery News, liaises with advertisers, and schedules the courier service for clients. She is also responsible, in conjunction with Martin Burke, for checking the accuracy of all documentation produced.

Vanessa Hirst has day to day control of all aspects of the financial side of the business, including liaising with clients on payment of invoices and operating our accounts system. Vanessa also assists with booking in files and typing and oversees our databases and human resources requirements.

Security

Only employees of Deborah Burke Costing Ltd (DBCL) are involved in the costing process, we do not sub-contract our work. All have signed employment contracts with DBCL which prevent employees (during or after employment) revealing or communicating or making or communicating any statement relating to any confidential information relating to the business of DBCL or its clients. Any deliberate/negligent and unauthorised disclosure of confidential information is a disciplinary matter. Conflicts of interests between the employee and either DBCL or its clients are also prohibited.

None of our employees work for any other organisation and our employment contracts specifically prevent any act or omission which might prejudice or damage the reputation of DBCL.

All instructions received are booked in on the day of receipt and allocated a unique reference number. An e-mail acknowledgment is sent to the sender of the work. The instructions and documentation received are allocated a separate storage area within our secure premises. All work is separately identified. Once worked on, documentation is returned to another, but separate, area of the storage room and papers remain in our offices until they are returned to the sender.

Files are returned by agreement with the client through the DX or as signed for parcels through the Royal Mail or by our courier service which is provided free to clients.

Confirmation of the dispatch of the file is sent by fax to the client.

All hard copy documentation generated by the process is kept on site. We operate in a fully alarmed building with RedCare protection.

We have immediate access to all documents prepared in the last nine years, which are stored on our computer system. Our system has a daily back-up with tapes which are stored off-site and we have IT consultants who are responsible for maintaining and upgrading our computer system as necessary.

Our e-mail is totally secure and clients do not have access to our internal systems. All work is completed within the office and documents are not stored off site.

We operate a tidy desk policy and paperwork is cleared away and stored securely overnight.

We are entered on the Data Protection Register, pursuant to the Data Protection Act 1998.

Insurance

Professional Associations

Deborah Burke and Madeleine Smith are both members of the Association of Law Costs Draftsmen.

Deborah Burke is a member of the Law Society.

Environmental Policy

Whenever we look at our business practices, and any new process on which we are about to embark, we always consider the environmental factors associated with the same. Whenever possible, information is shared electronically and paper is recycled within our office before being disposed of securely.

Equal Opportunities

Our business is run according to employment policy and legislation and our business promotes equality and diversity.