Barristers aim to shake up market with launch of new costs company

The team behind barrister-led law firm, Barrister-Direct, has expanded its portfolio by launching a specialist legal costs company.

Formed by Manchester-based barristers Andrew McKie, Monica Savic-Jabrow and Ian Skeate, Quick Costs is a legal practice specialising in the law and practice of legal costs.

The firm is targeting costs work from law firms across a wide range of practice areas, including personal injury, clinical negligence, housing, construction and commercial work.

The business will begin trading this month, and Andrew McKie said: “For any law firm operating in the current legal landscape, cashflow is a major priority and, for many, a major concern.

“As the lifespan of a matter increases, so does the time for any given firm to realise their work in progress on that file.

“Even when damages are successfully negotiated, costs become an unduly drawn out process littered with chaser e-mails, stand-offs during negotiations and lulls of silence.

“We believe there is a need for change in the marketplace, which is why we have launched Quick Costs.”

He added: “We will be providing a new approach to costs putting our client’s needs first with a friendly, approachable and nationwide service.

“Our approach is focused purely on our clients, their needs and interests. Quick Costs will be driven by fast recoveries whilst retaining technical skills and experience at its focus to ensure maximum recovery.

“Our unique positioning as barristers in the areas serviced by the firm permits knowledge of the issues that arise, how to deal with them and how to achieve maximum recovery.

“Our role as directors of Barrister-Direct also allows us to understand the precise position, situation and needs of our clients and how to best achieve those needs, speedily and effectively.”

Barrister-Direct was set up in 2015 and is based at Queen’s Chambers, on John Dalton Street, in Manchester.

The business recently launched a new service to provide law firms, credit hire agencies, and medical agencies with a complementary second look service on files they are planning to close or abandon.

Barrister-Direct’s Resolve service evaluates the claim’s prospects and, where possible, takes the matter on and progresses it until resolution.

If the claim is successful, firms recover their costs and any disbursements received and owing to them.

Andrew McKie said personal injury firms are routinely abandoning winnable cases as they exit the market.

In a recent audit of a personal injury firm’s caseload, Barrister-Direct discovered that 52% of the cases the firm was planning to close were potentially winnable.

Reasons for closure ranged from prospects to resources to procedural or factual complexity.