Practical Guides
How to Get a Solicitor Quote
8 questions to ask every firm, what the SRA Code requires them to tell you, and how to compare quotes apples-to-apples. Updated May 2026.
The SRA Standards and Regulations 2019 require solicitors to be transparent on price. The 2018 SRA price-transparency rules go further, requiring firms to publish indicative prices for certain consumer services (conveyancing, probate, immigration, employment tribunal, motor offences, debt recovery) on their websites. This page turns those obligations into a practical 8-question checklist you can run on every firm you call.
The 8 questions
Get the answer in writing. Fixed fee is usually best value for standard work (conveyancing, wills, simple divorce). Hourly is appropriate for unusual scope (commercial disputes, complex family). CFA suits personal injury and some employment. Percentage is rarely good value above a £100k matter -- watch out for percentage-based probate or financial work.
A Grade C solicitor at £177/hr (National 2 GHR) is the same legal job done much cheaper than a Grade A partner at £296/hr. Many firms quote on the partner rate then assign the work to a paralegal. Ask explicitly who will run your file day-to-day, what grade, and what their hourly rate is. Get the supervision arrangement in writing too.
Even on hourly billing, the firm should give a cost estimate at the outset. SRA principle 7 requires solicitors to act in your best interests, which includes giving you the best information about the likely costs. Ask for an estimate range (low / typical / high) and what triggers each.
Fixed fees almost never include disbursements. Get an itemised disbursement estimate: court fees, Land Registry fees, search fees, ID checks, bank transfer fees, expert reports. On conveyancing this can be £400 to £1,500 on top of the headline solicitor fee. See /disbursements for the full breakdown.
VAT is 20% in 2026. Some firms quote inclusive, others exclusive. £1,500 plus VAT is £1,800 total. Statutory disbursements (court fees, Land Registry fees) carry no VAT; private disbursements (searches, ID checks) usually do. Make sure quotes from different firms are on the same basis before comparing.
The SRA requires every firm to have a written complaints procedure and tell you about it before instruction. Ask for it. A reputable firm will provide it without hesitation. If unresolved internally within 8 weeks, complaints go to the Legal Ombudsman (legalombudsman.org.uk).
Tied to cost in hourly billing and to your own planning. Conveyancing typically 8-12 weeks, divorce 26+ weeks (post April 2022 process), probate 6-12 months, employment tribunal 9-18 months. Get an estimate range. Ask what happens if it overruns.
Reputable firms will agree, subject to client consent. References are particularly useful for non-standard work (complex commercial, contentious probate, anything you cannot easily compare on price). For high-volume standard work (conveyancing, wills) online reviews and Trustpilot are a reasonable substitute.
How to compare three quotes apples-to-apples
Three solicitor quotes for the same conveyancing job can look very different on paper:
- Firm A: "£795 fixed fee"
- Firm B: "£1,200 inc VAT and searches"
- Firm C: "£950 plus VAT plus disbursements"
To compare these, build a table with one column per firm and these rows: solicitor fee net, VAT, search fees, Land Registry fee, ID checks, bank transfer, total. Many firms now have an online quote tool that pre-fills the table. The cheapest headline number is almost never the cheapest total cost.
What the firm must give you in writing (engagement letter)
Under the SRA Standards and Regulations 2019 and the Solicitors Code of Conduct, your engagement letter (sometimes called a client care letter) must include:
- Scope of work the firm is undertaking for you.
- Hourly rates or fixed fees, including grade of person doing the work.
- Estimate of total cost (or a clear basis for estimating).
- Disbursements expected.
- Frequency and basis of billing.
- How to complain (internal procedure + Legal Ombudsman).
- Confirmation that the firm is regulated by the SRA.
Read it before signing. If it is missing any of these, ask the firm to amend.
Red flags
- Reluctance to quote in writing.
- Pressure to instruct on the same call ("this rate is only available today").
- No clear answer on who will actually do the work.
- Quote that excludes VAT and disbursements without saying so.
- No published complaints procedure.
- The firm cannot tell you its SRA registration number (every firm has one and can give it to you on request).