Our firm is committed to serving you professionally and ethically.
We will:
- protect your privacy and confidentiality;
- pursue your work conscientiously;
- keep you consistently informed about the status of your work;
- give you clear information and advice;
- ensure your work is handled by the best available person.
Solicitors
1. A director or solicitor of the firm will have the primary responsibility for your matter. However, in their professional judgement they may utilise the expertise of other team members. We want to ensure the service is exemplary – so we’ll ensure the most suitable members of our term are assigned to your matter.
Professional fees
2. Our professional fees are calculated on guidelines laid down by the New Zealand Law Society.
3. These fees are based on the time taken to complete the work and any other relevant factors specified by the Rules of Conduct and Client Care for Lawyers.
4. Relevant factors include, but are not limited to, time and labour expended, task urgency, the degree of specialised knowledge required, the degree of risk assumed by us in undertaking the services (including the value of any property involved), the complexity of the matter and the results achieved. Like any job, additional compensation may be required for when we must drop everything, work late and take on extra risk.
Our estimate of costs
5. Wherever practicable we will provide a cost estimate of the work. Please note: this estimate is not a quotation, rather it is based on an assessment of the work likely to be required to carry out your instructions, and on the information available to us at the time of the estimate.
Office expenses
6. We charge to cover office expenses such as photocopying, printing, postage, emails, phone calls, and file storage. This charge is calculated at 6% of the net fee.
Disbursements
7. Disbursements may include expenses such as LIM report fees, couriers, court filing fees, searches, registrations and travel costs. You are responsible for reimbursing our firm for these and policy requires us to obtain from you funds in advance for most disbursements.
Retainer fee
8. Before commencing work, we may require a retainer fee or automatic payment plan.
Accounts
9. For all matters (excluding transactional ones) our accounts are due for payment within fourteen (14) days of the date on our invoice unless prior arrangements are made with us. For transactional matters with a scheduled settlement date fees are due on that date.
10. For all matters, you authorise us to deduct our fees and other expenses from funds held in our trust account on your behalf, provided an invoice has been sent to you. By engaging us you acknowledge that payment by this method is for your convenience and at your request and in lieu of payment by any other means and that such deduction is to be treated in all respects as if you had remitted such payment to us without reservation.
11. Interim fees will usually be rendered monthly and a final account forwarded on completion of your instructions.
12. If any account remains outstanding after 30 days, and no suitable arrangements are made for outstanding debt payment, then the account will be forwarded to Baycorp Collection Services. Any such forwarded debt will incur an additional fee of the outstanding debt to cover Baycorp charges.
13. If your interim account remains outstanding after 45 days no further work will be undertaken until arrangements are made to bring the account back into good standing.
14. You’ll pay all legal and debt collection costs that we may incur, including solicitor and your own client costs, in enforcing or attempting to enforce our rights under these terms of engagement.
15. If a third party undertakes responsibility for any payment incurred on your behalf and such third party either fails for any reason to pay within one month of the date stated in our invoice or request for payment, or refuses to make such payment, you will immediately pay any outstanding amount.
How to keep your costs down
16. There are many things that will help keep your costs down. You can:
• see us before signing anything.
• make sure you give us all relevant information, papers and instructions.
• for litigation files, provide a detailed timeline (dates of events) and copies of all relevant documents.
• not leave things to the last minute if possible (urgency will usually increase your costs).
• respond promptly to requests for further information (chasing you up takes extra time, which you pay for).
• do things we would otherwise have to undertake at your cost, e.g. instructing valuers, liaising with banks etc.
We will keep your costs down by delegating some aspects of the work to appropriate staff with lower charge-out rates unless you specifically request one person attend to all matters.
Settlement monies
17. For property and financing transactions where payment of monies is due by you, we require cleared funds for the total amount (including our fees and disbursements) to be deposited with us no later than the morning of the settlement.
Trust Account
18. We maintain a Trust Account for all funds received from clients (except monies received for payment of our invoices).
19. If we hold funds on your behalf we will deposit them in an interest-bearing deposit with a bank, where reasonable and practicable.
20. We charge an 8.5% administration fee on the gross interest earned on funds held in an interest-bearing deposit unless agreed otherwise.
21. Withholding tax will be deducted on the interest earned and paid to the IRD.
22. If you transfer funds to our trust account in a foreign currency, we will convert those funds into NZ dollars at the prevailing exchange rate offered by our bank.
Termination of legal services
23. You may terminate our services upon giving us written notice.
24. We may terminate the retainer if there is good cause, such as you are not providing us with instructions in a sufficiently timely manner, there is inability or failure to pay our fee on an agreed basis, or you adopt a course of action against our advice which may be inconsistent with our obligations as lawyers.
25. If we terminate the retainer, we will give you reasonable notice so you can arrange alternative representation.
26. If our retainer is terminated, you must pay us all fees due up to the date of termination and all expenses incurred up to that date.
Privacy of information
27. We treat all information we hold about you and your personal or business affairs as private and confidential.
28. We reserve the right to disclose your name, date of birth and address to a credit agency for credit reference or credit management processes.
Anti-Money Laundering
29. On 1 July 2018 the Anti-Money Laundering legislation came into effect. This requires us to obtain personal information from you before commencing any work on your behalf.
Limitation of liability
30. We do not accept any liability for any loss arising from non-receipt of communication, including e-mails.
31. The maximum aggregate amount of our liability if proved is $2 million unless otherwise negotiated and agreed.
32. If you are more than one person this maximum liability is the combined amount that will apply.
33. If you engage us to do work for the purposes of a business you agree the Consumer Guarantees Act does not apply.
34. We shall not be liable for any loss or liability caused by inaccurate or incomplete information supplied by you or third parties.
Conflicts
35. Conflicts of interest may arise after initial instructions from you.
36. If a conflict arises, we will advise you and explain how we intend to deal with the conflict.
Accounting and taxation and investment advice
37. We do not provide accounting, taxation or financial planning advice.
38. Where we provide conveyancing, this service does not include advice in relation to the quality of any investment comprised in the property.
Storing records
39. You authorise us to destroy all files and documents relating to a job seven years after that job is completed.
Companies, trusts and joint clients
40. If we receive instructions from you in your capacity as a director or shareholder of a company or trustee of a trust, you remain personally responsible for payment of our fees.
41. If instructions are received from more than one client jointly such clients will be jointly and individually liable for fee payment.
Rights of third parties
42. Our work is carried out for your sole benefit and must not be relied upon by any third party unless agreed in writing.
Client care
43. The Law Society’s client care and service information outlines obligations including acting competently, protecting your interests, providing clear information, charging fair fees, protecting your privacy and advising how to make a complaint.
The Lawyers’ Fidelity Fund (“the Fund”)
44. The Fund provides compensation of up to $100,000 per claimant for certain losses caused by theft by a lawyer.
45. The Fund will not pay compensation in certain investment circumstances.
46. This is only a short summary of the provisions relating to the Fund.
Professional Indemnity Insurance
47. We hold current Professional Indemnity Insurance that exceeds the minimum standards specified by the New Zealand Law Society.
Complaints
48. If you have a complaint you may refer it to the person responsible for your work, our Practice Manager, or the Lawyers Complaint Service operated by the Law Society on 0800 261 801.