Regulated by the Solicitor’s Regulation Authority, Duncan Lewis Solicitors was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in the City of London (Fenchurch Street EC3M), with offices nationwide. We are recognised by the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners UK independent legal directories as a top-tier law firm in all of our key practice areas – “a diligent and professional team that is prepared to go the extra mile for its clients”. A paperless law firm with over 500 personnel that embraces hybrid-working, we service both corporate entities and private individuals in over 25 areas of law across 60 languages. We give people a voice - that is our ethos.
Recognised among The Times 200 Best Law Firms, we have been awarded Law Firm of the Year at the 2024 Lexis Nexis Awards and 2023 Modern Law Awards, reflecting our dedication to legal expertise and client service. We hold Investors in People Gold Standard accreditation for over 15 years, showcasing our commitment to professional development. Duncan Lewis is also Law Society Lexcel, Cyber Essentials Plus, and ISO 27001 certified, ensuring excellence in practice management and data security.
We are committed to recruiting dedicated and talented professionals and welcome applications from exceptional candidates. At Duncan Lewis, we value training and diversity, and we take pride in our inclusive workforce.
The Role:
The ideal candidate will join a well-established national team of experienced Costs Lawyers and Costs Draftsmen, supporting the full lifecycle of the billing and recovery process for a wide range of legal sector clients. This senior position requires strong technical expertise, excellent drafting ability, and confident negotiation skills. Candidates with substantial Legal Aid experience and the ability to hit the ground running will be particularly valued.
- Reporting directly to the Manager and contributing to team-wide performance
- Drafting / preparing inter partes bills of costs, costs budgets; and points of reply/dispute
- Drafting inter partes bills with Legal Aid element
- Drafting Claim1’s, 1a’s and VHCC/HCCP case
- Drafting of estimates of costs to accompany Allocation Questionnaires and Pre-Trial Checklists.
- Conducting negotiations on bills, including attendance at CCMCs
- Overseeing the Issuing of the Notice of Commencement and associated documents
- Working to deadlines
- Attendance upon Detailed Assessment Hearing as and when necessary
- Providing technical / costs guidance to fee earners where required
- Assist junior members of the team to complete post –assessment work, with training and ad hoc queries
- Maintaining accurate time costing procedures
- Implementing any recommendations made by your supervisor following monthly meetings ensuring that these are dealt with promptly
- Ensuring full compliance with file management and internal quality standards
- Contributing to internal training and the ongoing development of costs management processes
- Minimum of 3 years legal experience in Costs Law namely drafting legal aid and Inter partes bills along with clear understanding and application of the civil procedure rules relating to costs
- Ability to draft an IP bill of costs (preferably with some LAA experience – 3 & 6 column bills)
- Ability to prepare costs budgets and have experience in the same
- Ability to draft schedule of costs and breakdowns
- Ability to negotiate
- Ability to draft Points of Reply
- Ability to work on their own and within a team
- Ability to risk assess
- Ability to provide sound advice to client’s
- Ability to set matters down for assessment
- Have an understanding of Part 8 procedure
- Advocacy would be desired but not essential
- Work to achievable targets
- Familiar with Costs Master would be useful but not essential
- Have good MS Excel skills and Microsoft Office skills
- Ability to use own initiative and sound judgment
- Experience in own advocacy is an advantage
- A supportive, knowledgeable team that values expertise and encourages growth
- Opportunities to mentor, lead, and shape best practice within the department
- The chance to work on high-quality, complex matters that stretch your skills
- Clear pathways for progression within a respected national Costs team
The recruitment process will fully comply with GDPR and other applicable laws. Background checks including CRB / DBS checks will establish your eligibility to work in the UK and suitability to the role.
Duncan Lewis is committed to Equal Opportunities and embraces diversity of its staff. The Company strives to ensure that our staff reflects the diversity of the communities we serve, which is reflective at all levels within our workforce. We guarantee an interview for candidates that disclose a disability and meet the essential requirements for the post. Please provide additional details in your covering letter if this applies.
APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED BY AGENCIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED FOR THE ABOVE VACANCY
Disclaimer
Duncan Lewis Solicitors is an award-winning, nationally recognised law firm, ranked as a top-tier firm in current edition of The Legal 500 UK. With offices across London and the regions, we offer clear, practical and high-quality advice across a broad range of specialist areas. We act for clients on both a legal aid and private-fee basis, supporting individuals, families and businesses with everything from everyday matters to complex and high-profile litigation. Our continued growth, particularly in private client and complex dispute work, is driven by our reputation for professionalism, integrity and exceptional client care.
We are always keen to hear from committed and capable people, in both legal and non-legal roles. Whether you are an experienced practitioner or looking to begin your career, we welcome applications from individuals who want to contribute to the work we do.
Our recruitment and interview process is designed to understand how you think, how you work and what you can bring to the firm, and to assess your skills, knowledge and experience in a fair and consistent way. To support this, candidates must not use AI-based tools (such as ChatGPT, Gemini or similar) to write or edit any part of their interview responses or written communication during the process. We want to hear your own experience, insight and perspective.
Duncan Lewis is committed to Equal Opportunities and values the diversity of its staff. We work to ensure that our workforce reflects the communities we serve at every level of the organisation. We offer a guaranteed interview to applicants who disclose a disability and meet the essential requirements for the role — please highlight this in your covering letter if it applies.
