Open for Instructions: How We Work, and How We Charge

We have had a number of people get in touch since the firm opened, and one question comes up more than any other. Not "can you help with this", but "how much do you charge"

That hesitation keeps people from getting advice when advice would have been cheap, and brings them in later when the problem has grown teeth. So this note sets out how an engagement works here and the ways we charge. What a particular matter will cost depends on what it involves, and we give you that figure in writing before any work starts.

Getting started

The first step is a conversation. Tell us what the matter is and who else is involved, and we will tell you honestly whether it is something we can take on.

Before we accept any instruction we run a conflict check, because we cannot act for you if we already act for someone on the other side. Once that is clear, we send an engagement letter setting out exactly what we are doing for you, who is doing it, and what it will cost. Nothing starts until you have that in writing and are comfortable with it.

If it turns out you do not need a lawyer, we will say so.

The ways we charge

Different work suits different arrangements. We will recommend the one that fits your matter rather than the one that suits us.

Hourly rates. The standard arrangement for work where nobody can say at the outset how long it will take. Litigation, disputes, negotiations and investigations all fall here.We record time in increments, bill on an agreed cycle, and give you an estimate up front along with a commitment to tell you if the matter is heading past it. The applicable rate is confirmed in your engagement letter.

Fixed fees. Where the scope of the work is clear from the start, we can quote a single price and hold to it. Company incorporations, leases, wills, standard agreements and one-off advice usually work this way. You know the number before we begin.

Weekly subscriptions. Aimed at small businesses and organisations that need a lawyer available regularly but cannot carry the cost of a full retainer. For a set weekly amount you get an agreed level of access: contract reviews, quick questions, correspondence and general guidance within a defined scope.It suits a growing business that keeps running into legal questions and has nowhere to put them. Ask us and we will set out what is available.

Monthly and annual retainers. For organisations that need counsel as a standing arrangement rather than a one-off. Ministries, statutory bodies, companies, churches and NGOs typically take this route. A retainer covers an agreed scope of work over the period, gives you priority access, and means we already understand your operations when something urgent arrives.Retainer terms are set case by case depending on scope, and we are happy to discuss what would suit your organisation.

Work falling outside an agreed subscription or retainer scope, such as a court proceeding, is quoted separately before it begins.

What else you may be charged

Fees are what you pay us for our work. Disbursements are amounts we pay out on your behalf: court filing fees, registry and title searches, service of documents, courier and postage, and travel where a matter requires us to leave Tongatapu. These are passed on at cost and set out separately on every invoice, so you can see what went where.

What to bring to a first meeting

Whatever you already have. Contracts, letters, notices, receipts, titles, emails, photographs. Bring the dates too, particularly the date you first became aware of the problem, because a surprising number of legal rights run on a clock and the clock usually starts then.

If you are not sure whether something matters, bring it anyway. It is faster for us to set aside what is irrelevant than to work without it.

Getting in touch

We act for individuals, families, businesses, government bodies and institutions across the Kingdom, and for Tongans overseas with matters back home.

If you would like to talk something through, our details are below. The first conversation costs you nothing but the time it takes.