Withers Bergman LLP

Options available to you to fund your litigation

There are various ways in which a client may pay its own lawyers' fees and expenses incurred during the resolution of a civil dispute – not all are suitable or available for all clients or disputes.

• Private: the client pays from its own resources the lawyers' fees and expenses as and when billed on an ongoing basis.

• Legal aid: state funding available to individuals who meet the merits and means tests in only a very limited range of civil claims and only through designated law firms. Withers is not a designated firm for civil legal aid.

• Before-the-event 'BTE' insurance: a pre-existing policy held by the client that provides for a fixed level of cover for lawyers' fees and expenses for certain types of dispute. Often sold as an adjunct to household or other general insurance. Existing policies must be checked before other forms of funding are used.

• Conditional fee agreement 'CFA': the lawyer agrees to charge lower, or no, fees on an ongoing basis in return for an uplift in fees (to a maximum of 100%) if the dispute is resolved successfully. Expenses normally have to be paid throughout and an initial assessment paid for at the outset.

• Damages-based agreement 'DBA': the lawyer receives a share of the damages or compensation recovered as their fee. Expenses normally have to be paid throughout the case. The lawyer's share is capped at 35% of recovery for employment tribunal claims, and 50% for other commercial claims.

• Commercial litigation funding: a commercial investor pays the lawyers' fees and expenses on an ongoing, non-recourse basis in return for a share in the damages or compensation awarded to the client. Generally only available for claims well in excess of £100,000.

Adverse costs orders: in court or arbitral proceedings in England and Wales the losing party is usually ordered to pay a substantial proportion of the successful party's legal fees and expenses. Adverse costs orders are not the norm in employment tribunal cases, but can be made in limited circumstances. Protection against such an adverse costs order should be considered at the outset.

Commercial litigation funding agreements and BTE policies may provide cover for adverse costs orders, or a specific insurance policy can be purchased, after-the-event ('ATE') insurance, to provide a fixed level of cover for adverse costs. The cost of an ATE policy depends on the level of risk as assessed by the insurer, and the premium may be deferred, staged or conditional on success.

We are an equal opportunity employer committed to enhancing diversity within the workplace.

We recognize and value the benefits that a diverse workforce can bring to the organization. Diversity is not limited to gender and ethnicity, and includes factors such as religion or belief, disability, age, marital status and sexual orientation. All our employees and Partners are responsible for the promotion and advancement of equality and diversity within the Firm.

Much of our work on diversity in the last three years has been about putting good monitoring tools in place to ensure that we understand where the gaps are within our workforce, making changes to our strategies and communicating our policy on equal opportunities and diversity to our staff and training those involved in managing and recruiting others.

Since 2002, Withers has experienced a period of growth. The expansion of our client base has highlighted our clients' need for a highly skilled and diverse workforce. The business need to support diversity is evident and Chris Priestley (a Partner in our Commercial group) has been nominated to ensure that Diversity is high on the partnership agenda.

Diversity Audit

In 2006 we undertook our first diversity audit of our workforce, monitoring age, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity and disability. New joiners are monitored on an ongoing basis. Our diversity statistics are published below.

Communication of our commitment to Diversity

Each year our staff are asked to acknowledge their understanding of and commitment to the Firm’s Equal Opportunities Policy as part of our annual audit.

Our Supervisors and Partners receive training to ensure they understand their obligations in implementing our equal opportunity policy in the workplace.

In addition, all interview panelists are trained in the Firm’s approach to diversity and given guidance on our structured skill based approach to interviewing.

Promotion and Access to Development

Opportunities for promotion are communicated and made available to all staff on a fair and equal basis. A skills framework is used in all promotion, appraisal, and pay discussions to ensure a consistent and fair approach across the Firm.

Selection of candiates for promotion to 'Of Counsel or Partner' status is undertaken by a panel of Withers Partners, whose selection decisions are based upon technical expertise and pre-defined partner competencies.

Training is made available to all staff and Partners in line with our business needs. Training needs are recognized formally via our appraisal process, which is objective and skill based, to ensure a fair and equal approach.

Recognition for Diversity

Withers was ranked 2nd (out of the top 100 law firms) for having a high percentage of female equity partners in The Lawyer Career Report Survey 2006.

Withers also ranked 2nd (out of the top 50 firms) for Diversity with respect to women and ranked 1st for Diversity with respect for Gay and Lesbians in the Vault survey 2006.