Top Rated Criminal Defence Solicitors
If your career, reputation or freedom are at stake, our criminal solicitors are ready to protect you
Call us for free legal advice from our top rated criminal lawyers. We get many cases dropped by getting involved early. Getting a proper analysis of your case helps you know what steps you need to take to win the case and get your life back.
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Exceptional win rate
71% of our clients win their cases*
We fight to win our clients’ cases and the results are the proof. Where a client doesn’t admit the allegation we win at trial or get the case dropped before hand in 71% of cases.
It is a mistake to assume that all criminal lawyers provide a similar service. Having a top law firm with a really good win rate on your side can make the difference between winning and losing. Don’t take the risk.
* 71% of clients’ cases resulted case being discontinued at investigation or court stage, or not guilty verdict after trial. Data from all criminal clients between 02.2017 and 08.2019 - excludes cases where the client admitted the offence and chose to plead guilty.
private and legal aid accepted
We handle all criminal cases including:
FREE CASE REVIEW
What do I get and how does it work?
Non-judgmental listening
When we’re talking with you, we promise to be always non-judgmental and sensitive to what you’re going through.
Expert opinion
We start by asking you questions so we can understand what’s going on, and we listen carefully to what you tell us.
Then we will be able to give you a clear and straightforward explanation of:
- What the law says
- What the possible or likely outcomes are
- What steps you take to improve the situation
- What we would charge to help, or if legal aid is a good option
How long will my free case review last?
Less serious cases
In some cases which are less serious or complex, it may be ten or twenty minutes on the phone.
Serious cases
In more serious or difficult situations we may need an hour or two in person to go through things with you properly.
Unable to help
If it’s obvious straight away that we wouldn’t be able to help, we’ll tell you straight away and point you in the right direction to find lawyers who can help.
specialists in serious and complex cases
We have acted in some of the most important trials of the last forty years including:
- The final trial in The Buckingham Palace Bribery Case, in which our client achieved the only not guilty verdict.
- The Supreme Court murder case of Hookway, which led to the Police Bail Crisis of 2011, then rush emergency legislation by the government, and finally the reform of bail law under the Policing and Crime Act 2017.
- The defence of Warren Allen, wrongfully accused of the murder of Kelvin Easton, the so-called ‘unavenged killing’ linked to the police shooting of Mark Duggan, which in turn sparked the London Riots.
- The 2018-2019 Unaoil Bribery Case, in which members of the Western oil industry companies are accused of paying bribes for contracts to rebuild Iraq’s oil infrastructure, widely reported as the World’s Biggest Bribe Scandal.
- Representation of several defendants in criminal proceedings resulting from the Rotherham sexual abuse scandal.
READ MORE CASE STUDIES
With a strong and persuasive lawyer, the chance of winning a case is much higher.
MEET OUR SPECIALIST SOLICITORS
FUNDING OPTIONS
What options are there for funding my case?
The first thing to do when you consider funding for a criminal case is to check if you have insurance that will pay the costs. If you don’t have insurance, we make every effort to set a manageable private fee budget. In serious or complex cases we may be able to act on legal aid.
Paying privately removes some of the restrictions as to how your case is managed. This enables you to have the most senior solicitors and barristers without interference from the Legal Aid Agency or an insurance company.
We can usually offer a fixed fee instalment plan so you can plan for the expense, and so you can fund your case in stages while it is continuing.
Private funding means maximum resources
If you fund your case privately, it is immediately classed as high priority. Of course, all of our clients are well represented, whether private or legal aid, but the extra resources that private funding gives a case allows us to provide an even more effective experience. Your case is fast tracked to a more senior lawyer who will have more time available to work on the case and to spend with you preparing for interviews or court appearances.
If you are accused of an offence which will have a disproportionate effect on your work or life if you are convicted, the bespoke service offered with private funding is even more appropriate.
In some cases the client wants to be personally represented by a director-level solicitor throughout, and this is something we can accomodate.
Once we have an idea of what kind of case you are facing and what work that will be necessary, we will then be able to provide you with a fixed fee quote. This means that you know before you commit how much your case will cost. See below to see what we offer and what the minimum likely costs are.
What does a private fixed fee include?
If you are being investigated and/or interviewed by police or another agency, your quote will usually include:
- Spending time with you getting as much information from you about what you think is going on
- Opening lines of communication early with the police or investigator
- Analysing of all of the evidence so far in the case and any previous interviews
- Advising you and representing you at any further interviews
- Preparing written documents for the prosecutor to look at before they make a decision about whether to take you to court
- Negotiating with police or prosecutors to influence their final decision
If you are being prosecuted and you have a court date, your quote will usually include:
- Representing you at all court hearings
- Considering all the evidence against you
- Considering all the evidence in your favour, including anything new you can give us
- Investigating for anything which may help you
- Advising you on strengths and challenges which need to be overcome
- Preparing you for the process so you can go into court feeling more confident
- Instructing your barrister and making sure he/she is fully briefed for court
How much will private representation cost?
It is difficult to tell you what the fixed fee will be until we know more about your case, but our typical fixed fees start at the following base costs:
IF YOU ARE BEING INVESTIGATED BY POLICE OR ANOTHER AGENCY
London & South East
From £4000 + VAT
Rest of England and Wales
From £3000 + VAT
IF YOU ARE BEING PROSECUTED IN COURT*
If you decide to plead not guilty:
London & South East
Magistrates Court case: from £8000 + VAT
Crown Court case: from £20,000 + VAT
Rest of England and Wales
Magistrates Court case: from £5000 + VAT
Crown Court case: from £16,000 +VAT
If you decide to plead guilty:
London & South East
Magistrates Court case: from £4000 + VAT
Crown Court case: from £8000 + VAT
Rest of England and Wales
Magistrates Court case: from £3000 + VAT
Crown Court case: from £6000 + VAT
*Example fixed fees outlined include estimated cost of barrister as well as solicitors’ fees
If you are accused of an offence while working in a management role in a company, you may be covered under a Directors & Officers Liability Insurance policy (or D&O policy). This will pay the legal costs for your defence.
You may not know if you have this cover. You or your lawyer can find out from your employer.
Important things to know if you think you may have D&O cover:
- You should contact an independent lawyer immediately if you are contacted by your company’s legal department, manager, insurance company or insurance broker. You should assume from the start that any party connected with the insurance policy or company may have a conflict of interest in dealing with you. Whatever is agreed with the insurance company at the start of your case will usually be set in stone until the end.
- You have a right to choose which law firm represents you. Insurance companies often suggest you use their own lawyer, who is likely to be a civil lawyer they do other business with. This is usually a bad idea.
- An insurance company will usually pay fees for work that is ‘reasonable and necessary’. This means having an experienced criminal solicitor and barrister working on your case.
- D&O policy claims require proactive ongoing management from the lawyers representing you. They may even bring in D&O specialist insurance lawyers to help you avoid unnecessary financial risk.
- Some D&O policies allow for the insurance company to claim costs back from you if you are convicted, but this happening is relatively rare.
One in four home insurance policies includes legal expenses cover. More than half of policies have it as an add-on.
You may be covered for legal expenses in the home and contents insurance policy of a family member.
If anyone at home has insurance, you should check the policy for legal expenses cover.
Things to be aware of:
- You have a right to choose which law firm represents you. Insurance companies often suggest you use their own non-specialist lawyer, who is likely to be a civil lawyer they do other business with. This is usually a bad idea.
- A legal expenses clause or policy will usually cover all reasonable fees but you will have to make up any shortfall if the insurance falls short, which can occasionally happen.
- An insurance company will usually pay fees for work that is ‘reasonable and necessary’. This means having an experienced criminal solicitor and barrister working on your case.
- Checking the policy for exclusions is very important. Sometimes criminal proceedings are excluded.
- Insurance companies can be difficult to engage with and we may need you to assist with confirming that you are covered. This can be a challenge but is of course well worth the effort.
Some car insurance policies have legal expenses insurance which includes defence if you are accused of a motoring offence. You should always check if you have this cover as part of your car insurance. If you do, here are some things you need to know:
- Different policies give you different levels of cover. Some policies will only cover you for the most serious offences such as Dangerous Driving or Causing Death by Dangerous Driving. Other policies will include cover for the costs of being represented if you are accused of drink driving or even speeding.
- The insurance company will almost certainly advise you to be represented by their own law firm. This is nearly always a bad idea. Motoring Law is a specialist area of Criminal Law. The firm they suggest will usually be a civil, not criminal firm.
- As with general Legal Expenses cover, the motoring offence Legal Expenses cover requires the insurance company to pay for reasonable and necessary work. This includes representation by an appropriately experienced solicitor and if required a barrister.
- You may have to make a contribution to some of your legal costs if there are difficulties getting your full funding from the insurance company. Insurance companies are known for sometimes being inefficient and slow when it comes to authorising payment and handing over money.
In serious or complex cases, we may be able to represent you on legal aid.
We have been representing legal aid clients for 40 years, but government cuts have made it harder to take every client who comes to us. Please get in touch and we will tell you if we can help or if not, we will at least point you in the right direction to find a good legal aid lawyer.
If the case is very serious, or if it’s a complex case such as conspiracy, financial crime, or serious drugs offences, call us to see if we can help.
If your case falls into one of the following types we should be able to represent you:
- Large scale fraud/Bribery etc
- Murder
- Conspiracy
- Large scale drugs
- Firearms Act
- Misconduct as a public official or professional
- Riot
- Data Protection Act
- Large Scale Robbery or Theft
We should also be able to represent you on legal aid if your case has happened in a specific area in the business or public sector such as the following:
- Banking
- Property
- Finance
- Politics
- Policing
- Business
- The Motoring Industry
Finally if your case has one of the following aspects we would expect we can help:
- A case with several people under investigation
- Investigated by a government agency, High profile
- Organised Crime allegation
- Allegation of interference in court proceedings
- Interference in elections
- Corruption
- Modern Slavery or Human Trafficking
- Alleged to have happened abroad or with help from people not in the UK
If any of the following applies you will usually not be eligible for legal aid:
- If there is no possibility of prison
- If your disposable income is above £37,500
Here are the guidelines of whether you qualify financially for legal aid:
- https://www.gov.uk/legal-aid/eligibility
- https://www.gov.uk/guidance/criminal-legal-aid-means-testing
Legal aid contributions, confiscation orders and defence costs orders against the client
If you are granted legal aid and have any significant monthly income such as salary from work for you or your partner, it’s likely you will have to pay a monthly contribution for 6 months. If you are granted legal aid and you plead guilty or you are found guilty, you will also have to pay back the rest of the fees over the contribution you have already made to the Legal Aid Agency.
If you have savings or equity in your house of more than £30,000 you may have to pay a ‘capital contribution’ which is a large one off payment after the case If you have to make a contribution towards your legal aid and you are found not guilty, that contribution will usually be paid back to you. This means that while legal aid is important and necessary, you may want to consider whether there are alternatives open to you such as paying privately or seeing if you or someone in your household has insurance cover.
focusing on protecting your clean record
Advantages of calling us today
- Our reviews show that we care and fight for our clients.
- We make sure that your case is handled with discretion from the very first call, and that we only share information about your case with someone if we have your permission.
- We have an excellent track record since the 1970s and our criminal solicitors have acted in some of the most important trials of modern times. See below.
- We focus on getting the case dropped early where possible so you do not have to go to court.
- We believe that you are innocent until proven guilty, not the other way round, and we will fight for you on that basis.
- Our criminal solicitors do the proactive investigation to prove your case as the police should have done the first time around.
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How to get the best result for the client in a criminal case?
Learn more about:
representation nationwide
We accept clients throughout England and Wales in our offices around the country
If it’s a case we can take on, we’ll defend you at any police station or court in England or Wales. We have offices in London, Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester and Salford, and we’re happy to have a consultation with you on the phone or in person.
INFO ABOUT OUR OFFICES
specialists in serious and complex cases
Discuss your options with a specialist criminal solicitor
Mary Monson
Principal
Joseph Kotrie Monson
Lawyer
Liam Kotrie
Lawyer
Alex Chowdhury
Lawyer