Experts at Handling Motoring Offences

While the law surrounding motoring offences is usually clear, not every offence is simple and straightforward. It may well not be clear whether the evidence is sufficient to secure a conviction and there may well be disagreement as to what the evidence actually is and how reliable it is. Witnesses often have entirely different views on what they actually saw.

A summary offence can only be heard in a magistrates court unless the matter is in some way linked with a more serious case that is ongoing in a Crown Court

Examples of Summary Only offences include:

• Driving over the speed limit.
• Failure to stop and report after an Accident
• Failure to exchange details after an accident
• Failure to provide details of driver on request
• Failure to provide insurance details on request
• Failure to be in proper control of your car
• Failure to provide a specimen for analysis
• Driving over the prescribed limit of alcohol or drugs
• Being in charge of a vehicle whilst over the prescribed limit of alcohol
  or drugs.
• Using a hand held device whilst driving
• Driving without due care and attention (careless driving)
• Driving without insurance
• Driving in breach of the conditions of your driving licence
• Driving whilst disqualified
• Fixed Penalty Tickets
• Congestions Charge violations
• Parking and other obstruction offences including Pay and Display
• Traffic Signals and Signs violations
• Camera evidenced Red Light
• Camera evidenced Bus Lane and other traffic violation offences

Motoring offences can result in a person’s driving licence being endorsed with penalty points or being revoked, the person receiving a fine or
even a prison sentence in certain circumstances. We can assist with offences
committed throughout the country and are readily available to those clients in Greater London and the adjoining Home Counties.

Our team has many years’ experience in motoring offences and is able to
assist on the most complex of cases, that require expert analysis, to enable comprehensive
advice to be given.

Our defence team contains 4 solicitors supported by a graduate paralegal
team is made up of four members of staff that can assist you on your case. No
matter who works on your matter, they will be closely supervised by our
principal solicitor, Mr Manzoor Ahmad Shah.

We have specific expertise in matters involving the following:

Please note that the above is an inexhaustive list of matters we can
assist in.

Our Team

Please see the “Our People section of this website for greater details of our individual lawyers.

Our defence team is headed by the principal of our practice Manzoor Ahmed Shah who is a Solicitor  with over 17 years experience.. He supervises
the whole Defence team. In the team we have 6 solicitors with very many years of experience between them. They are:

Manzoor Ahmad Shah (Solicitor and principal of the firm)

Lubna Sabri (Consultant Solicitor) 

Khadija Khan (Consultant Solicitor)

Abid Khalid (Consultatnt Solicitor)

Ines Diab (Consultant Solicitor) 

Ghulam Ali (Consultant Advocate)

Each adopts a friendly but professional approach to their work ensuring that the best possible advice and
service is given to our clients.

Fees

We only accept instructions on a Privately Funded basis.

Our charging rate varies depending on the seniority and experience of the person undertaking the work. It is often advantageous for the client to agree a fixed fee with us which we can properly quote for when we have substantive detail about the matter.

Our standard hourly charging rates are:

• Manzoor Ahmad Shah        Principal Solicitor                     £300 + VAT
• Lubna Sabri                                   Consultant Solicitor               £250 + VAT
• Khadija Khan                               Consultant Solicitor               £250 + VAT
• Abid Khalid                                    Consultant Solicitor              £250 + VAT
• Ines Diab                                          Consultant Solicitor              £250 + VAT

Fees and charges will be calculated on the time we have spent in dealing with your case. This includes advising, attending on you and your witnesses, if any, dealing with incoming and outgoing correspondence and telephone calls, travelling, waiting, advocacy and preparation times.

Preparation, or time expended in considering and dealing with incoming and outgoing communications such as routine letters, telephone calls, emails, text messages, faxes both incoming and outgoing will be charged at 1/10^th of the hourly rate. Complex and/or longer communications will be charged on the basis of the actual time involved.

Mileage for travelling is charged at a rate of £0.45 plus VAT per mile.
We will give you an estimate of how much the costs in a particular matter will be.

Indicative fees

Our minimum charge for a straight forward uncontested motoringoffence case, which  involves only 1 hearing is £1,000 plus VAT.

If however the case is complex and involves more than one hearing, or if you plead not guilty, or if you require an expert’s report, then we will charge on an hourly rate basis of either up to £300 plus VAT or £250 plus VAT. The estimation for such work is 20 hours worth of work making the indicative fee £5,000 plus VAT (£6,000).

VAT will be charged at a rate of 20%.

The fees include:

• Attendance/preparation
• Considering evidence
• Taking your instructions
• Providing advice on likely sentence
• Attendance and representation at a single
  hearing at the Magistrates’ Court

The fees do not include:

• Instruction of any expert witnesses
• Taking statements from any witnesses
• Advice and assistance in relation to a special
  reasons hearing
• Advice and assistance of any newton hearing
• Advice or assistance in relation to any appeal

DISBURSEMENTS

The likely disbursements in such cases can be in the form of:

• Expert Witness Reports which may cost in the
  range of £1,000.00 to £2,000.00 plus VAT.
• Counsel’s fees which can range from £500
  – £1000 plus VAT per day.

Key Stages

The key stages of your matter are based on the presumption that you have
entered a guilty plea and have a date for your hearing.

• Meet with your solicitor to provide
  instructions on what happened.
• Consideration of initial disclosure, and any
  other evidence and provide advice thereof.
• Arrange to take any witness statements if
  necessary, please be advised that this may carry an additional cost.
• We will explain the court procedure to you so
  you know what to expect on the day of your hearing, and the sentencing
  options available to the Court.
• We will conduct any further preparatory work,
  obtain further instructions from you if necessary and answer any follow up
  queries you may have.
• We cannot provide a timescale of when your
  hearing will take place, as this depends on the Court listing for that
  day.
• A member of staff or a representative
  instructed by the firm will attend Court on the day and meet with you
  before going to the Court. We will advise you of an estimate of time for
  the hearing.

• We will discuss the outcome with you. If
  advice is required on appeal, this will carry an additional cost

Timescales

Timescales can vary depending on the case and the complexity of issues
that are involved. For straightforward motoring offence cases, it will
normally take between 3 – 6 months to finalise a case. However, where
cases are more complex, it can take up to a year and sometimes beyond
that.. However, we will always keep you updated.