Apply for judicial apportionment of costs
How solicitors can set out the reason why it would be unreasonable for the defendant to pay the full costs.
Applies to England and Wales
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An applicant convicted on one or more, but not all, of the offences for which they were charged may apply to the Crown Court, under regulation 26 of the Criminal Legal Aid (Contribution Orders) Regulations 2013, for an order whereby they will only be liable for proportion of the costs of their representation on the grounds that it would be manifestly unreasonable to pay the whole amount.
An application under regulation 26 must be made using the form above.
An application must be made within 21 days of the sentence order date (SOD) or of the date the defendant is otherwise dealt with following conviction and will be considered by the trial judge who will determine the percentage of costs to be paid by the applicant.
The Crown Court has a discretion to extend time where there are cogent and compelling reasons to do so following R (on the application of the Director of Legal Aid Casework) v The Crown Court at Southwark and Ian Swingland [2021] EWHC 397 (Admin) (Swingland), which at paragraph 38 sets out the test to be applied when granting a judicial apportionment application out of time.
The application should state the grounds on which the application is made and the proportion (as a percentage) of the costs that it would be reasonable for the defendant to pay.
If a judicial apportionment order is granted by the judge, the court will provide written confirmation.
There is no right of appeal from refusal.
Where judicial apportionment is granted this form must be submitted to the Legal Aid Agency with form LF1 and form AF1.
Last updated 2 May 2024 + show all updates
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Updated to explain the application process.
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Notice of application updated.
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First published.