Civil news: POA applications - claiming enhancements
Claiming enhancements under a payment on account application.
When you undertake civil (non family) proceedings you can claim enhancements as part of any application for Payments on Account (POA).
Where you meet the conditions for making a POA you can include appropriate and justifiable enhancements along with your claim for costs to date.
Remember that you must justify any claims for enhancements:
- at the end of the case
- on the CF1A form
Information on justifying your claim is set out in section 12 of the Cost Assessment Guidance 2013.
But you need to remember that the total POA claim should not exceed 75% of the costs you have incurred, calculated on an hourly rate basis.
Final fees assessment
It is important to note that if the assessment of your final fees shows an amount less than the total we have paid you on account then you must pay us back the difference.
You can limit the risk of this happening by carefully calculating any percentage increase claimed as an enhancement on top of the prescribed rates.
This should be based on the:
- degree of responsibility accepted
- care speed and economy with which the case was prepared
- novelty, weight and complexity of the case
Submitting claims online
Advocates cannot submit an e‐Form submission for a POA but will be able to submit a POA claim for cases processed on Client and Cost Management System (CCMS).
Further information
Funding and costs assessment for civil and crime matters – to download Costs Assessment Guidance 2013.