TOLATA barristers in Liverpool.

A TOLATA claim is how the courts resolve disputes about who owns a home, and in what shares, where the owners are not married or in a civil partnership. It is also used by relatives, friends and business partners who bought property together and now disagree about selling it. In Liverpool, these claims are issued in the County Court at Liverpool, at the Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts in Derby Square, with the larger cases going to the Business and Property Courts in Liverpool, for larger property and chancery claims.

Unlike divorce, the court has no power to share property out fairly according to need. The question is what the parties actually intended, which is found from the title deeds, any declaration of trust, what was said when the property was bought, and how each person behaved afterwards. That makes these cases fact heavy, document heavy, and very dependent on how the evidence is prepared.

Clerk&Counsel is a clerking agency, not a chambers. We introduce independent property and family barristers who regularly appear in Liverpool and the surrounding courts at the Wirral, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens, Warrington and Chester. We match your case to counsel with the right experience and real availability, and every fee is agreed in writing before any work starts.

Many clients instruct counsel directly under the Public Access scheme for advice, drafting and hearings, keeping costs down by doing the administrative work themselves. Where a case needs a solicitor on the record, for example because of heavy disclosure or an urgent injunction, we will say so before you commit.

Civil property claims in Liverpool are issued in the County Court at Liverpool, at the Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts in Derby Square. Larger or more complex cases may be issued in the Business and Property Courts in Liverpool, for larger property and chancery claims.

Family matters, including children and financial remedy applications, are dealt with by the Family Court at Liverpool, based at the Liverpool Civil and Family Court on Vernon Street. Hearings are also listed at the Wirral, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens, Warrington and Chester, and many short directions hearings now take place by video.

Appeals from district judges go to a circuit judge, and from circuit judges to the High Court or Court of Appeal. Counsel can advise on whether an appeal is realistic and on the strict time limits that apply.

Written advice on the merits and likely outcome of a TOLATA claim typically costs between £750 and £2,000 plus VAT depending on the paperwork. A letter of claim or response drafted by counsel is usually in a similar range.

Attendance at court is where most of the cost lies. Expect at least £1,000 for counsel to attend a short hearing in most cases, with case management and interim hearings usually between £1,000 and £2,000, and trials priced per day once the bundle is known.

It is free to send us an enquiry. If you go on to instruct a barrister through us, a Clerk&Counsel service fee of up to £150, depending on urgency, applies and is shown separately from the barrister's own professional fee before you decide.