Being investigated or prosecuted for a criminal offence can be an extremely stressful experience which is why it is important to be represented by an experienced and highly qualified representative who understands your needs and knows how to best represent you, be it at the Police Station, Magistrates’ Court, Crown Court or beyond.
At Meikles Solicitors you can be assured that you will be provided with a high level of representation from the outset of any dealings that we have with you. Individually and together we can bring a wealth of experience to meet your needs and requirements.
We have experience in defending all manner of types of alleged criminal offences, including but not limited to the following areas:
We are different from other firms that operate in our area in that we pride ourselves on case ownership. This means that we strive to ensure that the same person who represents you from the start of your case is with you to conclusion.
Additionally we seek to ensure that you will be represented by a Solicitor whilst you are present in the police station, not simply a ‘police station rep’ who cannot later act for you in Court. We believe that this approach has set us apart from our competitors and ensured that we can provide you with a high quality level of representation.
If you have any queries or if you would like us to represent you we would be happy to contact you to discuss this.
We can represent anyone in the police station who is to be interviewed under caution, be it for a voluntary interview or under arrest, free of charge as this is covered by legal aid. Depending upon your financial circumstances you may also qualify for legal aid in the Magistrates’ Court. We can advise you if you are likely to qualify for your case.
All people, subject to an exception of a *disposable household income above £37,500, are entitled to legal aid in the Crown Court with a contribution, if applicable.
We offer a free 30 minute appointment to discuss your case. In the event that you would not qualify for legal aid and/or if you would like to be represented on a private basis we would advise you of our fees involved up-front so that no work would ever be undertaken without your express agreement. We offer reasonable and competitive fixed fees upon request.
Should you face an investigation by way of interview under caution or whether you face a Court Martial you need representatives who are specialists in Military Law who provide an excellent level of representation.
At Meikles we understand that such matters can have potentially serious consequences for you and your career. You can be assured that we will provide you with an experienced representative who understands your needs and requirements, especially in the context of being a member of the armed forces.
We have experience of representing service personnel of the armed forces in interviews under caution be they in the United Kingdom or abroad, at the Court Martial in front of a Judge Advocate and including the Court Martial Appeal Court.
We can provide free representation at any interview under caution conducted by the Service Police (Royal Military Police & SIB) be they in the United Kingdom or abroad.
We can also provide representation at the Summary Appeal Court (when you appeal a decision made by your commanding officer), Court Martial Proceedings or at the Court Martial Appeal Court. Legal Aid is available for Summary Appeals, Court Martial and the Court Martial Appeal Court subject to a contribution to the Armed Forces Criminal Legal Aid Authority (AFCLAA).
We can represent you by way of legal aid, or in the event that you consider the contributions to AFCLAA are too high we can represent you for a fixed fee at what we consider are reasonable and competitive rates.
We offer a free appointment to discuss any matter you have relating to military law and if distance is an issue we can do appointments by way of telephone conference or potentially by way of video link.
At Meikles we understand that owing to restrictive limits on legal aid many people will not qualify for legal aid in motoring/Road Traffic Law proceedings.
We understand that providing value for money and cost effective representation is a must and we have sought to reflect this in our fee structure.
We understand that in these types of proceedings people will often be facing the risk of disqualification and that this can have a seriously adverse effect on them, their families and livelihoods.
As such, we have an experienced and dedicated team who are experts in road traffic law and procedure. We have a very high success rate when dealing with cases involving special reasons and exceptional hardship and we are dedicated to represent our clients to the very best of our ability.
In matters where a client pleads guilty at Court for a road traffic matter we offer a fixed fee of £300 plus VAT and disbursements (to cover our mileage to and from Court).
Included in this fee is the following:
1 hour conference prior to the first court hearing;
2 hours reviewing the case papers prior to the court hearing;
All letters, correspondence and telephone calls reasonably incurred;
Attendance at Court to represent until the conclusion of the *hearing;
Any advice in connection with an appeal.
What is not included in this fee:
Any disbursements incurred through the instruction of defence experts including:
Defence expert reports;
Site visits;
Costs incurred in relation to a subsequent appeal.
*In the very unlikely event that the hearing did not conclude on the first day and was adjourned we would charge a further £150 plus VAT for any subsequent hearing.
Special Reasons/Exceptional Hardship
These types of hearings are normally listed following a guilty plea to a road traffic offence.
Our fee for representation at a hearing for the above reasons is £350 plus VAT and disbursements.
Included in this fee is the following:
Any time spent considering the evidence in the case;
Any time spent on client conferences;
Any time spent on proofing witnesses;
Representation at the special reasons/exceptional hardship hearing;
Any advice in connection with an appeal following this hearing.
What is not included in this fee?
Any disbursements incurred through the instruction of defence experts including:
Defence expert reports;
Site visits;
Costs incurred in relation to a subsequent appeal.
In matters were a client pleads not guilty at Court for a road traffic matter we offer a fixed fee of £750 plus VAT and disbursements (again to cover mileage to and from Court).
Included in this fee is the following:
1 hour conference prior to the first court hearing;
2 hours reviewing the case papers prior to the court hearing;
All letters, correspondence and telephone calls reasonably incurred during the case;
2 hour conference in advance of the trial to discuss the evidence and proof the client and witnesses, where applicable;
Attendance at the first Court hearing and the trial*;
Any advice in connection with an appeal.
What is not included in this fee:
Any disbursements incurred through the instruction of defence experts including:
Please note that we would not charge for any costs without notifying you of the same in writing and without your consent to incur the same.
Please also note that the above prices reflect attendances at the areas of Newton Aycliffe, Peterlee, Teesside, Gateshead and Newcastle. For any attendances that are required out of this area please contact us for a quotation as we would have to consider any extra charges to reflect the additional travel time incurred.
*In the very unlikely event that the trial did not conclude on the first day and was adjourned we would charge a further fee of £300 plus VAT for any additional trial day. Please note that this is very unlikely to happen and would be very rare in the Magistrates’ Court.
Peter qualified as a solicitor in 2011. He specialises in all areas of criminal law...
Joanne qualified as a solicitor in 1999. She is a highly skilled...
Shaun specialises exclusively in Criminal Law. Shaun qualified as a Solicitor...
Stephanie is a Solicitor that specialises in Criminal Law and Military Law...
Elizabeth qualified as a solicitor in April 2016 and joined Meikles in 2018...
