Terms of service

1. Who I am

I am Geoffrey Caesar, a solicitor of England and Wales practising in my own name as a freelance solicitor from London. In these terms, 'I', 'me' and 'my' mean Geoffrey Caesar, and 'you' and 'your' mean the client identified in the engagement.

• SRA ID 483394. Practice SRA number 666497. Correspondence address: Geoffrey Caesar, 66 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NA.
• SRA-regulated freelance solicitor under regulation 10.2(b) of the SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations.
• Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
• Contact: geoffrey@caesar.co.uk

I am authorised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority to provide all legal services, including reserved legal activities. I choose to limit my practice to commercial and corporate work. In particular I act for employers only on employment matters, and I do not take on litigation, tribunal claims or advocacy, residential conveyancing, probate, immigration, family or criminal work.

2. When these terms apply

1. These terms apply to every engagement under which I provide services to you, and to all advice and work product I provide, unless I have expressly agreed otherwise in a document signed or sent by me which states that it varies these terms.
2. The scope of an engagement may be agreed in any written form, including by email, in a quotation, in an invoice, in a statement of work, or in an exchange of messages. No particular formality is required. Whatever form it takes, these terms apply to it.
3. By instructing me to begin work, by paying an invoice, or by continuing to accept my services, you accept these terms.
4. Where an engagement continues over time, or where you instruct me on a further matter, these terms continue to apply to each matter without needing to be agreed again.
5. If there is a conflict, the order of priority is: first, any written variation signed or sent by me which expressly states that it varies these terms; second, the agreed scope for the matter; third, these terms.
6. Any terms you put forward, including terms in your purchase order, portal, supplier onboarding pack or standard conditions, do not apply and are excluded, unless I have expressly accepted them in writing.
7. I may amend these terms from time to time by publishing the amended version on my website. The version in force when an engagement begins applies to that engagement.

2A. My regulatory status, insurance and client money

Because I am a freelance solicitor rather than an authorised law firm, there are things I am required to tell you, and things you should know before instructing me. They are set out here rather than buried.

2A.1 Regulation

I am an SRA-regulated freelance solicitor practising under regulation 10.2(b) of the SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations. I am authorised to provide all legal services, including reserved legal activities. The SRA Principles, the SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors and the jurisdiction of the Legal Ombudsman apply to me exactly as they apply to any other solicitor. My entry on the Solicitors Register can be checked at sra.org.uk using SRA number 666497.

2A.2 Professional indemnity insurance

1. I hold professional indemnity insurance with a limit of indemnity of £1,000,000 for each claim, with defence costs payable in addition to that limit.
2. That insurance is not on the SRA's minimum terms and conditions. Those minimum terms apply to SRA-authorised firms. As a freelance solicitor I am required instead to hold insurance which is adequate and appropriate for the services I provide, and alternative arrangements are in place. I will give you details of the cover on request.
3. I am not an authorised body, so I do not display and am not entitled to display the SRA's clickable logo for authorised firms.

2A.3 Client money

1. I do not hold client money. My fees are paid directly to me.
2. The only money I may hold is money paid on account of my own costs, and of disbursements I have incurred on your behalf and for which I am liable, in each case before I have billed them. Any such money is held in my own business bank account in the United Kingdom, and I will confirm that to you before you send it.
3. I cannot hold any other kind of money for you. That includes damages, settlement sums, deposits, completion monies and money from an estate. On a transaction, funds pass directly between the parties or through the other side's solicitors, and I will tell you at the outset if a matter cannot be run that way.

2A.4 The SRA Compensation Fund

You may apply to the SRA Compensation Fund for losses caused by my dishonesty or by a failure on my part to account for money. I contribute to the Fund in the same way as any other solicitor. Applications are subject to the SRA Compensation Fund Rules and there is no guarantee that any particular application will succeed.

2A.5 Identity, verification and other checks

Before I accept instructions, and at any point during an engagement, I may need to carry out checks. These include verifying your identity and the identity of anyone instructing me on your behalf, verifying the identity and ownership of any company or other entity I am asked to act for, checking for conflicts of interest, and, where the nature of the work requires it, carrying out anti-money laundering checks and establishing the source of funds and the source of wealth involved in a transaction.

1. You will provide the information and documents I reasonably require for these checks, promptly and in the form I ask for.
2. I may make searches of, and provide information to, electronic verification providers, credit reference agencies and other third parties for the purpose of carrying out these checks, and a record of the search may be kept.
3. I cannot begin work, and I may have to stop work, until the checks are complete to my satisfaction.
4. Where the law requires me to make a report or prevents me from acting, I may be unable to tell you that I have done so or to explain why I have stopped acting. I will not be liable to you for any loss arising from complying with those obligations.
5. The scope of the checks depends on the work. For much of what I do they are straightforward. I will tell you at the outset what I need for your matter.

3. Scope of what I do

1. I will provide the services described in the agreed scope with reasonable care and skill, in accordance with the standards expected of a solicitor of my experience.
2. The scope is what defines the engagement. Anything not within it is not included, and I am not responsible for advising on matters outside it, whether or not they might reasonably be thought connected.
3. If you want work outside the agreed scope, I will quote for it separately before doing it. I am not obliged to accept further instructions.
4. I advise only on the law of England and Wales. I do not advise on the law of any other jurisdiction, and where a matter may engage another jurisdiction I will say so, but identifying such questions is not itself within scope unless expressly agreed.
5. I do not provide tax, accounting, actuarial, valuation, financial, insurance, regulatory, technical or commercial advice, and nothing I say should be relied on as such. Where advice of that kind is needed, you should obtain it from an appropriate adviser.
6. My advice is given on the basis of the law and the facts as they stand at the date it is given. I am under no obligation to update any advice, or to inform you of any change in law, practice or circumstances, after the engagement ends.
7. Any estimate of timescale is an estimate. I will use reasonable endeavours to meet the turnaround stated, but time is not of the essence unless I have expressly agreed in writing that it is.

4. Your responsibilities

1. You will give me full, accurate and timely information and instructions, and tell me promptly if anything changes.
2. I am entitled to rely on the information and documents you give me without verifying them, and I am not responsible for any consequence of information which is incomplete, inaccurate or out of date.
3. You are responsible for your own commercial decisions. My role is to advise; the decision whether to sign, negotiate, walk away or proceed is yours.
4. You will provide such information as I reasonably require to verify your identity and the identity of those instructing me on your behalf.
5. Where you instruct me on behalf of a company or other entity, you warrant that you are authorised to do so and to bind it to these terms.

5. Fees, payment and expenses

1. Fees are fixed and are agreed in writing before work begins, unless I have expressly agreed to charge on another basis.
2. All fees are exclusive of VAT, which will be added where chargeable.
3. Unless otherwise agreed, fees are payable in advance and I will begin work on receipt of cleared funds. For larger pieces of work, milestone payments may be agreed, in which case each stage is payable before that stage begins.
4. Payment in advance is a payment on account of my fees for work I am contracted to do. It is not held to your order.
5. Expenses and third party costs are not included in a fixed fee unless expressly stated. I will agree any material expense with you before incurring it.
6. Where the agreed scope changes, or where the work is materially greater than the information you gave me indicated, I will tell you before continuing and we will agree a revised fee. If we cannot agree one, I may decline to continue and clause 10 applies.
7. If any invoice is not paid when due, I may charge interest under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, and I may suspend work on any matter for you until payment is made.
8. If you cancel an engagement after work has begun, I may retain such part of the fee as reflects the work done and the time reserved.
9. You may not set off, deduct or withhold any amount from what is due to me.

5A. Retainers

1. Where you engage me on a monthly retainer, this clause applies in addition to clause 5 and prevails over it where they differ.
2. A retainer month runs day to day from the date the retainer starts. I invoice each month in advance and payment is due on receipt of the invoice.
3. I am under no obligation to carry out any work in a retainer month until the invoice for that month has been paid. If I carry out work before an invoice has been paid, whether once or repeatedly, that is a concession in the particular instance only. It does not vary these terms, does not waive my right to payment in advance, and creates no expectation that I will do so again.
4. The retainer entitles you to my time up to the number of hours in your tier in each retainer month. Hours are not cumulative, do not roll over into a later month, and are not refundable or exchangeable if unused.
5. Work beyond the hours in your tier is quoted as a fixed fee before it is done, or by agreement we move you to a higher tier.
6. Either of us may end the retainer by giving one month's written notice. The retainer then continues, and remains payable, to the end of the notice month. Fees for any retainer month that has begun are not refundable in whole or in part.
7. I may change the tiers and their fees on not less than one month's written notice. If you do not want to continue on the revised terms you may end the retainer under clause 5A.6 before the change takes effect.
8. Each matter I handle under a retainer is a separate engagement for the purposes of clause 7.

6. Reliance on my advice

1. My advice and work product are provided for you alone and for the purpose of the engagement. No other person may rely on them.
2. You may not disclose my advice or work product to any third party without my prior written consent, except to your professional advisers on a confidential basis and where you are required to do so by law or by a regulator.
3. Disclosure to a third party does not create any duty or relationship between me and that third party, and I accept no liability to any person other than you.
4. You may not assign, transfer or novate the benefit of my advice or of the engagement without my prior written consent.

7. Limitation of liability

1. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits my liability for death or personal injury caused by my negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for anything else which cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.
2. Subject to clause 7.1, my total aggregate liability to you, whether in contract, tort including negligence, breach of statutory duty, restitution or otherwise, arising out of or in connection with an engagement, shall not exceed the lower of (a) the total fees paid by you to me in respect of that engagement, and (b) £1,000,000.
3. If the limit in clause 7.2 is held by a court or tribunal to be unenforceable, it shall instead apply as a limit of £250,000; and if that limit is also held to be unenforceable, it shall instead apply as a limit of £1,000,000. Each of these limits is severable from the others and is intended to operate independently.
4. Subject to clause 7.1, I am not liable for loss of profit, loss of revenue, loss of anticipated savings, loss of business or business opportunity, loss of goodwill or reputation, loss or corruption of data, or for any indirect or consequential loss, in each case however arising and whether or not foreseeable.
5. Where loss is suffered as a result of the acts or omissions of any other person as well as mine, my liability is limited to that proportion which it is just and equitable for me to pay, having regard to the extent of that other person's responsibility. This applies whether or not you have made a claim against that other person and whether or not any such claim would succeed, and is assessed on the assumption that no other person has limited or excluded their liability to you.
6. I am not liable for any loss arising from information or documents given to me which were incomplete, inaccurate or out of date, or from your failure to give instructions in time.
7. No claim may be brought against me unless proceedings are issued within two years of the date on which you first became aware, or ought reasonably to have become aware, of the circumstances giving rise to the claim.
8. The limits in this clause apply to all engagements between us in aggregate where the claims arise out of the same matter, the same subject matter, or a series of connected matters.

I hold professional indemnity insurance with a limit of indemnity of £1,000,000 for each claim, with defence costs in addition. Details are available on request.

8. Confidentiality and conflicts

1. I will keep confidential all information you give me in connection with an engagement, both during it and afterwards, subject to my professional and legal obligations.
2. I act for other clients, including clients in the same sector as you. I will not act where doing so would put me in breach of my professional obligations on conflicts of interest or confidentiality.
3. If a conflict arises during an engagement, I may have to stop acting for you, for the other client, or for both. If that happens I will tell you as soon as I properly can.
4. I may refer to the fact that I have acted for you in general terms, without disclosing confidential information, unless you tell me in writing that you would rather I did not.

9. Documents, intellectual property and use of technology

1. Copyright and all other intellectual property rights in the advice and documents I produce remain mine. On payment in full, you have a non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use them for the purpose of the engagement.
2. I retain the right to use the know-how, techniques, precedents and general knowledge acquired in the course of an engagement.
3. I use technology, including artificial intelligence tools, in the course of my work, in the same way I use research databases and precedent banks. I remain responsible for the advice I give. I do not permit client information to be used to train third party models.
4. I will keep the file for at least six years after the engagement ends and may then destroy it without further reference to you. If you want documents returned, ask before then.
5. Correspondence by email is not secure. Unless you tell me otherwise, you consent to me communicating with you by unencrypted email.

10. Ending an engagement

1. You may end an engagement at any time by telling me in writing. Where the engagement is a retainer, clause 5A.6 applies instead.
2. I may end an engagement, or decline to continue, on reasonable notice and for good reason, including where a conflict arises, where an invoice is unpaid, where I am unable to obtain proper instructions, where the relationship of trust has broken down, or where continuing would put me in breach of my professional obligations.
3. On termination, fees for work done and expenses incurred remain payable.
4. Clauses which by their nature are intended to survive termination, including clauses 6, 7, 8 and 9, survive it.

11. Complaints

If you are unhappy with my service, please tell me. My complaints procedure, including your right in certain circumstances to refer a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman and to report concerns to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, is set out at caesar.co.uk/complaints.

12. Data protection

I process personal data in accordance with my privacy notice, which forms part of these terms. Where we each process personal data in connection with an engagement, we each do so as an independent controller.

13. General

1. Force majeure. I am not liable for any delay or failure to perform caused by events beyond my reasonable control, including illness, and in such a case I will tell you as soon as reasonably practicable.
2. Entire agreement. These terms together with the agreed scope are the entire agreement between us and supersede anything previously said or written. Neither of us has relied on any statement not set out in them. Nothing in this clause limits liability for fraud.
3. Variation. No variation is effective unless in writing and made or accepted by me.
4. No waiver. A failure or delay in enforcing any provision is not a waiver of it.
5. Severance. If any provision is held to be unenforceable, it shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, or if that is not possible, deleted. The remaining provisions continue in full force.
6. Third parties. The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 does not apply. No person other than you and I has any right to enforce these terms.
7. Notices. Notices may be given by email to the address each of us last used for the engagement, or in writing to me at 66 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NA.
8. Governing law. These terms and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them or their subject matter or formation, including non-contractual disputes or claims, are governed by the law of England and Wales.
9. Jurisdiction. The courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction.

14. Additional terms for consumer clients

This section applies only where you are a consumer, meaning an individual acting wholly or mainly outside your trade, business, craft or profession. Where anything in this section is inconsistent with the rest of these terms, this section prevails.

Please tell me before I begin work if you are instructing me as a consumer, because it changes the information I have to give you and the rights you have.

14.1 Your statutory rights

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 I must perform the service with reasonable care and skill. If I do not, you are entitled to have the service performed again where that is possible, or to an appropriate price reduction. Where a price has not been fixed in advance you must pay a reasonable price, and where a time has not been fixed the service must be performed within a reasonable time.

Nothing in these terms excludes or restricts those rights, or any other right you have under law which cannot be excluded or restricted.

14.2 Liability where you are a consumer

1. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits my liability for failing to perform the service with reasonable care and skill. Clause 7.2 does not apply to you.
2. Subject to clause 14.2.1 and to clause 7.1, my total aggregate liability to you arising out of or in connection with an engagement shall not exceed £1,000,000.
3. I am liable for loss you suffer that is a foreseeable result of my breaking these terms or failing to use reasonable care and skill. Loss is foreseeable if either it is obvious that it will happen, or if at the time the contract was made both of us knew it might happen.
4. I do not supply services to consumers for business use, and I am not liable for loss of profit, loss of business, business interruption or loss of business opportunity.
5. The two year period for bringing a claim in clause 7.7 does not apply to you. The statutory limitation periods apply instead.
6. Clause 5.9, which prevents set-off, does not apply to you.

14.3 Your right to cancel, and how instructing me affects it

Where we make the contract at a distance, for example entirely by email, telephone or through my website, or away from my business premises, you have a right to cancel within 14 days without giving any reason. The cancellation period ends 14 days after the day on which the contract is made.

That right cannot be given up in advance. What the law does allow, and what these terms provide for, is that you may ask me to start work during the cancellation period, and that doing so has consequences for what you pay and for how long the right lasts.

14.4 Asking me to start work straight away

1. I will not begin work during the 14 day cancellation period unless you ask me to. In practice almost every client does, because the work is usually needed sooner than that.
2. By instructing me to begin work during the cancellation period, you make an express request that I begin supplying the service during that period, and you acknowledge that you will lose your right to cancel once the service has been fully performed. Instructing me to begin includes paying my invoice, telling me in writing to start, or otherwise asking me to get on with the work.
3. If you cancel after I have started but before the work is finished, you must pay me an amount in proportion to what has been performed up to the point you tell me you are cancelling, compared with the full price of the service. Depending on the stage reached, that may be most or all of the fee.
4. Once the service has been fully performed, your right to cancel is lost entirely and no refund is due, because performance began at your express request and with your acknowledgement under clause 14.4.2.
5. If you would rather I did not start during the 14 day period, simply tell me. I will wait, your right to cancel is unaffected for the full 14 days, and if you cancel in that time you pay nothing. Nothing in these terms obliges you to ask me to start early, and I will not treat you any differently if you do not.
6. I draw clauses 14.4.2 to 14.4.4 specifically to your attention. If you are in any doubt about what they mean, ask me before instructing me and I will explain.

So that there is no argument about it later, I will also ask you to confirm both the express request and the acknowledgement in the email in which you instruct me. If for any reason I have not given you the information in this section before you instruct me, or have not told you that you may have to pay for work already done, then you will not be liable to pay anything if you cancel within the cancellation period.

14.4A How to cancel

Tell me in a clear statement before the cancellation period ends. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk is the easiest way. You may use the model cancellation form at clause 14.6, but you do not have to. To meet the deadline it is enough that you send your communication before the period expires.

14.5 Refunds

If you cancel in time I will refund any payment you have made, less any amount properly due under clause 14.4.2, within 14 days of the day on which I am informed of your decision to cancel. I will refund using the same means of payment you used, and you will not incur any fee as a result.

14.6 Model cancellation form

You may copy the following into an email if you wish to cancel. You are not obliged to use it.

• To Geoffrey Caesar, geoffrey@caesar.co.uk:
• I hereby give notice that I cancel my contract for the supply of the following service: [describe the service]
• Ordered on / received on: [date]
• Name of consumer: [your name]
• Address of consumer: [your address]
• Date: [date]

14.7 Information I must give you

Before you are bound, I will confirm to you in writing the main characteristics of the service, the total price including VAT, how and when payment is to be made, how long the engagement is expected to take, my identity and contact details, my complaints procedure, and your right to cancel. I will normally do this in the email in which I confirm the scope and the fixed fee, and that email together with these terms forms our contract.

14.8 Complaints

My complaints procedure is at caesar.co.uk/complaints. If you are not satisfied with my final response, or if eight weeks pass without the complaint being resolved, you may be able to refer it to the Legal Ombudsman. As a consumer you are within the group of complainants the scheme is principally designed for.

14.9 Law and jurisdiction

These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales. If you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland you may also bring proceedings in the courts there, and if you are resident outside England and Wales you keep the benefit of any mandatory protections given by the law of the country in which you are resident.

Last reviewed: August 2026. Questions about these terms: geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.