# The Abuse Redress Rules 2026, Rule 29: Lawyers’ costs


(1) Where a determination is made under section 12 of the Measure that an award of redress is to be made on an application under section 3 and a lawyer has been acting on the application, the Archbishops’ Council must make a payment of £5,000 plus Value Added Tax to the lawyer (but see paragraph (4)), unless the Council is satisfied that there are exceptional circumstances in the case of that application which justify not making the payment.
(2) If the award consists of a redress payment, a lawyer acting for the applicant must certify in writing whether or not the lawyer and the applicant have agreed that the lawyer may deduct some or all of the lawyer’s fees from a redress payment awarded to the applicant; and for that purpose, “fees” does not include disbursements or expenses.
(3) A certificate under paragraph (2) is to be treated for the purposes of this rule as conclusive evidence of the matters stated in it; and, accordingly, if the certificate states that there is an agreement between the lawyer and the applicant of the kind referred to in paragraph (2), the Council may not make a payment under paragraph (1).
(4) In so far as the award consists of a redress payment and paragraph (3) does not apply, the Council may not make a payment under paragraph (1) until the redress payment or, where rule 14(2)(b) applies, the first instalment has been paid to the applicant.
(5) Where different lawyers have acted on the application at different times, the Archbishops’ Council must make payments under paragraph (1) (totalling the amount specified in that paragraph) of such amounts as the lawyers agree between themselves.
(6) Where an appeal under section 15 of the Measure reverses or varies a determination under section 10 on an application under section 3 and a lawyer has been acting on the appeal (regardless of whether that lawyer, another lawyer or no lawyer acted on the application), paragraphs (1) to (5) of this rule apply to the appeal as they would apply if—
(a) the determination as reversed or varied had been made on the application, and
(b) the lawyer acting on the appeal had been acting on the application.
(7) In paragraph (5) as it is applied by paragraph (6), a reference to lawyers includes a reference to lawyers acting on the application.
(8) The redress body may carry out the functions of the Archbishops’ Council under this rule on behalf of the Council.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/883/rule/29 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/abuse-redress-rules-2026/rule-29
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.