The Public Guardian v Riddle (No. 2) [2020] EWCOP 41

The court had to decide if the professional deputy could be remunerated at a higher rate than public authority deputies. The court concluded that he could not.

The professional deputy's primary position at a previous hearing was that he should be authorised to charge fees at the solicitor’s rate. He also had a secondary position, namely that he should be authorised to charge fees at a tailored rate, somewhere between public authority and solicitor rates. The court, at this previous hearing, was not satisfied that the deputy's account of his qualifications and experience justified any conclusion that he should be remunerated at a higher rate than public authority deputies. The current hearing was to clarify this position and to make a decision on costs.

The court agreed with the Public Guardian that each party should bear their own costs, and rejected the deputy's claim for the Public Guardian to pay any part of his costs.

Read the full text of the judgment on Bailii