How Contract Solicitor Fees Work in Ireland

Written by Richard O'Shea, Solicitor TEP · Mary Molloy Solicitors, established 1981 · Last reviewed 21 August 2026

How we charge

For contract work, we quote a fixed fee in writing before any work starts. You know the number before you commit; if the scope changes — the deal grows, the other side produces three more drafts — the quote is revised in writing before we continue, never after. No hourly meter, no surprises at the invoice.

Your statutory protection

Under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 (Section 150), a solicitor must give you a written notice of legal costs — setting out the costs, or where that's not practicable, the basis on which they'll be calculated — when instructed and whenever circumstances change. Any firm reluctant to put fees in writing is telling you how the relationship will go. And in contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement — that regulatory line appears on this site because it's the law, and it applies to every Irish firm.

What actually drives the cost of contract work

• Length and complexity — a 60-page enterprise agreement with eight schedules is a different job from a two-page engagement letter
• Draft or review — building a document for reuse versus marking up someone else's
• Negotiation rounds — the drafting is often the smaller half; rounds of counterparty mark-ups are where scope grows, and where our written re-quoting protects you
• Urgency — genuine deadlines are workable, but compressed timescales concentrate the work
• What's at stake — proportionate care: the review of a contract carrying six-figure exposure is priced as such, and says so up front

Questions to ask any solicitor about fees

Ask for the fee in writing before work starts. Ask what happens if scope changes. Ask what's included — are negotiation rounds in the fixed fee or extra? Ask what the realistic total looks like if things go long. A good firm answers all four without discomfort; the discomfort itself is your answer.