The cost of going to court can vary but will usually be much higher than using a tribunal to resolve a dispute.
Costs will include:
- a court fee, paid when you make your claim (the amount depends on the type of claim)
- a hearing fee, if a hearing is needed
- legal costs for your solicitor if you use one
- some of the other side’s costs if you lose the case
Court fees for money claims
County Court money claim fees are calculated based on the value of your claim, plus any interest.
| Claim value | Fee |
|---|---|
| £10,000 or less | A sliding scale from £35 to £455 |
| £10,000.01 to £200,000 | 5% of the total claim value |
| Over £200,000 | £10,000 |
If the case goes to a hearing, a hearing fee is also charged based on the claim amount.
Find out more: GOV.UK: Civil court fees
Help with court fees
You may be able to get help paying court fees if you get certain benefits or you’re on a low income. You can check if you’re eligible on GOV.UK.
Recovering costs
After giving judgment, the judge decides who pays the costs of the case.
If you win, you may be able to claim back some costs from the other party. This can include interest on money owed, solicitor fees or costs for your personal time as a litigant in person if you represent yourself.
If you lose, you will usually pay some of the winning side’s costs. These can include legal fees, court fees, expert fees and travel.
The amount you’ll need to pay or claim back depends on the type of case and the value of the claim:
- money claims under £10,000 (small claims track) – generally each side pays their own legal costs if they use a solicitor, and you can only recover a limited amount such as the court fee
- claims up to £25,000 (fast track) and from £25,000 to £100,000 (intermediate track) – the loser usually pays the winner’s costs, but the amount is fixed depending on the complexity of the case
- claims over £100,000 (multi-track) – the loser usually pays the winner’s reasonable costs, with no fixed limit
Preventing a landlord from passing costs on to you
It’s common for leases to allow the landlord to add their legal costs of managing the property to the service charge, or to recover legal costs relating to an individual leaseholder through an administration charge.
These costs can include the costs of a court case, whether it was started by the landlord or a leaseholder. They can include the landlord’s solicitor fees, which can be expensive.
This can mean that even if your court case is successful, you’ll have to pay a share of the landlord’s legal costs through your service charge.
You can prevent this by applying to the court for an order that stops or limits the landlord from adding their legal costs to the service charge. This is called a Section 20C order (under Section 20C of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985).
You can also apply for a similar order that prevents the landlord from charging you through an administration charge, under Paragraph 5A of Schedule 11 to the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002.
You should ask for the order as part of your court claim or during the proceedings.
The court will consider the evidence and grant an order if it decides this is fair. The order might apply to all of the landlord’s legal costs, or it might limit the amount that they can charge.
- Last updated:
- 21 September 2026
- Next review:
- 21 September 2028
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