Every costs lawyer has a version of the same story: a perfectly reasonable interpreter bill goes in, and a slightly less reasonable figure comes back out. Usually it isn’t the invoice that’s wrong – it’s the rate, the travel claim, or the missing prior authority that trips the assessor’s pen. A rate card on the wall (or, more realistically, pinned to the file) fixes most of that before it starts.
Interpreting: the rate depends on where you – and the interpreter – are standing
The headline hourly rates differ by case type and location, which catches out anyone assuming legal aid pays one flat fee. In criminal cases, the Legal Aid Agency currently pays £32 an hour for interpreters based outside London and £29 an hour for those based in London. In civil and family cases, the equivalent hourly rates drop to £28 outside London and £25 within the capital. It’s a small but easy-to-miss distinction, and one that a certified translation provider working across both jurisdictions should flag on every quote.
Travel is where things get genuinely fiddly. Travel time is reimbursed at two-thirds of the hourly rate in civil cases, but only half the hourly rate in criminal cases. On top of that, mileage is capped at 45p a mile, and travel time itself is capped at a maximum of £40 an hour under the Criminal Legal Aid (Remuneration) Regulations. Claim travel time at the interpreter’s full hourly rate and don’t be surprised when the assessor quietly disagrees.
Transcription, if it comes up
Less common, but worth having on the card: when an interpreter or translator is asked to produce a transcript rather than simply interpret live, the Criminal Bills Assessment Manual sets the rate at “£2.20 per minute for straight transcription and £4 for transcribing and translating”. Mixing this up with the hourly interpreting rate is one of the quieter ways a claim gets trimmed.
Translation: the £100-per-1,000-words tripwire
Document translation has its own threshold, and it’s the single most useful figure on the whole rate card. Where the rate charged is below £100 per 1,000 words, or the equivalent folio rate of £7-20p, prior authority is not usually required; above that, an application has to be made. Stay under the line and the bill should sail through; go over it without authority and you’re asking an assessor to take your word for it, which assessors are famously reluctant to do.
Helpfully, once that rate is agreed it doesn’t need re-arguing every time. Where the LAA has approved the rate for a particular translator, that same rate continues to apply for the rest of the case. Get it right at the first invoice and the rest of the file looks after itself – handy for anything from a Arabic legal aid translation bundle to a single birth certificate.
Prior authority: the paperwork that actually saves you money
Solicitors sometimes assume that paying on account protects them if the LAA later disagrees with the rate. It doesn’t. A Payment on Account is not a guarantee that rates above the prescribed figures will survive final assessment; prior authority is the only way to fix a rate in advance. If a language is rare, an interpreter is travelling a distance, or urgency pushes the cost up, apply for prior authority before the work happens, not after the invoice lands.
Not everything needs this step, though. You do not need prior authority simply to have routine correspondence translated for your client. Save the application for the bundles, the expert reports and the hearing-bound documents where the cost is likely to raise an eyebrow.
What the LAA simply won’t pay for
A ready-reckoner earns its keep as much for what it rules out. One recurring example in care proceedings: the LAA will not fund translation of documents a local authority relied on before proceedings were issued, such as letters before proceedings, on the basis that these should already be drafted in a way the recipient can understand. Build that into client-care letters early, and nobody’s disappointed later.
Keep the card current, not just correct
Rates, thresholds and prior authority practice shift with each update to the remuneration regulations and LAA guidance – which is precisely why a rate card printed once in 2019 and left in a drawer is now more decorative than useful. We keep a working version for our own invoicing, covering courts across England and Wales, and update it whenever the underlying figures move, whether the hearing is in Blackburn or booked through our Westminster court interpreter service. If you’d like a copy for your own file – or want to talk through a specific claim before it goes in – get in touch.
Need documents translated for a Legal Aid funded case? See our Legal Aid Translation Service for translations at Legal Aid prices, or our Court & Family Case Document Translation Service for court orders, witness statements, position statements, social care records and other case documents.
Call Connect Interpreting and Translation Service on 01254 312772, or email sales@interpretingservice.co.uk for a quotation.
Frequently asked questions
Does the LAA pay the same interpreter rate for criminal and civil cases?
No. Criminal cases are currently paid at £32 an hour outside London and £29 in London, while civil and family cases are paid at £28 outside London and £25 in London. Always check which regime applies before quoting a rate to a client or the court.
When do I need prior authority for a translation?
Generally when the rate charged is £100 per 1,000 words or higher. Below that threshold, prior authority usually isn't required, but you should still keep evidence of the word count and rate on file in case of assessment.
Is a Payment on Account the same as prior authority?
No. A Payment on Account simply releases funds during the case; it does not guarantee the LAA will accept an enhanced rate on final assessment. Only a granted prior authority fixes the rate in advance.