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#1. The interest received on for money held in a business account is:
#2. What is the name given to the VAT that is due on your taxable supplies i.e your fees/expenses and vatable disbursements?
#3. Your firm is acting for a client and has instructed a process server to serve legal documents to a third party.
When including the cost of the process server in your bill of costs, you treat it as a:
#4. You’re acting for client in a land dispute case where the client has taken action against a deceased’s estate to secure title to a property they own. The client’s place of belonging is the USA. The disputed land is the UK. You draft an invoice for £2,000.00.
What VAT rate do you apply to your supply?
#5. Normal VAT Tax Point (time of supply) rules apply to Legal Aid work?
#6. You have instructed an interpreter in order for your client to be able to communicate with you or to enable your client to understand Court proceedings. The cost of the interpreter is being passed on to the client. When billed, the cost is:
#7. In a contentious case, the VAT tax point will be the date of the invoice, provided the invoice is issued within how long after the work is completed?
#8. You’re acting for a client in respect of a divorce. Your client’s place of belonging is Spain. Your firm’s place of belonging is the UK.
Under the post Brexit VAT rules, when invoicing the client, what tax rate do you apply?
#9. You receive an invoice from an overseas supplier for £100 (without VAT) but you would have been charged £20.00 VAT if you’d used a UK supplier.
What figures would you need to put on your VAT return and in what boxes would you put them?
#10. You’re acting for a client in respect of a compromise agreement. The employer has agreed to pay your client’s costs and has asked if you would address your invoice to them?
What would you issue the payer?
VAT within Law Firms
Length: 3 Hours
Published September 24, 2022 | Last Updated on March 12, 2025
Who is this training for?
This online workshop is for Solicitors, Lawyers, Accountants, Compliance Officers, COFA’s, Legal Accounts Professionals, Legal Cashiers and anyone that has any involvement in working in legal finance and compliance.
Purpose of this training?
VAT is a complex and ever changing tax. This workshop is designed to focus on the areas that cause the most confusion and the areas that HMRC specifically targets law firms during a VAT inspection.
The workshop will explore the practical application of the VAT regulations to help you to be compliant. It will explore the VAT Act 1994, Notice 700, case law and address issues that have emerged from cases like the ‘Brabners’ decision and the implications of those decisions to law firms. Conundrums and scenarios will be posed and discusses throughout the session.
Introduction
- Scope of VAT within the UK
Time of Supply
- Basic Tax Point
- Actual Tax Point
- Extensions
Sales/Fees
- Client’s overseas (Place of ‘belonging’)
- Land related services – direct and indirect
Third Party Payers
- Indemnity basis
- VAT invoices
Disbursements – accounting options
- Disbursements and Recharges
- What is a disbursement (SRA and HMRC’s definition)
- Discretionary treatment of Counsel’s Fees
- Overseas experts
- Recharges – accounting options
- VAT invoices
- Search fees
- Medical records and reports
- Case Law
Administrative Aspects of VAT
- Valid VAT invoices
- Valid credit notes
- Recovery of input VAT
- Supplier invoices 6 months older or greater
- Subsistence, travel and staff entertainment expenses
- Mixed expenses (business and personal usage)
- Mobile phones
- VAT Returns
- Correcting errors
- Bad debt relief
Partial Exemption
- What is it?
- Calculation Methods
- Case Law
Guidlines for Compliance (GfC8)
- What is it?
- HMRC’s Expectations
- VAT Policies
- VAT Risk Register
- Accountability – the COVA
Further Information
Practice notes and training sessions represent the Association of Legal Compliance & Accounts’ view of good practice in a particular area. They are not intended to be the only standard of good practice that firms can follow.
Practice notes and training sessions are not legal advice, and do not necessarily provide a defence to complaints of misconduct or poor service. While we have taken care to ensure that they are accurate, up to date and useful, we will not accept any legal liability in relation to them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Online?
All ALCA online training is delivered live, interactive and is recorded. We bridge the gap between ‘face-to-face’ and online training by applying a blended approach. Questions can be posed to trainers throughout the workshops with quizzes/polls being used to engage with attendees.
Workshops can be continuously replayed for 60 days after broadcast.
Benefits?
- Reduced cost
- Can be taken anywhere on any device – no travel time or cost
- Shorter and more efficient than face-to-face
- Live and interactive
- Recorded and can be replayed at your leisure
Depending on your subscription and the length of the workshop, the pricing is as follows:
Our online workshops are delivered via Zoom. You can access the session via your computer, tablet or mobile device.
Details on how to join the online session will be provided the day before the training goes live.
We recommend you run a system test and check your internet speed by clicking HERE.
If your firm prevents you from using Zoom, please contact us.
There is no requirement to attend live but we advise that you do where you can as this will be the best experience for you. Don’t forget, you can pose questions live to the trainer and join in with the interaction when you attend live. Also, be mindful that you have access to the recording for 30 days, after which, it will no longer be available.
Not at all. We prefer it if candidates do as it makes the training more engaging but it is not mandatory to turn your camera or microphone on during the training session.
If you don’t have a microphone, you can still pose questions using the chat facility.
