Michelle Bannister

Costs Lawyer

Michelle has 15 years’ experience, and began her career in costs at Irwin Mitchell in 2005, following completion of her Law Degree in Sheffield. She subsequently spent 9 years at a large Solicitors Costs Practice, where she became an Associate, before joining Total Legal Solutions in October 2017.


Michelle qualified as a Costs Lawyer in 2011. The majority of Michelle’s experience, and workload, is in dealing with drafting Bills of Costs and Costs Budgets on high value, complex, catastrophic injury and medical negligence cases. Michelle has a keen eye for detail, to assist in demonstrating how our clients have diligently conducted and invested in their claims, thus maximising profitability and costs recovery, and reducing the time involved in costs negotiations. Michelle also deals with smaller, less valuable industrial disease, medical negligence, and personal injury cases, and applies, and delivers, the same level of care and detail on both small and large Bills of Costs, appreciating that every claim is of significant importance to our clients. Michelle also deals with Costs Budget negotiations, as well as advising our clients on costs management matters.


When not at work, Michelle enjoys being outdoors in the countryside, and spending time with her husband, her little boy, and her dog, a Hungarian Vizsla called Maisie.

Key Skills

Costs Management

  • Bills of costs (Inter Partes Bills, Solicitor/Client Bills, Phased Bills, Precedent S)
  • Costs budgets (Precedent H)
  • Points of dispute (Precedent G)
  • Replies to points of dispute

Advocacy

  • Case Management Hearings
  • Costs and Case Management Hearings


Negotiations

  • Cost Budget negotiations and variations (Precedent R and Precedent T)