HM Courts and Tribunals Service

Location: Royal Courts of Justice

Job Title: Costs Officer - Senior Courts Costs Office

Background

HM Courts and Tribunals Service is responsible for the administration of the criminal, civil and family courts and tribunals in England and Wales. We work with an independent judiciary to provide a fair, efficient and effective justice system.

For more information about HMCTS and what we do, visit https://www.hmctsjobs.co.uk

Overview

The key purpose of the role is to assess Court of Protection bills of costs in a fair and reasonable manner and to deal with all the follow-up matters as required. The post holder will need to be self-motivated, be confident in decision making, be able to prioritise work and have good communication skills.

Key responsibilities

The job holder will be required to undertake the following duties and responsibilities:

• To assess allocated Court of Protection bills of costs

• Exercise a high degree of technical expertise and judgment in approving and assessing costs arising under Part 44 to 47 of the Civil Procedure Rules

• Work as part of a team to ensure delivery of a consistent and customer focussed service

• Develop and maintain an effective working relationship with the judiciary, colleagues and external customers

Specific responsibilities

• To conduct detailed assessments of Court of Protection bills up to the value of £42,000

• Produce written responses to requests for reconsideration of decisions made

• Check, issue and despatch all final costs certificates

• Assist colleagues with complex matters or queries

• Deal with enquiries whether in person or by telephone from practitioners or any other party

• Maintain daily, weekly and monthly statistics

• Maintain a good knowledge of relevant judicial precedents and judgments

• Work in a flexible way and undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management

• Report to the Court of Protection Senior Costs Officer

• Extensive training will be given in conducting assessments and reconsiderations.

Other duties

The post holder is required to work in a flexible way and undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management which are commensurate with the grade and level of responsibility of this post.

Further details

Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. HMCTS welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs and are agreed prior to appointment. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy.

Skilled Worker Visa

This role is not eligible for new Skilled Worker visas in accordance with the current immigration rules.

From 22 July 2025, the Government introduced changes to the Skilled Worker visa route. The department cannot consider sponsoring you for this role unless you have held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes. If you have held a Skilled Worker visa continuously, please raise this during your vetting checks and eligibility will be assessed in accordance with the immigration rules and transitional provisions in place.

If you are applying for this role and you have not held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes, you will need to consider your options for obtaining and/or maintaining your right to work in the UK in light of these changes. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom.

The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service. You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and the eligibility criteria here.

Operational Delivery in HMCTS

The role is part of the Operational Delivery Profession. Operational delivery professionals are the outward face of government, providing essential services to the public in a variety of roles. They work in many different departments and agencies across the breadth of the UK, delivering service to customers.

Being part of the operational delivery profession means belonging to a cross-government community of people. This will offer you access to information on professional standards, skills development and qualifications to help you continue to improve your development and performance and expand your career options.