TLA sets the record straight as medicolegal agencies squeeze expert fees
Recent changes sweeping through the medicolegal agency sector mean that expert witnesses in personal injury could soon find their invoices cut by 15% without their agreement.
A number of the largest agencies have written to experts confirming that from 1st May 2026 they will apply that deduction directly to invoices while simultaneously charging solicitors a 25% uplift on fees. That represents a combined margin of 40% on every instruction, with experts absorbing the shortfall whether they agree to it or not.
Leading this charge is Premex, one of the sector's largest medical reporting organisations, which has written to experts confirming these terms. It is understood that at least two other agencies have followed with near-identical correspondence.
TLA Medicolegal wants to be clear: this does not apply to us.
TLA is not an ‘agency’ but a a private consultancy practice built by experts, for experts, and our entire model is founded on advocacy, transparency and fair remuneration. We do not take a cut from expert invoices and do not negotiate fees downwards - if an expert invoices £1,000, they are paid £1,000. That has always been the case, and it will not change.
The distinction between TLA and a traditional agency is not a technicality. Agencies originally emerged as databases connecting solicitors with available experts. Over time, many evolved into something closer to a financial intermediary, offering solicitors deferred payment terms stretching two or three years and funding that arrangement by inflating the gap between what experts were paid and what solicitors were charged.
The judgment in JXX v Archibald brought those margins into sharp focus, with the court ruling that agencies could only apply a 25% uplift on expert fees. Unable to sustain their model on that basis, a number of the largest agencies have responded by deducting 15% directly from expert invoices to make up the shortfall, a cost that now falls squarely on the experts themselves.
Following intervention by the Independent Doctors Federation, which secured direct discussions with the CEO of Premex, implementation of the new terms has been deferred until June 2026 to allow for further negotiation. Whilst this delay is welcome, it does not alter the direction of travel and experts should be under no illusion that these changes remain firmly on the table.
TLA has never operated that model. Our role is to manage expert practices comprehensively, handling scheduling, correspondence, fee negotiation and prompt payment, so that experts can focus entirely on producing high quality reports. We are transparent about how we work, and our experts retain full control over their fees and their practice.
Fiona Morrison, Director and Co-founder of TLA Medicolegal, said: "The changes being introduced by medicolegal agencies should concern every expert working within the personal injury sector. Deducting 15% from expert invoices is not an administrative adjustment, it is a direct reduction in earnings that experts have not agreed to and cannot challenge.
“We want every expert we work with, and every expert considering their options, to know that this is simply not how TLA operates. We are advocates for the expert community and that commitment is non-negotiable.
"For solicitors, the position is equally straightforward. TLA has no agency uplift fee as we operate as a consultancy business model. There is no hidden margin between what an expert charges and what a solicitor is billed."
For experts currently working through agencies and reviewing their options, TLA welcomes conversations about bringing medicolegal practices across in full. Experts who become full TLA members benefit from dedicated administrative support, reliable and prompt payment at agreed fees, and the assurance that their invoices will never be reduced.
To find out more, please contact Fiona Morrison directly at fiona@tla-medicolegal.com