No Win No Fee – No Collection No Fee Debt Collection in Zimbabwe!

In terms of section 22A of the Legal Practitioners Act [Chapter 27:07] (the Act) as read with the Legal Practitioners (Contingency Fee Agreements) Regulations, 2014 (the Regulations), legal practitioners in Zimbabwe may enter into no win no fee arrangements with clients.

The idea behind the Act and the Regulations in Zimbabwe with regards to contingency free agreements is that the lawyer takes on the risk of financing his or her client’s case in the hope – or anticipation of succeeding. If the lawyer is successful, he or she will be entitled to a success fee that is higher than his or her normal fee. If the lawyer is unsuccessful, there is no fee. It is important to bear in mind that under this arrangement, the client remains responsible for the costs of disbursements should the need for litigation arise.

In order to for a firm to be able to determine whether or not it can enter into a no win no fee arrangement in respect to debt collection, it is essential for the nominated legal firm and or legal practitioner to be furnished with the following information:

• (g) The nature of the debt;
• (h) The duration of the debt;
• (i) The debtor’s contact details;
• (j) The duration of the debt;
• (k) Whether the debtor is an individual or any entity; and
• (l) Whether the debt is local, regional or international in nature.