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Probative Co / Costs and quotes

An estimated range for every engagement. The fee is fixed in writing before we start.

We publish a range rather than a single figure because the same review takes twice as long in a firm with six offices and legacy file systems. The range tells you whether this is a conversation worth having; the scoping call turns it into one fixed fee in writing, and that number does not move.

Ranges shown in USD Invoiced in GBP or USD Quote within one working day of scoping No day rates · no scope creep
01the published ranges
EngagementEstimated range (USD)Typical basis
Free 3-file checkFree3 files · ~48 hoursBook
AML file review$3,700 – $4,50020 files · 5–10 working daysDetails
AML file review — founding client$3,500 – $3,80020 files · first three clientsContact
DPIA & AI policy pack$1,200 – $1,500One week · per tool assessedDetails
Review + policy refresh + training$7,000 – $8,5002–3 weeks · includes trainingDetails
AI governance gap analysis$4,500 – $6,000ISO/IEC 42001 · 6–18 daysDetails
AI governance full readiness$10,000 – $14,000Full policy set · 3–6 weeksDetails
AI readiness assessment$3,000 – $4,00010 working days · credited to a pilotDetails
Private AI pilot$12,000 – $18,0004–6 weeks · evaluated on your mattersDetails
Private AI deploymentfrom $23,000 – $45,0006–10 weeks · scoped after the pilotDetails
Managed private model$1,900 – $3,500 / monthUpdates, re-testing, register upkeepDetails
AI essentials for fee-earners$2,300 – $2,900Half day · up to 20 peopleDetails
Role-based AI programme$5,700 – $7,0003 sessions · 3–6 weeksDetails
COLP / MLRO AI oversight$1,500 – $2,000Half day · compliance deskDetails
Board & partner AI briefing$1,200 – $1,60090 minutes · recorded if usefulDetails
AI use audit (shadow AI)$3,000 – $4,000~2 weeks · register includedDetails
AI output quality audit$2,300 – $3,000~2 weeks · sampled work productsDetails
Annual AI governance audit$4,500 – $6,000Annual · control testingDetails
AI vendor diligence pack$3,700 – $4,500~2 weeks · for AI vendorsDetails
Annual AML cover$650 – $1,150 / monthQuarterly spot checks + annual reviewDetails
AI governance retainer$1,250 – $2,500 / monthRegister upkeep + new-tool assessmentsDetails
i Ranges are estimates, not quotes. They are shown in USD and exclude VAT; where VAT applies it is shown separately on the invoice at the prevailing rate. We invoice in GBP or USD. The range narrows to a single fixed fee in writing once we have scoped the work — and if the work turns out to be materially bigger, you get a revised figure before the extra work happens, never after.
what moves a range up or down
  • Volume — files in a review, documents in a retrieval scope, systems in a register
  • Systems — a tidy DMS with an API costs less to work with than a decade of shared drives
  • Complexity — regulated clients, cross-border matters, ethical walls, privileged material
  • Breadth — one office or six; one practice area or the whole firm
  • Speed — a fortnight before an insurer deadline is priced differently to a quarter's runway
  • Where it runs — on-premises hardware, a private tenancy or a managed instance
always included, never billed separately
  • Encrypted transfer, written DPA and a recorded conflict check
  • A named reviewer you can speak to before work starts
  • The board summary, methodology appendix and independence statement
  • The procurement pack — insurance certificates, security overview, sample report
  • Travel within mainland England and Wales for training and board sessions
  • A written quote, and a conversation about scope before any commitment
02how a quote works

Four steps, and the number does not move after step two.

STEP 01

Tell us the shape of it

A twenty-minute call or an onboarding form: firm size, matter mix, systems, what prompted you to look. No charge, no obligation. The published range is the starting point, not the ceiling.

STEP 02

One fixed fee, in writing

Scope, deliverable, turnaround, fee and payment terms on one page, usually the same working day. The range is replaced by a single number you can approve.

STEP 03

You approve, we start

Nothing begins until you sign off the scope. 50% on booking and 50% on delivery for one-off engagements; milestones agreed in advance for larger deployments.

STEP 04

If the work changes shape

You get a revised fee in writing before the extra work happens. We have never sent an invoice above an agreed quote.

03the commercial terms

The part most firms put on page nine.

Payment

50% on booking, 50% on delivery

One-off engagements. Larger deployments — private AI builds in particular — are billed to milestones agreed in writing before work starts. Card or bank transfer, in GBP or USD, whichever your finance team prefers.

Retainers

Rolling monthly, 30 days' notice

No minimum term and no exit fee. We will tell you what state a pause leaves your evidence in, so it is a decision rather than an accident.

Currency and VAT

Ranges in USD, invoiced in GBP or USD

Ranges are estimates converted for planning. VAT, where it applies, is shown separately on the invoice.

Cancellation

Stop whenever you like

Cancel before we start and nothing is due beyond work already done. Cancel mid-engagement and you pay for what was delivered, and keep it.

When the range is generous

We say so

Plenty of firms should buy the policy pack alone and stop, or run the free self-check and wait a year. That advice costs us money and it is still the right answer.

04free, and genuinely free

Everything here costs nothing and needs no call.

No charge~48 hours

The free 3-file check

Three live files, reviewed the way a reviewer would read them, with one page of findings you keep whether or not you commission anything. It is also the fastest way to turn a published range into an accurate quote, because we will have seen your files.

About 20 minutes of your timebook it →
Free guide14 sections

Private AI in law: the 2026 deployment guide

What private deployments actually cost to run — infrastructure, maintenance, evaluation time — how to evaluate a model on your own matters, and a 90-day rollout plan.

Read online or by emailopen the guide →
FreeDownloadable

Checklists, templates and a specimen report

The 20-point file self-check, the AI register template, the staff one-pager and the full synthetic audit report — so you can judge the deliverable before buying one.

No sales callopen the library →
05questions about cost
Q1Why publish a range instead of a single figure?+
Because a single number would be wrong for most of the firms that read it. The same 20-file review takes twice as long in a firm with six offices and legacy file systems, and publishing a low figure then revising it upward wastes everyone's time. A range tells you whether to start a conversation; scoping turns it into one number.
Q2Which currency will we be invoiced in?+
Ranges are shown in USD for planning. We invoice in GBP or USD, whichever suits your finance team, and the currency is fixed in the engagement letter so there is no ambiguity at payment.
Q3Can the final fee come in below the range?+
Yes. The range is deliberately wide at the top for engagements where scope is uncertain — private AI deployment especially. If scoping shows the work is at the lower end, the quote says so, and the free 3-file check often narrows it before you commit to anything.
Q4What if the quote is more than we budgeted?+
Tell us the budget and we will tell you what fits inside it honestly — sometimes a smaller engagement, sometimes the free check and a year's wait, occasionally that we are not the right people. We would rather reduce scope than quietly reduce quality.
Q5Do you take a cut from vendors?+
No. No referral fees, no reseller margin, no sponsorship — including on hardware and models, where taking a percentage is the industry norm. It is part of why our deployment recommendations sometimes come in below the quotes you already have.
Q6Is any of this legal advice?+
No. We are a compliance and AI governance consultancy, not a law firm, and none of this is a reserved legal activity. Where something needs a solicitor we say so and step back.
// start here

Send three files.
We'll tell you what a reviewer would flag.

  • No charge and no obligation — you keep the findings either way
  • Turned around in ~48 hours, encrypted transfer only
  • Most firms find at least one issue they did not know they had
Book the free 3-file check → Talk to us about cost Or write to — replies usually the same day.