High Court dispenses with electronic bill – Litigation Futures
‘A High Court judge has relieved a claimant who won a trial in January from having to produce an electronic bill for the work undertaken since 6 April 2018.’ Full StoryLitigation Futures, 2nd April...
View ArticleFixed fees can apply to claim which settled for £42k, court rules – Law...
‘The courts have made clear they will be prepared to apply fixed costs to cases which have long since breached the £25,000 limit. Two judgments that have emerged over the past week show examples of...
View ArticlePart 36 offer that included unpleaded counterclaim ruled valid – Litigation...
‘A part 36 offer made by a defendant in respect of both a claim and a proposed counterclaim which has yet to be pleaded is valid, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’ Full StoryLitigation Futures, 7th May...
View ArticleJudge refuses uplift after successful part 36 offer on hourly rates –...
‘A judge has refused to award claimants an uplift on their costs after beating a part 36 offer restricted just to the hourly rates in dispute.’ Full StoryLitigation Futures, 29th May 2019Source:...
View ArticlePart 36 consequences “are severable”, High Court rules – Litigation Futures
‘The court can decide it is unjust to award some, but not all, of the consequences of beating a part 36 offer, a High Court judge has ruled.’ Full StoryLegal Futures, 25th June 2019Source:...
View ArticleOffer to settle for no damages was valid under part 36 – Litigation Futures
‘An offer to settle a case for no damages but an admission of liability was a valid part 36 offer and it was not unjust to apply the usual consequences of beating an offer when the claimant won at...
View ArticleSettling for nil damages can still be a genuine Part 36 offer – MR v...
‘The appellant was arrested on suspicion of harassment but was later released without charge, after police had taken fingerprints and DNA samples. The appellant issued a claim for false imprisonment...
View ArticleDefendant pays an extra £65,000 after fractional Part 36 defeat – Law...
‘A losing party has been ordered to pay an extra £65,000 after declining to settle a case over a difference amounting to less than £5,000.’ Full StoryLaw Society's Gazette, 15th November 2019Source:...
View ArticleAppeal court re-establishes fixed costs for claim headed to multi-track – Law...
‘The Court of Appeal has ruled that claimant solicitors should settle for fixed costs in a ruling that could send shivers through the claims sector.’ Full StoryLaw Society's Gazette, 19th November...
View ArticleCA: Part 36 offer did not contract out of fixed costs – Litigation Futures
‘A defendant who settles a claim that leaves the RTA protocol with a part 36 offer including the usual wording about paying costs on the standard basis is not contracting out of fixed costs, the Court...
View ArticlePart 36 Offers Explained – Becket Chambers
‘This article explains the key points about Part 36 offers and provides top tips for avoiding common pitfalls.’ Full StoryBecket Chambers, 14th November 2019Source: becket-chambers.co.uk
View ArticlePart 36 offers cannot exclude interest to be valid – Litigation Futures
‘Part 36 offers which specifically exclude interest are not valid, the Court of Appeal has ruled – but one of the judges said this should be reconsidered.’ Full StoryLitigation Futures, 19th December...
View ArticlePart 36 offers made exclusive of interest not valid, Court of Appeal rules –...
‘It is not possible to make a valid Part 36 offer exclusive of interest either generally or in the context of detailed assessment proceedings, the Court of Appeal has ruled in a case involving a local...
View ArticleCourt fee can be claimed from defendants despite exemption – Litigation Futures
‘There are “strong public policy grounds” for allowing fee-exempt claimants to claim their court fees from defendants rather than the taxpayer, a judge has ruled.’ Full StoryLitigation Futures, 28th...
View ArticleJudge upholds acceptance of ‘mistaken’ £0 part 36 offer – Litigation Futures
‘A claimant who issued proceedings after the defendant accepted a part 36 offer for £0 – which he said had been made by mistake – has had his claim struck out for abuse of process.’ Full...
View ArticleAppeal court urges rethink over set-off in QOCS cases – Litigation Futures
‘The Court of Appeal has urged the Civil Procedure Rule Committee to consider preventing defendants setting off costs in cases covered by qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS).’ Full StoryLitigation...
View ArticleHigh Court judges order indemnity costs over ADR failures – Litigation Futures
‘The courts are getting harder on parties who fail to follow directions to try alternative dispute resolution (ADR), with judges imposing indemnity costs in two cases in recent weeks.’ Full...
View ArticleJudges call for review of costs rules after QOCS judgment – Law Society’s...
‘Judges in the Court of Appeal have urged rule-makers to look again at the nuances of qualified one-way costs shifting after a judgment over whether a defendant could set off their costs liability...
View ArticleWhat Does Happen When a CFA Ends Before the Claim for Damages Ends? –...
‘The Appellant (‘Mrs Butler’) entered into a CFA with the Respondent solicitors, (‘Bankside’) in respect of a claim for damages against one company, Metris, for termination of a commercial agency.’...
View ArticleClaimant loses 15% of costs for “engrained” exaggeration – Litigation Futures
‘The High Court has cut a costs award to a seriously injured claimant because exaggeration was “built into the structure” of the way the claim was presented before and during the trial.’ Full...
View ArticleCFA Costs Allowed in second 1975 Act Claim – Parklane Plowden Chambers
‘Re H (Deceased), SH v NH and KH [2020] EWHC 1134 (Fam) was a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 heard on 24 April and 24 May 2020 before Cohen J. The successful...
View ArticleThe price of an unreasonable refusal to engage: ADR, Litigation and cost...
‘The touchstone of all ADR procedures is that parties enter into them voluntarily. However, there is an increasing body of case law in the English courts that suggests mediation should be seriously...
View ArticleSuccess Fee Recoverability in 1975 Act Claims: Re H [2020] EWHC 1134 (Fam) –...
‘The general rule in civil litigation is that costs “follow the event”. In an article I wrote for the special issue of Civil Justice Quarterly on Civil Litigation Costs, Vol. 32 pages 109-312 Issue 2...
View ArticleEvans v Betesh Partnership and McGinty [2020] EWHC 1589 (QB) – Parklane...
‘High Court decision (24/06/20) concerning solicitor/barrister professional negligence arising out of a personal injury case.’ Full StoryParklane Plowden Chambers, 24th June 2020Source:...
View ArticleKeep part 36 offers simple by using form, judge urges – Litigation Futures
‘A High Court judge has told parties making part 36 offers that if they simply used form N242A “much of the difficulty” the scheme has caused litigants over the years would be avoided.’ Full...
View ArticleThe cost of wrongly alleging breach of good faith: Part 36 offers and...
‘A High Court judge’s decisions in a multi-million pound dispute between a council and a waste company are helpful in understanding the Court’s approach to duties of good faith – and the consequences...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal refuses permission to appeal Swift v Carpenter – Litigation...
‘The Court of Appeal has refused permission to appeal Swift v Carpenter, its recent decision that replaced the Roberts v Johnstone formula for calculating accommodation claims by injured people.’ Full...
View ArticleCA: Judge was wrong not to order all of part 36 enhanced awards – Litigation...
‘Making one of the four enhanced awards of beating a part 36 offer does not “in any way” undermine or lessen entitlement to the others, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’ Full StoryLitigation Futures,...
View ArticleOne day late acceptance of part 36 offer puts costs in play – Legal Futures
‘An automatic entitlement to costs under part 36 only arises if the offer is accepted within the “relevant period”, the High Court has ruled.’ Full StoryLegal Futures, 21st January 2021Source:...
View ArticleNew rules promise clarity on issue of interest in Part 36 offers – Law...
‘Legislation to give litigators certainty about the issue of Part 36 offers and interest is to be introduced this spring, the government has announced. The rule change, effective from 6 April, is one...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal urges Part 36 clarity after rejecting ‘not genuine’ offer –...
‘The Court of Appeal has sent a firm message to litigators about the details required in a Part 36 after ruling that a claimant’s offer to settle at 90% was not genuine.’ Full StoryLaw Society's...
View ArticleDefendant contests Part 36 offer accepted on the day claimant died – Law...
‘A High Court judge has suggested it would be “unjust” for a defendant to be held to a six-year-old Part 36 offer accepted hours before the claimant died.’ Full StoryLaw Society's Gazette, 21st April...
View ArticleDefendant can resile from part 36 offer accepted before protected party’s...
‘It would be unjust for a defendant to be bound by the acceptance of a six-year-old part 36 offer on behalf of a protected party just hours before their death, the High Court has indicated.’ Full...
View ArticlePart 36 Offers : Children and Protected Parties Wormald -v- Ahmed [2021] EWHC...
‘In claims concerning a child or a protected party, acceptance of a Part 36 offer is subject to the approval process under Part 21. Consequently, the accepted Part 36 offer is not deemed binding until...
View ArticleClaimants awarded £2,000 damages – and ordered to pay £500,000 interim costs...
‘A litigant in a building dispute who claimed £3.7m in damages – only to be awarded just £2,000 at trial – has been hit with a costs bill of at least £500,000.’ Full StoryLaw Society's Gazette, 2nd...
View ArticleCourt upholds validity of £1 part 36 offer by party awarded £10 – Litigation...
‘The High Court has upheld a decision that a party that made a part 36 offer of £1 and received nominal damages of £10 was entitled to the usual costs consequences of beating their offer.’ Full...
View ArticleClaimant has £200k costs paid despite winning only £10 damages – Law...
‘A High Court judge has found that the county court was entitled to order costs in favour of a claimant who secured nominal damages of £10 at trial.’ Full StoryLaw Society's Gazette, 21st June...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal boosts claimant PI solicitors with fixed-costs ruling – Legal...
‘The Court of Appeal has handed a boost to claimant personal injury (PI) solicitors by applying the more generous fixed costs regime for cases where the claimant in a low-value matter dies.’ Full...
View ArticleQualified one-way costs shifting – Law Society’s Gazette
‘In Ho v Adelekun [2021] UKSC 43, the Supreme Court considered the mechanics of qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS). The claimant was injured in a road traffic accident in 2012. In 2017, she was...
View ArticleDoes Qualified One-way Costs Shifting (“QOCS”) constrain a defendant’s...
‘QOCS applies to most personal injury (“PI”) claims. It usually limits the ability of a successful defendant to recover its costs against an unsuccessful claimant.’ Full StoryLamb Chambers, October...
View ArticleDeputy Master hits out at “unnecessary” expenditure in judicial review and...
‘The Home Secretary wasted public money by protractedly disputing costs in a case involving unlawful detention, a Deputy Master in the High Court has said.’ Full StoryLocal Government Lawyer, 4th...
View ArticlePI costs ruling could have “significant” impact on settled cases – Legal Futures
‘A Court of Appeal ruling that the wording of a settlement of a personal injury claim supplanted fixed costs could have “significant” implications, including for cases that have already settled, a...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal rejects defendant’s fixed costs challenge – Law Society’s...
‘Fixed costs did not apply to a personal injury case which had fallen out of the protocol, the Court of Appeal has asserted. In Doyle v M&D Foundations & Building Services Ltd, Lord Justice...
View ArticleContracting out of fixed costs in low value personal injury claims –...
‘In a low value personal injury claim, what is the proper interpretation of the phrase, “such costs to be the subject of detailed assessment if not agreed”? If the parties have agreed such a provision...
View ArticleHigh court rejects costs setoff in QOCS claim – Law Society’s Gazette
‘The High Court rejected a defendant’s bid to escape the full rigour of the qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) regime in a ruling handed down this week.’ Full StoryLaw Society's Gazette, 15th...
View ArticleTwo cases about QOCS where the claimant accepted a Part 36 offer late –...
‘Two recent decisions on the application of qualified one-way-costs-shifting (“QOCS”), of the High Court in Chappell v Mrozek [2022] EWHC 3147 (KB), and of the Court of Appeal in Harrison v University...
View ArticleSplit liability offer did not meet Part 36 requirements – Law Society’s Gazette
‘A claimant’s 90/10 liability offer went against both the letter and spirit of civil procedure rules on Part 36, a High Court judge has ruled.’ Full StoryLaw Society's Gazette, 16th March 2023Source:...
View ArticlePart 36 Offers: Say It Like You Mean It! – Ropewalk Chambers
‘In Mundy v TUI UK Ltd [2023] EWHC 385 (Ch) (judgment available here), Collins Rice J heard an appeal which considered the implications of the Claimant’s Part 36 offer to split “liability” at 90%/10%.’...
View ArticlePart 36: Is There Any Value in a Split Liability Offer? – Pump Court Chambers
‘In the recent case of Mundy v TUI UK Ltd [2023] EWHC 385 (Ch), the High Court (Collins Rice J) provided helpful clarification about when Part 36 offers deal with an apportionment of liability.’ Full...
View ArticleQOCS changes in April 2023: the practical and tactical implications for...
‘In what is becoming something of a pattern, the Rules committee have come along to clear up the anomaly resulting from the decisions in the Appellate courts, this time in Cartwright v Venduct...
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