A change of counsel is not a ‘significant reason’ to warrant a revision to a costs budget. The Judge in Greig v Lauchlan Ch D 07/12/2016 considered the defendant’s application to increase a budget (approved in October 2015) at the PTR, shortly before the imminent 10-day trial, because of a change in Counsel. …
Read more…The judgment of Holyoake & Anor v Candy & Ors [2016] EWHC 3065 (Ch) (29 November 2016) is worth a read as it discusses the law relating to abuse of process and second applications in detail. Case The Defendant made an application for security of costs. The Claimant served timely evidence before the application…
Read more…The Court of Appeal in Qader & Others v Esure Services Ltd [2016] EWCA Civ 1109 decided that fixed costs no longer apply to RTA portal claims subsequently allocated to the multi-track. The decision is considered by all to be a good decision, but the method of arriving at it was more interesting. The Court…
Read more…Roger Wyland QC sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge in the case of Sony Communications International AB v SSH Communications Security Corporation [2016] EWHC 2985 (Pat) used the Claimant’s costs budget to assess the Claimant’s costs at the end of the case, where the parties had agreed this process to avoid a detailed assessment.…
Read more…Last week’s announcement of Jackson LJ’s review of the fixed recoverable costs referred to 13 assessors who will assist in the task (click here). The number of assessors was quietly increased to 14 by the addition of the current chair of the Association of Costs Lawyers. No doubt it is a sensible move to have…
Read more…Lord Justice Jackson will commence a review of options to extend fixed recoverable fees in January 2017 to be completed by end of July. A major expansion of fixed costs is expected in view of his brief to “develop proposals for extending the present civil fixed recoverable costs… to make the costs of going to…
Read more…In the case of Cathal Anthony Lyons v Fox Williams LLP [2016] EWHC 2427 QB the High Court did not agree to the Claimant’s retainer being extended beyond the duties set out in the engagement letter in the absence of clear and unambiguous evidence to the contrary. Circumstances Professional negligence case Claimant suffered injuries…
Read more…It is the big topic when it comes to costs recovery. Gordon Exall warns it cannot be ignored and lists 8 points to ensure a case is managed proportionately: Risk assess the case properly before taking it on; Explain the concept and encourage your client to engage in the case; Think, “Can I…
Read more…I recently attended ‘A Question Time on Costs’ hosted by Andrew Hogan, and very enjoyable it was too. The answer to the question from the panel of speakers was a resounding ‘No’ whilst we await the decision of the appeals in the BNM and May cases. At present, paying parties are using BNM to…
Read more…I bring you a tip from Lesley Graves of Citadel Law, a niche law firm adviser, to improve your cash flow and standard of expert report you receive; and to reduce complaints from experts of slow settlement of fees: In PI cases, where liability is admitted and evidence disclosed, law firms should request an interim…
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