COST BITES 211: THE ASSESSMENT OF COSTS: LARGE ELEMENTS OF POINTS OF DISPUTE STRUCK OUT BECAUSE OF INADEQUATE PARTICULARISATION
In St Francis Group 1 Ltd & Ors v Kelly & Anor [2025] EWHC 125 (SCCO) Costs Judge Leonard struck out large parts of a defendant’s Points of Dispute. The Points of Dispute were inadequately particularised. The judgment contains an…
COST BITES 210: INTERIM BILLS WERE NOT STATUTE BILLS: THE CLIENT HAS THE RIGHT TO AN ASSESSMENT OF THE FINAL BILL: “SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES” CONSIDERED
I am grateful to barrister Thomas Mason for drawing my attention to the judgment of Senior Costs Judge Gordon-Saker in Topalsson GmbH v CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP [2025] EWHC 118 (SCCO). The judge determined that a series of…
EXTRAORDINARY CONDUCT WHICH LED TO SOLICITOR’S UNLAWFUL DEDUCTION FROM A PROTECT PARTY’S DAMAGES: JUDGMENT FROM THE SCCO
In AKS v National Farmers Union Mutual Insurance Society Ltd [2025] EWHC 126 (SCCO) Costs Judge Leonard recounted an extraordinary set of facts where a solicitor had wrongly deducted sums from their client’s damages. The judgment shows that this issue…
ADVOCACY – THE JUDGE’S VIEW XIV: “RAMBO TACTICS” DO NOT WORK (NEITHER DO THREATENING YOUR OPPONENT WITH A PROCTOLOGY EXAMINATION OR MAKING FACES AT THE JUDGE…)
Continuing with revisiting guidance from judges in relation to advocacy. Here I advocate (hopefully in a civil way) learning from one judgment. That is the judgment of District Judge Chin in the extraordinary case of Revson -v- Cinque & Cinque in…
TERMS OF SETTLEMENT WITH OTHER CLAIMANTS INADMISSIBLE AT TRIAL: “THE NEED TO PROMOTE THE POLICY TO ENCOURAGE SETTLEMENT IN ALL CASES”
In Omanovic v Shamaazi Ltd & Anor [2025] EWHC 110 (KB) Mr Justice Martin Spencer granted the defendants’ application that the terms of settlement with two claimants were inadmissible in the trial of the remaining claimant. On the facts of…
COST BITES 209: A CLIENT’S CHALLENGE TO THE DEDUCTION OF THEIR OWN SOLICITOR’S COSTS WAS THIS A CFA OR A DBA: WAS THE SOLICITOR OBLIGED TO OFFER A DBA?
We are continuing with the examination of the judgment of Cost Judge Rowley Perrett v Wolferstans LLP [2025] EWHC 68 (SCCO). Here the judge considered (and rejected) that claimant’s [former client’s] argument that the CFA entered into with the solicitor was…
COURT REFUSES PERMISSION TO RELY ON EXPERT EVIDENCE: AN “INAPPROPRIATE DISTRACTION”: A REPORT WAS “IN FACT LEGAL ARGUMENTS DRESSED UP AS ECONOMIC EXPERTISE”
In Kington SARL v Thames Water Utilities Holdings Ltd (Rev1) [2025] EWHC 84 (Ch) Mr Justice Trower rejected the applicant’s application to rely on expert evidence. The proposed expert report was to “uncertain” and, in any event, unlikely to assist…
AVOIDING THE PITFALLS IN SERVICE OF THE CLAIM FORM: WEBINAR 4th FEBRUARY 2025: CAN YOU AFFORD TO MISS IT?
Every year this blog covers numerous cases where claimants (and occasionally defendants) come to grief in relation to service of the claim form. The frustrating issue in relation to service issues is that most (if not all) of the problems…
ADVOCACY – THE JUDGE’S VIEW XIII: GUIDANCE ON SKELETON ARGUMENTS: “PUT YOURSELF IN THE POSITION OF THE JUDGE”: “DIFFICULT TO READ, DISGUSTING TO TOUCH AND IMPOSSIBLE TO UNDERSTAND. IT IS WORSE THAN NO SKELETON AT ALL”
This post is another in the series of repeats of the series on advocacy. This blog has many posts that record cases where judges have been critical of the contents (and usually length) of skeleton arguments. A remedy for most…
COST BITES 208: A CLIENT’S CHALLENGE TO THE DEDUCTION OF THEIR OWN SOLICITOR’S COSTS IN PERSONAL INJURY ACTION
There is a strange area of litigation and legal costs where issues of proportionality and common sense appear to totally disappear. – that is former client’s challenges to solicitor’s deductions from damages. We see another example in Perrett v Wolferstans…
COST BITES 207: THE BREAKDOWN OF EXPERT FEES WHEN AN AGENCY IS INVOLVED (AGAIN): THE RECEIVING PARTY, APPLES AND PEARS AND AN ELECTION HAS TO BE MADE
In JXX v Archibald [2025] EWHC 69 (SCCO) Costs Judge Rowley considered the – much debated and litigated – issue of whether there needs to be breakdown of an expert’s fee when the expert is instructed through an agency. The…
THE IMPORTANCE OF ADVOCATES WORKING WITHIN TIME ESTIMATES: COURT OF APPEAL POLICE THEIR PROCEDURE
In Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police v Woodcock [2025] EWCA Civ 13 the Court of Appeal considered many significant issues relating to the civil liability of the police force. However this blog, being this blog, will defer consideration of those…
THE COSTS JUDGE OVER YOUR SHOULDER: MAXIMISING COSTS RECOVERY ON AN INTER PARTIES RECOVER – THE LITIGATOR’S ROLE: WEBINAR 23rd JANUARY 2025
Detailed assessment usually takes place after attempts at settlement of costs have failed and there are some major differences between the parties. The webinar uses examples from reported cases to show where failures and omissions by the receiving party has…
COST BITES 206: THE COURT WOULD NOT MAKE A SUBSTANTIAL ORDER FOR COSTS WHEN AN AMENDMENT TO A REPLY ABANDONS AN ALLEGATION OF FRAUD: (ALSO THE DANGERS OF PLEADING FRAUD WITHOUT SUBSTANTIVE EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THIS)
In Packer v Packer [2025] EWHC 27 (Ch) HHJ Paul Matthews (sitting as a High Court Judge) considered issues of costs after a claimant had amended a Reply to withdraw an allegation of fraud. The judge did not accept the…
CAN A CLAIMANT WHO HAS ISSUED PART 8 PROCEEDINGS FOR APPROVAL OF AN INTERIM PAYMENT BE COMPELLED TO TRANSFER THE ACTION TO PART 7: THE COURT THINKS NOT
I am grateful to Chris Barnes KC for allowing me to rely on his note of a post he put on LinkedIn yesterday. It relates to the question of whether a court can “convert” Part 8 proceedings issued for the…
MISCONDUCT IN ASSESSMENT AND REDUCTIONS IN COSTS – A REVIEW OF THE CASES II: KERINS -V- HEART OF ENGLAND: COSTS REDUCED BY 50%
We are continuing this series looking at issues of misconduct in the assessment process by looking at the decision of District Judge Griffith in Kerins -v- Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust (Birmingham, 31st July 2015). The claimant’s costs were reduced by…
COURT GRANTS DEFENDANT’S APPLICATION FOR AN ADJOURNMENT DUE TO THE ILLNESS OF LEADING COUNSEL
In Manchester Property Development Holdings & Anor v Kuit Steinart Levy LLP [2025] EWHC 35 (Comm) Dame Clare Moulder DBE granted the defendant’s application for an adjournment of an imminent trial because Leading Counsel became unexpectedly ill. There was insufficient…
MISCONDUCT IN ASSESSMENT AND REDUCTIONS IN COSTS – A REVIEW OF THE CASES 1: LAHEY -v- PIRELLI TYRES LIMITED
Recent cases on the issue of costs being reduced, or disallowed, due to the conduct of the assessment proceedings have led me to review the cases on this topic. This is the first in a series of posts about the…
ADVOCACY THE JUDGE’S VIEW XII: BEING PERSUASIVE – SIMPLE IS BEST: “CONVOLUTED ARGUMENTS ARE SLEEPING PILLS ON PAPER”
This post revisits the detailed article by Judge Stephen J. Dwyer, Leonard J. Feldman & Ryan P. McBridet called “How to Write, Edit, and Review Persuasive Briefs: Seven Guidelines from One Judge and Two Lawyers”. Remember the purpose of this…
THREE WEBINARS ON COSTS TO START OF THE CALENDAR (IF NOT THE FINANCIAL) YEAR
There are three webinars on costs this January of interest to most litigators. The first deals with the summary assessment of costs; the second the role of the litigator in detailed assessments and the third on the topic of deducting…
ADVOCACY THE JUDGE’S VIEW XI: ADVOCACY BEFORE THE MASTERS: YOU ARE DEALING WITH EXPERTS AND TIMING IS IMPORTANT
Today we are revisiting an article by Master David Cook “Advocacy before the QB Masters – Some Do’s and Dont’s” and it reminded me why I wrote the original series. These are invaluable sources of advice and information. Appearing before Masters…
COST BITES 205: THE COURT CAN CHANGE ITS MIND AFTER MAKING AN ORDER ON THE PAPERS: THE DANGERS OF “ETERNAL GAMES OF PING PONG”
In Smith v McAlpine [2024] EWHC 3408 (KB) Senior Master Cook varied an order for costs that had been made after an application had been considered on the papers. After considering further submissions he found that his original order, that…
OGDEN TABLES UPDATED TO INCLUDE + 0.5% RATE
An updated set of Additional Tables have been added to The Ogden Tables today to include the 0.5% rate that came into force in January. THE UPDATES The updates can be found on this link. … Enjoying this post? Become a…
BITCOINS IN THE TIP: DEFENDANT COUNCIL GRANTED SUMMARY JUDGMENT: CLAIMANT’S ARGUMENT ON LIMITATION DESCRIBED AS “DESPERATE”
In Howells v Newport City Council [2025] EWHC 22 (Ch) HHJ Keyser KC granted summary judgment to the defendant council in an unusual case. The claimant was seeking to recover a computer hard drive which had been put in the…
MAKING AN APPLICATION FOR RELIEF FROM SANCTIONS? 10 KEY POINTS TO HELP
Periodically I revisit posts on this blog to see whether they remain of relevance – this post (from January 2016) does. It sets out ten key points in making an application for relief from sanctions. Every point made nine years…
PROVING THINGS 254: WHICH EXPERT IS GOING TO BE ACCEPTED? AN IMPORTANT ISSUE CONSIDERED IN A CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE CASE
I am grateful to barrister Nadia Whittaker for sending me a copy of the judgment of HHJ Baddeley in Lochrie -v- Edwards (County Court in Sheffield 07/01/2025), a copy of which is available here. Final Lochrie v Edwards Judgment G48YJ355 …
FAMILY COURT AND CIVIL COUNTY COURT LEEDS: NOT ACCEPTING DIRECT CALLS FROM THE 22nd JANUARY 2025
HMCTS have sent out a letter informing practitioners of changes to the telephone arrangements in Leeds Family Court and Civil County Court in Leeds from the 22nd January 2025. Note that the Business and Property Court is not affected. “New…
ADVOCACY THE JUDGE’S VIEW X: A RECAP OF THE POINTS SO FAR: 10 KEY POINTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Carrying on with our revisiting this series we are having a short recap. Here were look at 10 key pieces of advice arising from the series so far. (There are plenty more to come). 1. ADVICE FROM CANADA – MANNERS…
“DICING WITH PROCEDURAL DEATH” AND SERVICE OF THE CLAIM FORM: TEN SIMPLE POINTS TO MAKE LIFE EASIER
Last year saw another – large – batch of cases relating to service of the claim form. Mistakes continue to be made and things have not changed much over the years. Below is a revised post first written ten years…
SUMMARY JUDGMENT, PART 8 PROCEEDINGS AND THE FILING OF WITNESS EVIDENCE
In Director of Public Prosecutions v Surin [2025] EWHC 10 (KB) Mr Justice Mould considered issues relating to the service of witness evidence by the defendant in the claimant’s application for summary judgment. The unusual element of this action was…
ADVOCACY THE JUDGE’S VIEW IX: DOES WHAT YOU WEAR TO COURT MATTER?
We are revisiting to the series on “Advocacy – the Judge’s view”. This particular post was originally inspired by a search term that arrived on this this blog “Can a solicitor dress casually in county court”. This caused a lot…
MAXIMISING INTER PARTES COSTS RECOVERY IN HOUSING LAW CASES: WEBINAR 10th JANUARY 2025
I am speaking about costs for housing lawyers on the 10th January 2025 in a webinar arranged by Steve Cornforth. Booking details can be found by emailing Steve on stevecornforthconsultancy@gmail.com THE WEBINAR This webinar looks at how housing…
SEEKING PERMISSION TO APPEAL: WHEN IS THERE AN “ADJOURNED HEARING”? THE ISSUES CONSIDERED
The question of when a hearing has been adjourned and when time starts running for applying to the trial judge for permission to appeal was considered by Mr Justice Freedman in Mex Group Worldwide Limited v Stewart Owen Ford & Ors [2024]…
JUDGE OVERTURNS NON-PARTY COSTS ORDER AGAINST CLAIMS MANAGEMENT COMPANY: ANOTHER (EXPENSIVE) BATTLE IN THE “NEVER-ENDING WAR”
I am grateful to Navid Hakimmaani, Consultant Solicitor at Collins Benson Goldhill LLP, for sending me a copy of the judgment of HHJ Mark Gargan in Smith -v- AXA Insurance UK PlC & Spectra Drive Limited (24th December 2024), a…
HAPPY NEW YEAR: THE NEW SOLICITORS’ GUIDELINE HOURLY RATES FOR 2025
January 1st sees the introduction of the indexed hourly rates. They are published on the Gov.UK website here. THE RATES FOR 2025 Grade Fee earner London 1 London 2 London 3 National 1 National 2 A Solicitors and…
COST BITES 204: A SUCCESS FEE CANNOT BE RECOVERED AS DAMAGES: SUPREME COURT DECISION: “AN ORDER THAT PROVIDES FOR ONE PARTY TO PAY ANOTHER PARTY’S COSTS IS A COSTS ORDER”
In Hirachand v Hirachand & Anor [2024] UKSC 43 the Supreme Court dismissed the idea that an award to a claimant could be increased to take account of the fact that the claimant was liable to pay a success fee…
“CUT AND PASTE” PARAGRAPHS UNDERMINE THE COGENCY OF THE EVIDENCE IN WITNESS STATEMENTS
We are returning to the judgment of HHJ Kelly (sitting as a High Court Judge) in MJF v University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust [2024] EWHC 3156 (KB). This time we are looking at the judge’s observations about the preparation…
WITNESS STATEMENTS: REASONS TO BE WARY OF ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES (2): A SOLICITORS DISCIPLINARY TRIBUNAL DECISION
We are returning to the issue of the difficulties that can be caused by the use of electronic signatures on witness statements. The dangers involved can be seen clearly in the decision of the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal in SRA -v-…
CIVIL LITIGATION BRIEF IN 2024: SOME FACTS AND FIGURES
As 2024 draws to a close this is a good time to look back at the year in terms of civil procedure. There have been 463 posts to date this year amounting to 938 thousand words (I haven’t counted them…
WITNESS STATEMENTS: REASONS TO BE WARY OF ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES (1)
In Waterrower (UK) Limited v Liking Ltd (t/a Topiom) [2024] EWHC 3049 (IPEC) Campbell Forsyth (sitting as a High Court Judge) observed that there were a number of issues with a witness statement served on behalf of the defendant. There…
OPENING LINES OF JUDGMENT IN 2024: GIVING THE OTHER SIDE A CHANCE TO OBJECT, NELSONIAN POLICY MAKING,HERDS OF CATTLE AND WHY THIS BLOG CAN NEVER GIVE THE LAST WORD ON SERVICE OF THE CLAIM FORM…
We are at the time of year when we can look back at some of the opening lines of judgments. This year it is clear that this is an international contest. THE SUPREME COURT STARTS OF THE YEAR WITH…
“STATEMENTS OF CASE PLAY AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN CIVIL LITIGATION”: THE DEFENDANT WAS NOT ALLOWED TO RUN A CASE ON CAUSATION THAT IT HAD NOT PLEADED: CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE CASE CONSIDERED
In MJF v University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust [2024] EWHC 3156 (KB) HHJ Emma Kelly (sitting as a High Court Judge) found that the defendant in a clinical negligence trial was trying to run a case on causation that…
COURT ALLOWS A CLAIMANT IN A CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE CASE TO CHANGE EXPERTS: THIS WAS NOT CASE OF “EXPERT SHOPPING”
In Alan Prescott-Brann v Chelsea and Westminsters Hostpital NHS Foundation Trust & Anor [2024] EWHC 3314 (KB) Mr Justice Sweeting allowed and appeal and thus permitted the claimant in a clinical negligence case to rely on a new expert on key issues…
THE WITNESS SUMMARY AT TRIAL: THE OLD FASHIONED APPROACH MAY WELL BE BEST
In Waite v Skilton & Ors [2024] EWHC 3153 (Ch) Mr Recorder Adrian Jack (sitting as a High Court Judge) considered the practical problems that can arise where a witness gives evidence at trial following service of a witness summary….
COST BITES 203: A SUMMARY ASSESSMENT IN PRACTICE: “PROPORTIONALITY IS NOT JUST ABOUT REDUCING COSTS TO THE LOWEST POSSIBLE FIGURE”
In Ferko v Ealing Magistrates Court & Ors [2024] EWHC 3297 (Admin) Mr Justice Sweeting carried out a summary assessment. In doing so he set out some key principles in relation to the assessment of costs. In particular issues relating…
WITNESS STATEMENTS: “COMPLIANCE WITH THE PRACTICE DIRECTION IS NOT SIMPLY A MATTER BETWEEN THE PARTIES”: THE WITNESS IS “THE AUTHOR OF HIS OWN MISFORTUNE”
In Milford Investments Ltd v Lanyon Bowdler LLP [2024] EWHC 3227 (Comm) we see yet another example of a witness statement that does not comply with the rules. Although the defendant did not argue that the statement should not be…
COST BITES 202: THE DIFFICULTY (IF NOT IMPOSSIBILITY) OF PROVING AN “IMPLIED RETAINER” PRIOR TO LEGAL HELP BEING OBTAINED
In Cooke & Ors v Woodchurch House Ltd (Rev1) [2023] EWHC 3318 (SCCO) Deputy Costs Judge Bedford considered an argument that there was an “implied retainer” which permitted the claimants to recover costs prior to Legal Help being obtained. The…
CLAIM WAS ISSUED PROPERLY IN THE HIGH COURT, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS SENT TO THE WRONG OFFICE
In Lawrence, R (On the Application Of) v London Borough of Croydon [2024] EWHC 3061 (Admin) Mr Justice Linden dismissed the defendant’s application to strike out a claim on the basis that it had not been brought in time. The…
“PROFESSIONALISM DEMANDS THAT LAWYERS PICK THEIR BATTLES WISELY”: JUDGE GRANTS EXTENSION AND ORDERS THE LAWYERS TO GO TO LUNCH TOGETHER…
Coming to the end of the year, and with Christmas nearly upon us, all lawyers could benefit from reading the judgment of Chief U.S. District Judge David Proctor in McCullers v. Koch Foods of Ala., LLC in 2024 WL 4907226…
A CLAIM FOR WORKING 24.4 HOURS A DAY – EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR: WHEN DRAFTING SCHEDULES OF DAMAGES ARE LEFT TO THE CLAIMANTS: PROFOUND PROBLEMS FOLLOW
We are returning to the judgment in Samrai & Ors v Kalia [2024] EWHC 3143 (KB). It is interesting to isolate out the parts of the judgment relating to the drafting of the schedules. The claimants’ schedules were found to…
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