APPLYING FOR DISPENSATION FROM COURT FEES: TWO DIFFERENT CASES
I am grateful to my colleague Paul Hughes for sending me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Jenkinson in the case of Stone -v- Allianz Insurance PLC where Paul acted for the defendant. This, and the case of…
RELIEF FROM SANCTIONS: CANDOUR FROM THE APPLICANT AND NO EVIDENCE FROM THE DEFENDANT TO PROVE PREJUDICE
There is a report of a case where relief from sanctions was granted in Anglia Autoflow North America LLC and Another v Anglia Autoflow Ltd [2019] Costs LR 155. One thing that marks this case is the total candour from the…
INSURER NOT LIABLE TO PAY CLAIMANTS’ COSTS: TRAVELERS INSURANCE DECISION OVERTURNED BY THE SUPREME COURT
In the judgment today in Travelers Insurance Company Ltd v XYZ [2019] UKSC 48 the Supreme Court held that the insurer was not liable to pay the costs of those claimants who had proceeded (unknowingly) against uninsured defendants. This is…
CLAIMANT’S LATE ACCEPTANCE OF PART 36 OFFER: UNCERTAINTY OF FUTURE OUTCOME NOT GROUNDS FOR MAKING A DIFFERENT COSTS ORDER
The judgment of Mrs Justice Lambert in Campbell -v- Ministry of Defence [2019] EWHC 2121 (QB) emphasises the difficulties for a claimant who has accepted a Part 36 offer late. The claimant had to bear the usual costs consequences and…
TRAWLING THROUGH THE CPR: FIXED COSTS CONSIDERED BY THE COURT OF APPEAL: COUNSEL’S FEES INCLUDED IN REGIME: CONSTRUING THE CPR AS A WHOLE
I am grateful to barrister Sarah Robson for sending me a copy of the judgment of the Court of Appeal today in Aldred -v- Cham [2019] EWCA Civ 1780. It is one of those occasions where the Court of Appeal…
CONDITIONAL FEE AGREEMENT IS ENFORCEABLE AFTER DEATH: HIGH COURT JUDGMENT TODAY
In Higgins & Co Lawyers Ltd -v- Evans [2019] EWHC 2809 (QB) Mr Justice Pushpinder Saini overturned a decision that a conditional fee agreement was not enforceable after death. THE CASE The deceased had signed a CFA agreement with the…
COURT HAS JURISDICTION TO MAKE AN INTERIM ORDER AS TO COSTS AFTER CLAIMANT HAS ACCEPTED A PART 36 OFFER: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION TODAY
In Global Assets Advisory Services Ltd & Anor v Grandlane Developments Ltd & Ors [2019] EWCA Civ 1764 the Court of Appeal confirmed that the court can make an interim order for costs after a claimant has accepted a Part…
A CRI DE COEUR FOR MORE MONEY WON’T GET YOU AN INTERIM PAYMENT ON ACCOUNT OF COSTS: MASTER EMPHASISES THE NEED FOR HARD EVIDENCE
In RXK v Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2019] EWHC 2751 (QB) Master Cook made some important observations about the quality of evidence needed to obtain an interim order for costs in an ongoing case. (The judgment in X -v-…
QOCS IN “MIXED “CASES: THE COURT OF APPEAL SPEAKS
In the judgment today in Brown v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis & Anor [2019] EWCA Civ 1724 the Court of Appeal considered the issue of QOCS in “mixed cases”. The judgment requires careful reading. Generally speaking all personal…
THE BACK TO BASICS SERIES: A RUNNING ACCOUNT: READ THEM ALL HERE
The “Back to Basics” series, as the title suggests, deals with some of the basic elements of civil procedure. It covers everything from applications and bundles to the taking of witness statements. The titles are often prompted by elements…
COUNSEL’S FEE RECOVERABLE IN A £70,000 CASE STILL SUBJECT TO THE FIXED COSTS PROVISIONS: DECISION TODAY
In Dover v Finsbury Food Group Plc [2019] EWHC B11 (Costs), Master Brown found that counsel’s fees can be recovered in a case that had been placed in the portal that subsequently settled for £70,000. THE CASE The claimant was…
DISTRICT JUDGE SHOULD NOT HAVE “PARTIALLY” RECUSED THEMSELVES: THINGS THAT SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN IN A WITNESS STATEMENT: A VERY INTERESTING ASSESSMENT OF COSTS…
I am grateful to Simon Fisher from DWF for providing me a copy of the judgment in Akers -v- Kirlkland [2019] EWHC 2176 (QB) Mr Justice Waksman discussed, in detail, the circumstances in which a judge should recuse themselves and…
SUMMARY ASSESSMENT AND HOURLY RATES: “SOLICITORS PROVIDING SUCH SKILL AND EXPERTISE ARE ENTITLED TO CHARGE THE MARKET HOURLY RATE FOR THEIR AREA OF PRACTICE”
In Ohpen Operations UK Ltd v Invesco Fund Managers Ltd [2019] EWHC 2504 (TCC) Mrs Justice O’Farrell carried out a summary assessment of costs. She also had something to say in relation to hourly rates. There is a succinct review…
COURT OF APPEAL REFUSES APPEAL AGAINST ORDER FOR INDEMNITY COSTS: PARTIES WHO ARE JOINED TO A SPECULATIVE ENTERPRISE IN LITIGATION SHOULD EVALUATE THEIR POSITION WITH CARE
In Ford & Anor v Bennett & Anor [2019] EWCA Civ 1604 the Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal against a trial judge’s decision to award indemnity costs. The judgment contains a lesson to “additional parties” to litigation. “Parties who…
SOLICITORS WHO ARE REPRESENTED AT COURT TO PROTECT LEGAL PROFESSIONAL PRIVILEGE ISSUES ARE ENTITLED TO THEIR COSTS
One other aspect of the decision in Addlesee & Ors v Dentons Europe LLP [2019] EWCA Civ 1600 that is worth looking at is the appeal in relation to costs. The Court of Appeal rejected the appellants argument that the…
ELECTRONIC WORKING IN THE SENIOR COURTS COSTS OFFICE: USEFUL LINKS
The Electronic Working Pilot Scheme in the Senior Courts Costs Office comes into force on the 7th October. There are some useful links on the working of the sceme. USEFUL LINKS A summary on the Courts and Tribunal Judiciary website …
QUICK REMINDER OF NEW COSTS BUDGETING RULES COMING INTO FORCE TODAY: INCURRED COSTS INCLUDE THE COSTS OF THE CCMC
Part of the 109th update to the Civil Procedure Rules came into force today. A quick reminder that, from today, there is a change in the way that the courts approach the costs of the CCMC itself. INCURRED COSTS…
COURT OF APPEAL TO CONSIDER IMPACT OF TRANSFERRING CASE FROM LEGAL AID TO CFA:
I am grateful to Tom Jenkinson from Bolt Burdon Kemp for letting me know that the Court of Appeal has granted permission to appeal in the case of XDE v North Middlesex University Hospital Trust [2019] EWHC 1482 (QB) XDE…
INTERIM PAYMENTS ON ACCOUNT OF COSTS: A RECENT EXAMPLE AND USEFUL LINKS
“Cashflow is the lifeblood of business”, is a common maxim. This applies in the legal profession as much as anywhere else. Interim payments on account of costs is an important issue for litigators and their clients. This was considered in…
PAYING EXPERT’S FEES: INFORMING AN EXPERT THAT A HEARING IS CANCELLED AND – GETTING STRUCK OFF THE ROLL OF SOLICITORS …
The judgment in the case of Clegg v Solicitors Regulation Authority [2019] EWHC 2408. A solicitor was struck off, in circumstances that could easily have been avoided. It required the simple step of informing an expert that a trial had…
