COST BITES : BOTH PARTIES MADE “PART 36 OFFERS”: BOTH WERE INEFFECTIVE (AND THE MASTER WOULD NOT HAVE IMPOSED THE USUAL CONSEQUENCES EVEN IF THEY WERE VALID…)
Here we have a case where both parties made Part 36 offers. The court held that the offers were ineffective. One because the offeror had not beaten their offer on a true “like-for-like” comparison. The other offer was held not…
COST BITES 391: TOO MUCH CORRESPONDENCE, GRADE C RATES NOT INCREASED AND “SO CALLED” SKELETON ARGUMENTS, WHICH REPEAT THE CONTENTS OF OVER-LENGTHY WITNESS STATEMENTS
There are some interesting observations in the short judgment on costs in this case. There was too much correspondence, “witness statements” were in reality skeleton arguments, with the contents then repeated in skeleton arguments. Furthermore a “good” Grade C is…
COST BITES 391: COURT OF APPEAL UPHOLDS DECISION THAT SOLICITOR’S BILL SHOULD BE ASSESSED AT “NIL”: THERE IS NO “RESTITUTIONARY” RIGHT TO DAMAGES WHERE THE CFA ITSELF MADE EXPRESS PROVISIONS FOR THESE CIRCUMSTANCES
I wrote about this case in August 2025 “Here we have a case that could well bring tears to the eyes of any litigator who works on a conditional fee basis. For the second time, on appeal, the claimant solicitor’s…
COST BITES 390: THE COURT OF APPEAL, “LATE” WITNESS STATEMENTS, THE COPPERS AND THE COSTS
We looked earlier at the Court of Appeal decision yesterday in relation to relief from sanctions. Here we look at the judgment in relation to the costs of the hearing below and of the appeal itself. As we shall see…
COST BITES 389: THE SRA IS LIABLE TO PAY THE COSTS OF AN APPEAL WHERE IT WAS THE ORIGINAL APPELLANT ITS POSITION IS “MORE AKIN TO THAT OF A NORMAL LITIGANT”
Here we consider an issue that has some relevance to the profession as a whole. Should the SRA be liable to pay the costs of an appeal from the SDT? In this case the SRA was the instigator of the…
WEBINARS AVAILABLE ON DEMAND: WITNESS STATEMENTS; MAZUR; INFORMING THE CLIENT ABOUT THE COSTS OF LITIGATION AND PART 36: A HEADY BREW TO LIGHTEN UP ANY LITIGATOR’S DAY…
Four webinars are now available “on demand” from Civil Litigation Brief: PD57AC; Mazur in the Court of Appeal; Informing the Client about the Costs of Litigation; Part 36 recent developments. THE COSTS (The costs are £75.00 plus VAT if you…
A CLAIMANT’S PART 36 OFFER THAT GAVE A 9% DISCOUNT WAS “SOBER AND REALISTIC”: IT WAS NOT UNJUST FOR THE DEFENDANT TO FACE THE NORMAL CONSEQUENCES OF FAILING TO BEAT IT
Here we have another case where the court considered an argument that it was “unjust” for an unsuccessful defendant to face the normal Part 36 consequences when they had failed to beat a claimant’s Part 36 offer. This judgment shows…
COST BITES 388: A COMPANY CANNOT CLAIM ITS OWN EMPLOYEE’S TIME AS LEGAL COSTS WHEN IT WAS REPRESENTED ON AN APPEAL
Here we have a reiteration of a long established principle as to costs. A company can only recover legal costs on an assessment, not the costs of being a litigant. Here the appellant sought to recover both. The Costs Judge…
COST BITES 387: THERE IS NO PRESUMPTION THAT THERE MUST BE A DETAILED ASSESSMENT WHERE A CASE LASTS MORE THAN ONE DAY: JUDGE SUMMARILY ASSESSES COSTS AFTER A THREE DAY HEARING
Here we have a case where there was an argument whether there should be a summary or detailed assessment. The judge made it clear that there is no presumption against summary assessment simply because a hearing lasted more than one…
COST BITES 386: THREATS TO REPORT THE DEFENDANTS’ SOLICITORS TO THE SRA WAS ONE OF THE REASONS THE CLAIMANT HAD TO PAY COSTS ON AN INDEMNITY BASIS: WEAPONISERS BEWARE
This case is another warning to those who are thinking about issuing committal proceedings on a “tactical” basis. The judge decided that the claimant’s conduct in the bringing of committal proceedings in this matter should lead to their paying costs…
COST BITES 385: THE COURTS SHOULD BE WARY OF DECIDING PRELIMINARY APPLICATIONS AND ISSUES ON A PROVISIONAL ASSESSMENT: THIS COULD UNDERMINE THE WHOLE PURPOSE OF THE REGIME
We are looking at an interesting decision in relation to the court being asked to determine preliminary issues in the provisional assessment process. The judge held that the courts have jurisdiction to determine preliminary applications and issues however it should…
COST BITES 384: THE LOSER OF AN APPLICATION USUALLY PAYS AND THERE HAS TO BE A GOOD REASON IF THEY DON’T: APPEAL COURT OVERTURNS A DECISION TO THE CONTRARY
Here we have an unusual case where, on appeal, a costs decision in favour of a defendant was overturned on the basis that that there was no good reason not to apply the normal principle that “the loser pays”. “There…
COST BITES 383: WHO SHOULD PAY THE COSTS FOLLOWING “MIXED” SUCCESS AT A SUMMARY JUDGMENT APPLICATION? WHAT IS A FAIR AND REASONABLE AMOUNT? (SOMETHING ABOUT APPROPRIATE DELEGATION AND HOURLY RATES TOO…)
This judgment considers issues relating to the liability of costs, reasons why “mixed” success should lead to a reduction and the appropriate quantum for costs on a summary assessment. There are also interesting issues here in relation to hourly rates…
OPENING LINES OF JUDGMENTS: “THE MOST LITIGATED “FAMILY” DISPUTE IN LEGAL HISTORY (MAYBE…)
The opening lines of judgments sometimes disclose an epic saga of litigation. This is certainly the case here. A case that may well replace Jarndyce -v- Jarndyce as the classic example of lengthy (and presumably expensive) litigation – with quite a…
COST BITES 382: SHOULD THE COURT DEPART FROM THE FIXED COSTS REGIME? : “THIS HAS BECOME A COMPLEX APPLICATION…”
One of the (many) things that litigators need to keep an eye on in years to come is the circumstances in which the courts depart from fixed costs regimes. If this happens too readily then the purpose of the regime…
COST (MEGA) BITES 382: THE AMOUNT WAS “STAGGERING” BUT THE COURT CANNOT INTERFERE WITH AN ARBITRATOR’S AWARD OF $26 MILLION FOR COSTS
Anyone going through a detailed assessment of costs can look ruefully at this judgment about costs in arbitration proceedings. The arbitrator awarded $26 million in costs based on very scant information. As it turns out the courts had no power…
COST BITES 381: DOES THE COURT HAVE POWER TO ORDER SECURITY FOR COSTS IN RELATION TO AN ASSESSMENT? SOME INTERESTING COMMENTS ABOUT THE COSTS OF ASSESSMENT ALONG THE WAY…
This case is interesting for several reasons. Firstly the judge considers whether the court has power to order security for costs in a detailed assessment. Secondly there are some interesting observations about the costs incurred in the assessment process (and…
THE COSTS LIABILITY OF A REPRESENTATIVE OF A DECEASED PERSON UNDER CPR 19.12 CONSIDERED: THE SITUATION IS NOT THE SAME AS AN ADMINISTRATOR OR EXECUTOR
This case considers the costs liability of a person appointed under CPR 19.12 to represent a deceased person. The court made it clear that such an appointment is not directly analogous to that of an administrator or executor. Different costs…
COST BITES 380: “ALWAYS CHOOSE A COSTS LAWYER FOR EXPERT LEGAL COSTS ADVICE”: GUIDANCE FROM THE SRA
The Solicitors Regulation Authority have sent out a short Note on selecting professional help to assess legal costs. It is worth reading. Indeed it may be regarded as essential reading. “Using an unregulated costs adviser can expose you and your…
COST BITES 379: HIGH COURT JUDGE UPHOLDS DECISION THAT INTERIM BILLS WERE STATUTE BILLS AND THAT THE CLAIMANT COULD NOT SEEK ASSESSMENT OUT OF TIME
This decision is important for two reasons. Firstly it upholds the original judgment that the interim bills in this case were statute bills and that there were no special circumstances to allow assessment out of time. Secondly it highlights the…
COST BITES 378 : REFORM OF THE SOLICITORS ACT 1974, PART III: READ THE CONSULATION PAPER: A CHANCE TO COMMENT ON THE PROVISIONS THAT ARE “A GREAT MYSTERY” TO MANY SOLICITORS (NOT MY WORDS…)
There is no shortage of posts about solicitor-client costs on this site (see the links section below). The Civil Justice Council have issued a Consultation Paper on reform of Part III of the Solicitors Act. “Whilst it might be expected…
COST (MEGA) BITES 378: WHO WOULD SPEND £15,751,483 PLUS VAT TO RECOVER DAMAGES OF £16.91? (WELCOME TO THE SURREAL WORLD OF “COLLECTIVE PROCEEDINGS”: THE CAT ARE CONCERNED THAT LITIGATION IS BEING BROUGHT FOR THE LAWYERS & FUNDERS RATHER THAN CONSUMERS
There are many who have doubts, often profound doubts, about the utility of class actions where each of the recipients will recover minute sums. Those doubters will have their views compounded by the judgment in this case. The likely damages…
DEDUCTING COSTS FROM THE CLIENT’S DAMAGES: THE LAW AND PRACTICE: WEBINAR 24th APRIL 2026
Recent cases have shown that the issues relating to to deducting costs from the client’s damages remain controversial and highly contested. This webinar examines the regulatory framework and case law governing the deduction of legal costs from a client’s damages…
EXPERT WATCH 43: WHEN AN EXPERT DOESN’T HAVE “REAL WORLD” EXPERIENCE OF THE MATTERS IN THEIR REPORT – THEY START ON THE BACK FOOT…
The previous post on costs and mediation led to me to look at the initial judgment on liability. This is because the court considered an argument that the situation with the claimant’s expert was so poor as to warrant indemnity…
COSTS BITES 377: SHOULD A SUCCESSFUL DEFENDANT’S REFUSAL TO MEDIATE LEAD TO IT LOSING ITS RIGHT TO RECOVER COSTS?
Here we have a case where a claimant who lost a case at trial (and turned down an offer of £200,000) argued that there should be no order for costs. That argument did not take it very far… “The Defendant’s…
ACCEPTANCE OF A PART 36 OFFER WHILST AN APPLICATION TO REALLOCATE THE CASE FROM BAND 2 TO BAND 1 IS PENDING: CAN THE COURT STILL PROCEED TO REALLOCATE?
I am grateful to my colleague Steven Turner for sending me a copy of this interesting decision which relates to Part 36, fixed costs and applications to “re-band” a case. The case may be unusual in that an application for…
PRACTICE NOTE FROM THE CHANCELLOR OF THE HIGH COURT: NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR SUMMARY ASSESSMENT FROM 14th APRIL 2026 (UPDATED)
Last month I wrote about the Practice Note in relation to Summary Assessments that take place in the Rolls Building from the 14th April 2026. That Practice Note was superseded by a further Practice Note issued yesterday. (In other words…
MAZUR MATTERS 59: REMEMBER THAT MOST OF THIS AROSE BECAUSE SOMEONE DIDN’T KNOW (OR APPLY) THE CORRECT RULES AS TO FIXED COSTS
One underlying irony about the Mazur debacle is that most of the problems arise because of a mistake as to costs. The Circuit Judge ordered Ms. Mazur and Mr Stuart £10,653 when, in fact, the costs should only have been £636.00. …
COST BITES 376: THE NEED TO KEEP THE CLIENT INFORMED OF COSTS BEING INCURRED: THE SOLICITOR SHOULD HAVE INFORMED THE CLIENT THAT COSTS OF US $35,343,213.96 WERE BEING INCURRED
This judgment highlights the need for a solicitor to keep the client fully informed of the costs incurred. The judge observed that the SRA Code of Conduct imposed a positive duty on a solicitor to give the client the best…
BACK TO BASICS MONDAY: TIME LIMITS FOR CHALLENGING SOLICITORS’ BILLS
There have been a large number of posts recently relating to solicitor and own costs assessments. Many of these cases have related to the issue of whether bills delivered were “statute” bills “interim statute bills” or simply interim bills. The…
WASTED COSTS ORDER MADE AGAINST SOLICITORS WHEN THEY WERE MISTAKEN AS TO WHO THEY WERE INSTRUCTED BY: THE DEFENDANT ESTABLISHES CAUSATION
In this case a wasted costs order was made against a firm of solicitors for breach of warranty of authority. The stated to the defendant and the court, and believed, that they were instructed by the claimant’s insurers when, in…
COST BITES 375 : WHY THESE INTERIM BILLS WERE NOT STATUTORY BILLS: “VERY CLEAR EVIDENCE WOULD BE NEEDED TO ESTABLISH THAT AN INVOICE WHICH, ON ITS FACE, IS EXPRESSLY NOT FINAL HAS NONETHELESS BEEN AGREED TO BE FINAL”
Last month we looked at a case where a series of interim bills were found to be statutory bills. Today we look at a case where the court came to the opposite conclusion. This has important practical consequences in that…
MAZUR IN THE COURT OF APPEAL: WEBINAR WITH CHECKLISTS: NOW AVAILABLE “ON DEMAND”
If you could not attend the webinar on the practical implications of the Court of Appeal decision in Mazur yesterday it is now available “on demand”. The Mazur decision confirms that authorised individuals may delegate tasks within the conduct of…
COST BITES 374: IF THIS WAS A CBA THE UNILATERAL ABILITY TO VARY RATES WOULD HAVE LED TO IT BEING SET ASIDE ON THE GROUNDS IT WAS UNREASONABLE
We are continuing with our examination of a case we looked at yesterday. The court found that the agreement between the parties was not a Contentious Business Agreement. However the judge also stated that it it had been a CBA…
COST BITES 373: THIS ENGAGEMENT LETTER WAS NOT A CONTENTIOUS BUSINESS AGREEMENT: “CERTAINTY” IS AN ESSENTIAL INGREDIENT
In this case the court considered whether a solicitor’s letter of engagement amounted to the creation of a Contentious Business Agreement. It was held that there was too much uncertainty for this to be a CBA. The failure to set…
COST BITES 372: BILL REDUCED FROM £2.6 MILLION TO £750,000: WHY SUMMARY ASSESSMENTS CAN MATTER (A LOT…)
For many years now we have been looking in detail at summary assessments. On occasion the sums involved, and the reductions that take place, can be considerable. We have such a case here. An initial schedule of £2.6 million (excluding…
COST BITES 371: A SUMMARY ASSESSMENT IN ACTION: THE RESPONDENT’S SENSIBLE APPROACH SAVED TIME BUT INVESTIGATION WAS NEEDED
We are continuing with the practice of looking at what actually happens in summary assessments. These are rarely looked at in detail elsewhere. This case is also interesting in that, although the respondents adopted a “neutral” approach to the application…
COST BITES 370: THE OTHER PART OF THE CAR PARKING SAGA: COURT AWARDS COSTS AGAINST THE CLAIMANT IN A SMALL CLAIMS TRACK CASE
Here we return to the case considered in the previous post. The judge refused to allow the claimant’s representative a right of audience in a Small Claims Track case. This was a Small Claims Track case, however the judge then…
MAXIMISING RECOVERY IN INTER PARTIES COSTS: THE ROLE OF THE FEE EARNER: WEBINAR 9th APRIL 2026: 12.00 pm: TRYING TO MAKE SURE YOU OBTAIN MAXIMUM RECOVERY ON ASSESSMENT
This webinar examines the crucial role of the fee earner in maximising the recovery of legal costs. Many litigators have limited experience of detailed assessments and may be unaware of the challenges that can arise during the process. The session…
COST BITES 369: SOMETIMES LITIGATION IS MORE ART THAN SCIENCE: “BANKSY” ENTITLED TO INDEMNITY COSTS AFTER ACTION DISCONTINUED, BUT NOT A NON-PARTY COSTS ORDER
Here we have a case where the claimant discontinued. Discontinuance made the claimant liable to pay costs. However in this case it was ordered to pay costs on the indemnity basis (from a key date). The judge then considered the…
IF YOU MISSED THE WEBINAR ON INFORMING THE CLIENT ABOUT THE COSTS OF LITIGATION IT IS NOW AVAILABLE “ON DEMAND”
The webinar on informing the client about the costs of litigation is now available “on demand” and details can be found here. THE REASONS FOR THE WEBINAR Recent Legal Ombudsman decisions show that solicitors’ firms are being ordered…
COST BITES 368: THERE WERE NO “SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCE” WHICH MEANT THE SOLICITOR’S BILL SHOULD BE ASSESSED OUT OF TIME: THERE IS NOTHING THAT CALLS FOR AN EXPLANATION
We are returning to the previous case to look at the second half of the Cost Judge’s decision. Having determined that the bills were statute bills the judge then considered whether there were “special circumstances” which would entitle the claimant…
COST BITES 367: THE SOLICITOR’S TERMS OF BUSINESS MEANT THAT BILLS RENDERED WERE EACH FINAL BILLS: THE TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT WERE “UNEQUIVOCALLY CLEAR”
The issue of whether “interim” bills rendered by solicitors were “statute” bills or “Chamberlain” bills is one that can have profound practical importance. If they are not statute bills then they may be open to a Solicitors Act assessment. If…
COST BITES 364: THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE CPR IS “PAY AS YOU GO”: JUDGE SUMMARILY ASSESSES COSTS OF SUMMARY JUDGMENT ISSUES AT £109,576 PLUS VAT
Here we are returning to a case we looked at yesterday. The judge granted the claimant summary judgment on certain issues. The defendants elected not to attend the application. The defendants were ordered to pay costs on the indemnity basis. …
THE IMPORTANCE OF SOLICITORS’ ESTIMATES IN RELATION TO COSTS: SOME EXAMPLES WHERE PROBLEMS HAVE OCCURRED (WITH A FINAL PLUG FOR THE WEBINAR ON THE 19th MARCH)
The recent short series on this site about the Ombudsman and estimates of costs highlighted the issues that can occur when there are disputes over costs and the original figures given by the solicitor. However the Ombudsman is not the…
PRACTICE NOTE FROM THE CHANCELLOR OF THE HIGH COURT: NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR SUMMARY ASSESSMENT FROM 14th APRIL 2026: COSTS SCHEDULES SHOULD BE FILED USING EXCEL SPREADSHEETS
NB THIS PRACTICE NOTE WAS REPLACED ON THE 14th APRIL – BEFORE IT WAS BROUGHT INTO FORCE – IT WAS REPLACED WITH A FURTHER NOTE, SEE THE BLOG POST HERE The Chancellor of the High Court has issued a Practice…
DECISION TODAY IN RELATION TO RECOVERABILITY AND ASSESSMENT OF FEES CHARGED BY MEDICAL REPORTING ORGANISATIONS: ANOTHER ROUND IN A VERY LONG WAR…
We are looking at another round in the ongoing “costs of medical reporting organisations” series of battles. As the judge anticipated this may well not be the last round. Here I provide a brief summary of the conclusions. A more…
COST BITES 363: A SUMMARY ASSESSMENT OF A HEAVY COMMERCIAL APPLICATION TO STRIKE OUT IN PRACTICE: £87,698 REDUCED TO £70,158.64 (BUT NOT TO £39,460): “COMPARATIVE SPEND CAN BE A CROSS-CHECK; IT IS NOT DETERMINATIVE”
We are continuing with the practice of looking at summary assessments. These receive relatively little attention, however they can play a large part in the economics of litigation. Here we see some interesting arguments in relation to hourly rates, the…
COSTS INFORMATION AND THE OMBUDSMAN 7: HEADING OFF PROBLEMS AT THE OUTSET: (WEBINAR THIS THURSDAY 19th MARCH 2026 – WITH LOTS OF CHECKLISTS)
This short series has aimed to highlight the ongoing difficulties that litigators, in particular, can have with giving compliant costs information to their clients. In looking at this topic it is clear that there are numerous cases where clients have…
COSTS INFORMATION AND THE OMBUDSMAN 6: YOU SAID IT WOULD COST £2,500 – £3,000 – I’VE PAID YOU £16,000: THE IMPORTANCE OF GIVING ESTIMATES AS TO DISBURSEMENTS
This decision emphasises the fact that when giving costs estimates the solicitor should also do their best to estimate the costs of disbursements in addition to their own costs. Here the solicitor mentioned that there would be additional costs if…
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