COST BITES 231: THE CLAIMANT’S REASONABLE VALUATION OF THE CASE MEANT IT DID NOT COME WITHIN THE PRE-ACTION PROTOCOL (HOWEVER THE FACTS OF THE ACCIDENT ITSELF WOULD NOT HAVE TAKEN IT OUTSIDE THE PROTOCOL)
In Julie Johnson v Choice Support [2025] EWHC 1020 (SCCO) Deputy Costs Judge Erwin-Jones decided that the claimant’s initial valuation of a case made it reasonable to start it outside the Pre-Action Valuation Protocol for Low Value Claims. There is also an…
CLAIMANT ENTITLED TO COSTS TO BE ASSESSED AFTER LATE ACCEPTANCE OF A PART 36 OFFER: EVEN THOUGH FIXED COSTS APPLIED AT THE TIME THE OFFER WAS MADE
I am grateful to barrister Thomas Mason for drawing my attention to the judgment today in Laura Attersley v UK Insurance Limited [2025] EWHC 884 (KB). Mrs Justice Stacey decided that a claimant, who had accepted a Part 36 offer…
FIXED RECOVERABLE COSTS CONFERENCE: 8th NOVEMBER 2024 – READ ALL ABOUT IT…
On the 8th November I am speaking at the Fixed Recoverable Costs Conference in London. The conference covers numerous aspects of fixed recoverable costs. (I am speaking on fixed costs, fatal cases and the costs of attending an inquest). Booking…
PART 36: FIXED COSTS AND THE TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS: DELAY IN ISSUING COSTS PROCEEDINGS MEANT THAT CLAIMANT’S COSTS WERE ASSESSED AT NIL
In Bi -v- Tesco Underwriting Limited HHJ Sephton KC found that the claimant’s delay in issuing costs proceedings meant that the costs were subject to the fixed costs provisions and should be assessed at nil. I am grateful to barrister…
COST BITES 145: AGENCY SHOULD PROVIDE A BREAKDOWN OF FIGURES FOR COST OF A MEDICAL REPORT: “ANY AJUDICATION ON PROPORTIONALITY, IN ALL ITS COMPONENT PARTS, DEMANDS TRANSPARENCY”
I am grateful to barrister James Miller for sending me a copy of the decision of HHJ Saggerson in Amini-Edu -v- Esure Insurance Company Ltd (8th March 2024). A copy of the transcript is available here. ENA AMINU-EDU COSTS JUDGMENT…
CHANGES TO THE FIXED COSTS RULE 1: WHEN CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS MUST BE ALLOCATED TO THE MULTI TRACK
There are a number of significant changes taking place to the fixed costs rules, coming into force on the 6th April 2024. These are introduced by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2024. Here we look at the change to the…
ACCEPTANCE OF PART 36 DOES NOT DISPLACE FIXED COSTS – NOR WERE THERE “EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES”: CLAIMANT COMES TO GRIEF
I am grateful to Simon Fisher, Costs Lawyer, of DWF for sending me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Carter (as he then was) in the case of Bosley -v- Whitecroft, (County Court at Nottingham, 8th November 2023)…
FIXED COSTS: LONDON WEIGHTING (AN EXTRA 12.5%): BUT – WHERE IS LONDON?
The fixed costs provisions provide a “London Weighting” of an additional 12.5%. “London” has a specific meaning as defined in the Practice Direction set out below. CPR 45.3 Additional costs for work in specified areas (‘London weighting’) 45.3.—(1) Where…
FIXED COSTS: ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS FOR “UNREASONABLE BEHAVIOUR”
We are continuing with our bite sized examination of the fixed costs regime by looking at CPR 45.13. This allows the court to reduce, or increase, the fixed costs for “unreasonable behaviour”. The rule appears only to allow this variation…
FIXED COSTS: THE COURT MAY CONSIDER A HIGHER SUM IF A PARTY OR WITNESS IS “VULNERABLE”
The rules make provision allowing the court to award a higher sum for damages when a party, or witness is vulnerable. However there are significant caveats. It must be the vulnerability that has required additional work to be undertaken and the…
FIXED RECOVERABLE COSTS: A POWER TO ORDER GREATER AMOUNTS IN “EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES” AND THE STING IN THE TAIL
Continuing the examination of fixed recoverable costs. CPR 45.9 gives the court power to order sums greater than FRC in “exceptional circumstances”. The applicant’s difficulties are (i) there is no definition of exceptional circumstances (ii) there is a real sting…
TODAY’S THE DAY: KEY POSTS AND ARTICLES ON FIXED COSTS
I suspect that this blog will be writing about fixed costs for some time to come. To mark (I won’t say “celebrate”) the start of the new regime I have done a round up previous posts, useful lectures and webinars…
FIXED RECOVERABLE COSTS EXTENSION LECTURES: KERRY UNDERWOOD ON TOUR
The new rules as to fixed costs are coming soon. Kerry Underwood is undertaking a national tour of day long lectures on the fixed costs provisions. It cannot be stressed enough that the new rules are of significance to all…
THE NEW RULES ON FIXED COSTS: TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS: THEY CANNOT AFFECT CURRENT CASES
I was at a social event on Friday night (but a blogger is never really off duty). During the course of the evening someone told me that they had had recently had a personal injury case where the judge, rather…
INTEPRETERS’ FEES ARE RECOVERABLE IN THE FIXED COSTS REGIME: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION
In Santiago v Motor Insurers’ Bureau [2023] EWCA Civ 838 the Court of Appeal held that the costs of interpreters are recoverable under the fixed costs regime. It is an indictment of the wholly inadequate thought given to the fixed…
COST BITES 88: JUDGE REFUSES DEFENDANT’S APPLICATION FOR NON-PARTY DISCLOSURE AGAINST AN AGENCY SEEKING A BREAKDOWN OF FEES
I am grateful to Ryan O’Mara of Scott Rees & Co for sending me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Jenkinson in Sephton -v- Anchor Hanover Group (County Court at Liverpool, 20th April 2023 – a copy of which…
RULE CHANGES ON THE 1ST OCTOBER 2023: FIXED RECOVERABLE COSTS AND ALL THAT: LOOKING AHEAD – A QUICK GLANCE AT THE PRIMARY SOURCES
The rules introducing the “Intermediate Track” for cases between £25,000 and £100,000 are now published, they come into force on the 1st October 2023. There are links to the source material below. A more detailed guide to the changes will…
FIXED COSTS STILL APPLIED AFTER AN ADJOURNMENT AND TWO ABORTED TRIALS: COVID WAS AN EXCEPTIONAL TIME BUT DID NOT GIVE RISE TO EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES
I am grateful to barrister James Miller for sending me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Lindsey Moan in the case of Osuzuwa -v- Madeira, a copy of which is available here Osuzuwa v Madeira. The judge…
COST BITES 49: ARE THE COSTS OF A MEDICAL AGENCY RECOVERABLE IN THE FIXED COSTS REGIME? DISTRICT JUDGE FINDS THAT THEY ARE
Are the costs of a medical agency recoverable under the fixed costs regime? I am grateful to barrister John Meehan for sending me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Phillips in Wilkinson-Mulvaney -v- UK Insurance Ltd (19th January…
FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH PROTOCOL LEADS TO COSTS OF A MEDICAL REPORT NOT BEING RECOVERED
I was informed recently that permission to appeal was refused in the case of Greyson -v- Fuller. I am grateful to Simon Fisher from DWF for sending me a copy of the decision in Glendining -v- McCarthy,* where DDJ Causton…
FIXED COSTS OUSTED WHEN THE PARTIES AGREE COSTS ARE TO BE THE SUBJECT OF A DETAILED ASSESSMENT: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION TODAY
In the judgment today in Doyle -v- M&D Foundations & Building Services Limited [2022] EWCA CIV 927 the Court of Appeal found that it was possible for parties to contract out of the fixed costs provisions of the protocols. THE…
AN AGREEMENT TO PAY COSTS WAS TO PAY FIXED COSTS ONLY:NOT DISPLACED BY LATER “PART 36” OFFER: DEFENDANT SUCCESSFUL ON APPEAL
I am grateful to Simon Fisher from DWF for sending me a copy of the judgment of HHJ Luba QC, sitting with Costs Judge Rowley, in Soares -v- Wilson (27th May 2022). A copy of which is available Soares v Wilson…
TWO CLAIMANTS – TWO SETS OF COSTS: JUDGMENT ON FIXED COSTS REGIME
In Melloy & Anor v UK Insurance Ltd [2022] EW Misc 4 (CC) HHJ Glen decided that where there are two claimants in a fixed costs case then each claimant is entitled to a separate award of costs under Section…
WHAT FIXED COSTS APPLY AFTER A DEFAULT JUDGMENT SET ASIDE? ISSUE CONSIDERED IN THE COUNTY COURT
I am grateful to Simon Fisher of DWF for sending me a copy of the judgment in Chisnall -v- RSA Northern Ireland Insurance Ltd, a copy of which is available here. It deals with an issue relating to fixed recoverable…
EXCEPTIONS TO THE FIXED COSTS REGIME: ANOTHER EXAMPLE
Yesterday we looked the case of Lloyd 2 Sisters Poultry Ltd (Costs) [2019] EW Misc 18 HHJ in relation to exceptional circumstances and fixed costs. Bailli has another example in the case of Crompton v Meadowcroft (Costs) [2021] EW Misc 20….
EXCEPTIONS TO THE FIXED COSTS REGIME: DEFENDANT’S APPEAL DISALLOWED: JUDGE ENTITLED TO FIND THAT EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES APPLIED
A case, newly arrived on BAILII today relates to whether a District Judge was correct to award costs outside the fixed costs regime. In Lloyd 2 Sisters Poultry Ltd (Costs) [2019] EW Misc 18 HHJ Howells refused a defendant’s appeal…
CLAIMANT WHO FAILED TO USE THE PORTAL WAS UNREASONABLE AND HAS TO FACE THE MUSIC: FIXED COSTS APPLY
I am grateful to Gemma Blackburn from DWF Law for bringing my attention to the judgment of Costs Judge Haworth in Harford v Music Store Professional UK/DV247 Ltd [2021] EWHC B17 (Costs). “I am satisfied that in this case…
YOU CANNOT CLAIM ADDITIONAL COSTS AFTER A SECOND CNF IS SENT IN THE PORTAL PROCESS: DISTRICT JUDGE DECISION
I am grateful to barrister James Miller for sending me a copy of the decision of District Judge Rouin in Thandi -v- Esure Services Ltd (9th June 2021). Thandi v Esure – Approved Judgment – 09.06.21 V1 The claimant…
ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS, FIXED COSTS, A DECEASED CLAIMANT AND THE COURT OF APPEAL
In the judgment today in West v Burton [2021] EWCA Civ 1005 the Court of Appeal held that a case pursued by the estate of a deceased person was not subject to the fixed costs provisions of Section III of…
MEDICAL AGENCY COSTS NOT RECOVERABLE IN FIXED COSTS REGIME: REPORT OF A DECISION
I am grateful to Simon Fisher of DWF for sending me a copy of the decision of Deputy District Judge Akers in Powles -v- Hemmings, a decision on the 23rd April 2021, a copy of which is available here Powles…
EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES OUST FIXED COSTS: £350,000 CASE SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN IN THE PORTAL
I am grateful to barrister Sarah Robson for sending me a copy of the decision of District Judge Jackson in Jackson -v- Barfoot Farms (Canterbury County Court 29th November 2017, a copy of which is available here Jackson v Barfoot). …
DOES A CLAIM FOR A DEFECTIVE PRODUCT FALL WITHIN THE DEFINITION OF PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAIMS? A JUDGMENT AT FIRST INSTANCE
I am grateful to solicitor Gareth Edwards from Mooneerams, solicitors, for providing me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Vernon, sitting at Cardiff 17th March 2021, in the case of X (a Minor) -v- MPL Home & Senza…
COUNSEL’S FEES ARE RECOVERABLE ON A CASE THAT LEAVES THE PORTAL: WHEN A TRAIL OF BREADCRUMBS LEADS NOWHERE
In the judgment today in Finsbury Food Group Plc v Dover [2020] EWHC 2176 (QB) Mrs Justice Lambert rejected the defendant’s arguments that counsel’s fees were not recoverable. “I do not accept that leaving the legal costs of valuing a…
COUNSEL’S FEES NOT RECOVERABLE UNDER FIXED COSTS REGIME WHERE CASE SETTLED DAY BEFORE HEARING
I am grateful to barrister Sarah Robson for sending me a copy of the decision of Master Haworth in Coleman -v- Townsend [SCC Senior Court Costs Office 13th July 2020). A copy of which is available here Final Judgment Coleman…
ALDRED -V- CHAM: PERMISSION TO APPEAL REFUSED BY THE SUPREME COURT
In November last year I reported on the case of Aldred -v- Cham [2019] EWCA Civ 1780, in relation to the recoverability of counsel’s fees in child approval cases. I am grateful to Matthew Hoe from Taylor Rose who informs me…
FIXED COSTS OUSTED BY AGREEMENT: INSURER HAS TO STAND BY THE DEAL IT STRUCK
I am grateful to barrister Andrew Roy for sending me a copy of the decision of District Judge Baldwin (sitting as a Regional Costs Judge) in Turner -v- Cole (16th December 2019). It is a case where the judge held…
BILL OF COSTS STRUCK OUT IN FIXED COSTS CASE: CPR 36.20(11) GIVES RISE TO A “DIFFERENT, SELF-CONTAINED PROCEDURE” FOR DISPUTES AS TO DISBURSEMENTS
In Nema v Kirkland [2019] EWHC B15 (Costs) Master Leonard struck out a claimant’s bill of costs on the grounds that the action was subject to the fixed costs regime and an assessment should never have been sought. The rules…
ARGUMENT THAT FIXED COSTS APPLIED GETS A BUMPY RIDE: PROTOCOL DOES NOT APPLY TO HIGHWAYS CASE
I am grateful to barrister James Bentley for drawing my attention to the judgment in Bateman v Devon County Council (HHJ Mitchell, Plymouth County Court, 2nd September 2019) in which it was decided that fixed costs did not apply to a…
GETTING AWAY FROM THE PROTOCOL: MEANING OF “HARM”, “VULNERABLE ADULT” AND THE REASONABLE VALUATION OF A CLAIM AT MORE THAN £25,000
In Scott v Ministry of Justice [2019] EWHC B13 (Costs) Deputy Master Friston considered whether a case fell outside the fixed costs regime of the Employers Liability Protocol as a result of the identity of an assailant. It transpired that…
FIXED COSTS NOT OVERTURNED BY THE TERMS OF AN AMBIGUOUS PART 36 OFFER: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION TODAY
In the judgment today in Ho v Adelekun [2019] EWCA Civ 1988 the Court of Appeal held that fixed costs still applied to a case where an offer of settlement did not expressly refer to costs being fixed. “…parties who…
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…
DEFECTIVE PART 36 OFFER MEANT CLAIMANT DID NOT OBTAIN PART 36 BENEFITS: WHY CLAIMANTS SHOULD DRAFT THEIR PART 36 OFFERS CAREFULLY
I am grateful to Simon Fisher from DWF costs for sending me a copy of the decision of District Judge Osborne in Flanagan -v- Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance PLC (16th May 2019). A copy of that case is available…
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…
FIXED COSTS: APPLY TO DEFENDANTS AS WELL: SAUCE FOR THE GOOSE AND THE GANDER
I am grateful to John McQuater for sending me a copy of consent order made in the Court of Appeal. The Court allowed an appeal, by consent, that the defendant to certain applications was only allowed fixed costs in an…
CASE FALLING OUTSIDE THE FIXED COSTS REGIME: ASSAULT BY A VULNERABLE ADULT: REPORT OF A FIRST INSTANCE DECISION: FIXED COSTS DO NOT APPLY
I am grateful to solicitor John McQuater for sending me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Hickinbottom in Gibbons -v- Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust (o4/06/2019). It concerns the question of whether an assault by…
FIXED COSTS, CASES OVER £25,000, EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES AND THE BASKET OF CASES
In Ferri v Gill [2019] EWHC 952 (QB)Mr Justice Stewart considered the relevant criteria to be applied when a claimant argued that fixed costs should not be applied to a case that had started in the portal but was settled…
FIXED COSTS WHEN A PERSONAL INJURY ACTION SETTLES FOR MORE THAN £25,000: “NEW RULES” TO BE APPLIED AND FIXED COSTS APPLY
I am grateful to Matthew Hoe from Taylor Rose TTKW for sending me a copy of the judgment of HHJ Sephton QC in Lovatt -v- Lew Diecastings Ltd (County Court in Manchester, 4th December 2018). Lovatt v LEW Diecastings Ltd…
FIXED COSTS DO NOT APPLY WHEN THEY ARE INCONSISTENT WITH THE TERMS OF CONSENT ORDER: JUDGMENT ON APPEAL IN THE COUNTY COURT
NB THIS DECISION WAS OVERTURNED BY THE COURT OF APPEAL IN Ho v Adelekun [2019] EWCA Civ 1988, see the discussion here. I am grateful to Sam Hayman and Tom Jenkinson from Bolt Burdon Kemp for sending me a copy…
COURT STEPS OUTSIDE THE FIXED COSTS REGIME: DEFENDANT’S CONDUCT AMOUNTED TO AN ABUSE
The Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (IPEC) guards its fixed costs regime very jealously. Prior to the decision in Link Up Mitaka Ltd (t/a Thebigword) v Language Empire Ltd & Anor [2018] EWHC 2728 there appears to have only been one previous…
FIXED COSTS DO NOT APPLY TO MONTREAL CONVENTION CLAIMS: DECISION FROM LIVERPOOL
I am grateful to Katie Wheeler from Compass Costs for sending me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Baldwin (Regional Costs Judge) in McKendry -v- British Airways PLC (hearing 16th May 2018 – judgment received today, available here McKendry)….