COST BITES 323: HOURLY RATES: THIS CASE DOES NOT FALL INTO LONDON BAND 1: IT CERTAINLY DOES NOT JUSTIFY FEES ABOVE THAT RATE…
We are returning to the issue of hourly rates. In this case the receiving party sought hourly rates that were above the London 1 band. The judge held that the case did not fall within that band and certainly did…
COST BITES 321: THE GUIDELINE HOURLY RATES ARE NOT “SOMEWHAT OUT OF DATE”
The previous post on the updating of the Guideline Hourly rates leads us to this next case. It poses the question – are the rates “somewhat out of date”. As we shall see the judge gives a clear answer. (There…
NEW YEAR: NEW GUIDELINE HOURLY RATES: SEE THE DETAILS HERE: EFFECTIVE FROM YESTERDAY
The new Guideline hourly rates were published yesterday. They take effect from 1st January 2026 (for anyone working on that day…). They have been updated using service producer price inflation (SPPI). THE INCREASES The increases are 2.28%, using the…
COST BITES 280: THE PERILS OF INCLUDING A VAT IN A BILL BY MISTAKE: THE COURT WOULD NOT DEPART FROM THE GUIDELINE RATES: NEVERTHELESS £202,000 ALLOWED ON ASSESSMENT FOR A ONE DAY APPEAL
We are looking at a case where the judge summarily assessed costs with no input from the paying party. The receiving party had made a mistake by claiming VAT (something only appreciated when the judge raised the question). There was…
COST BITES 278: HOURLY RATES OF £685(GRADE A) AND £420 (GRADE C) ALLOWED: A SUMMARY ASSESSMENT IN ACTION
One of the aims of this series is to look at how costs awards are being made in practice. What is happening “on the ground” is important, if not essential, knowledge for working litigators. Here we look at a summary…
COST BITES 264: WHEN SHOULD A CASE BE REFERRED TO DETAILED AS OPPOSED TO SUMMARY ASSESSMENT? PERHAPS WHEN THE SOLICITORS ARE SEEKING £1,345.50 AN HOUR…
It is rare to see costs issues, initially suitable for summary assessment, referred for detailed assessment. We have such a case here. The judge decided that the issues, and in particular the hourly rate for solicitors sought by the receiving…
COST BITES 259: COSTS FOLLOWING AN APPEAL : SHOULD COSTS BE ON THE INDEMNITY BASIS? WAS THIS A “HEAVY” CASE? SUMMARY ASSESSMENT IN ACTION
It is always interesting to look at the awards that are actually made following an assessment of costs. Whilst each case is fact specific it is possible for litigators to pick up important points. Here we have a consideration of…
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…
THE GUIDELINE HOURLY RATES: SEE THEM HERE: UPDATED FOR 2026 RATES
The Guideline Hourly Rates changed on 1st January 2026. These are set out below. The 2025 and 2024 rates can be found underneath. Guideline hourly rates 2026 (with previous year’s rates in brackets) Grade Fee Earner London 1 London 2…
COST BITES 126: THE SUMMARY ASSESSMENT OF COSTS: THE IMPACT OF HOME WORKING: CAN THE HOURLY RATES BE UPRATED ON THE BASIS OF WHERE THE FEE EARNER LIVES (AND WORKS)
There are several interesting aspects to the judgment of HHJ Matthews (sitting as a High Court Judge) in Otto & Ors v Inner Mongolia Happy Lamb Catering Management Company Ltd & Ors [2023] EWHC 3151 (Ch). In particular the consideration…
NEW YEAR NEW HOURLY RATES: INDEXED LINK UPLIFT OF RATES FROM 1st JANUARY 2024: SEE THEM HERE
The Master of the Rolls has accepted the Civil Justice Council recommendations in relation to the increase of hourly rates. The rates will be increased from 1st January 2024 in accordance with the Services Producer Price Index. They will then…
COST BITES 113: LOOKING AT DETAILED ASSESSMENTS (2): HOURLY RATES: THE APPROPRIATE AMOUNT AND THE IMPACT OF COMPLEXITY
As part of the series looking closely at the judgment of Costs Judge Leonard in Allseas Group SA, R (On the Application Of) v Sultana [2023] EWHC 2731 (SCCO). The judgment also contains a consideration of the factors affecting the assessment…
COST BITES 102: NOPE, YOU’RE NOT GETTING £870 AN HOUR: CREDIT CARD RATES ARE REDUCED
In Walter Hugh Merricks CBE v Mastercard Incorporated and Others [2023] CAT 53 the Competition Appeal Tribunal held that the hourly rates charged by both sides were too high to be recovered inter partes. The Guideline rates still provide a guide…
COST BITES 79: JUDGE AWARDS GUIDELINE RATES EVEN IN HEAVY COMMERCIAL CASE
In Manek & Ors v 360 One WAM Ltd & Ors (Re Consequentials) [2023] EWHC 985 (Comm) Simon Rainey KC (sitting as a Judge of the High Court) declined to award rates that were higher than the Guideline Rates in…
COST BITES 73: APPEAL ON HOURLY RATES DID NOT GO AS THE APPELLANT PLANNED: THE GUIDELINE HOURLY RATES AND DETAILED ASSESSMENT
In Harlow District Council v Powerrapid Limited (Rev1) [2023] EWHC 586 (KB) Mr Justice Choudhury, sitting with Costs Judge Rowley as an assessor, rejected an appeal about the hourly rates allowed by the costs judge. There are important passages about…
COST BITES 10: COURT OF APPEAL UNHAPPY AT £730,000 BILL FOR ONE DAY APPEAL: HOURLY RATES ABOVE GUIDELINES HAVE TO BE JUSTIFIED, COUNSEL’S FEES MUST BE REASONABLE AND PROPORTIONATE
In Athena Capital Fund SICAV-FIS SCA & Ors v Secretariat of State for the Holy See (Costs) [2022] EWCA Civ 1061 the Court of Appeal were concerned about the level of costs being claimed in a one day appeal. The…
COST BITES 8: CENTRAL LONDON HOURLY RATES: THE RATE DEPENDS ON THE LITIGATION NOT THE LITIGATOR
In Brake & Anor v Guy & Ors [2022] EWHC 1911 (Ch) HHJ Paul Matthews (sitting as a High Court Judge). Considered the appropriate hourly rate to be applied on an application. Although costs were being assessed on an indemnity…
A BIT MORE ABOUT HOURLY RATES: TWO NATIONS?
This morning we looked at the case of EVX v Smith [2022] EWHC 1607 (SCCO), a case about hourly rates. The costs judge making an observation that £315 – £320 an hour was the appropriate rate for a Grade A fee…
HOURLY RATES AGREED WITH LITIGATION FRIEND ARE SUBJECT TO REVIEW: THE APPROPRIATE PROCEDURE WHEN A SHORTFALL IN RECOVERABLE COSTS IS SOUGHT FROM A CLAIMANT
In EVX v Smith [2022] EWHC 1607 (SCCO) Costs Judge Brown held that the hourly rates charged by a solicitor to their own client are subject to review when the court is considering the amount that the claimant should pay…
SUMMARY ASSESSMENT OF COSTS: HOURLY RATE TOO HIGH AND LAWYERS SHOULD LEARN TO DELEGATE
In Rushbrooke UK Ltd v 4 Designs Concept Ltd [2022] EWHC 1416 (Ch) HHJ Paul Matthews (sitting as a Judge of the High Court) considered the costs to be paid to a successful respondent. The judge did not allow the…
IF YOU WANT HOURLY RATES HIGHER THAN THE GUIDELINE FIGURES YOU HAVE TO PROVIDE “A CLEAR AND COMPELLING JUSTIFICATION”: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION TODAY
In Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd & Ors v LG Display Co. Ltd & Anor (Costs) [2022] EWCA Civ 466 the Court of Appeal sent out a clear message that if a party wants hourly rates outside the guideline rates then…
PERSONAL INJURY CASE SHOULD HAVE BEEN DEALT WITH BY A GRADE C FEE EARNER: SENIOR COSTS OFFICE DECISION
In TRX v Southampton Football Club Ltd [2022] EWHC B7 (Costs) Master Brown held that a low value personal injury case, arising from allegations of abuse, should be dealt with by a Grade C fee earner. This not authority for…
“DIVIDING THE BILL” WHEN TWO MATTERS PROCEEDED TOGETHER; THE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION NEEDED ON COUNSEL’S FEE NOTES & HOURLY RATES: A LOT IN ONE CASE
In R v Barts Health NHS Trust [2022] EWHC B3 (Costs) Costs Judge Rowley considered a number of interesting issues relating to the problem of apportioning costs where two actions had been run alongside each other. There are interesting observations…
GUIDELINE HOURLY RATES: WORKING GROUP REPORT NOW PUBLISHED: READ THE REPORT AND RESPOND TO THE CONSULTATION
The Civil Justice Council Working Group Report of Guideline Hourly Rates has been published and is available here . THE REPORT The guideline hourly rates were last increased in 2010. A series of reports since that time have led to…
HOURLY RATES ALLOWED SHOULD BE INCREASED, AT LEAST, BY INFLATION: APPEAL AGAINST SUMMARY ASSESSMENT OF COSTS ALLOWED.
I am grateful to Sean Linley for drawing my attention to the judgment of HHJ Hodge QC in Cohen v Fine & Ors [2020] EWHC 3278 (Ch).That judgment has some interesting things to say in relation to current hourly rates…
GUIDELINE HOURLY RATES CONSIDERED IN COURT OF PROTECTION: INFLATION CAN BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT ON ASSESSMENT
In PLK & Ors (Court of Protection : Costs) [2020] EWHC B28 (Costs) Master Whalan considered the appropriate hourly rate for Deputies in Court of Protection matters. (I am grateful to Carter Burnett, Costs Consultants, for bringing my attention to…
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…
HOURLY RATES AND COMPLEX CASES: MASTER MAY HAVE APPLIED THE WRONG TEST BUT CAME TO THE RIGHT RESULT
In JXA v Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 1747 (QB) Mr Justice Goss rejected an appeal in relation to hourly rates of the claimant’s solicitor in a high value clinical negligence case. THE CASE The claimant had been…
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