Costs

Specialist costs lawyers in the South-West have joined forces with barristers to launch an ADR service aimed at costs, while another costs lawyer has launched an automated budget drafting service.

Personal injury law firms that fail to spell out in their retainers the costs clients could be liable for beyond what is recovered from defendants face a wave of litigation following a major High Court ruling.

The Senior Costs Judge has warned lawyers that the guideline hourly rates may not change unless they start providing the group reviewing them with more evidence.

A Commercial Court judge has said that the question of costs “worries me always” and should worry judges in all jurisdictions, particularly where there is a disparity of economic power between the parties.

The guideline hourly rates (GHR) are “barely even a starting point” in high-value litigation conducted by City law firms, a costs judge has ruled in allowing a grade A rate of £750.

A costs judge has cast doubt on whether the working group reviewing the guideline hourly rates will report by the end of the year as hoped. Sir Stephen Stewart is leading the group.

New rules requiring lawyers to update their costs budgets in the wake of “significant developments” in the litigation came into force today with a warning that they should not take any risks.

The High Court has upheld a decision not to order wasted costs against a law firm that failed to pass on a ‘drop hands’ settlement offer to a client who was ultimately found to be fundamentally dishonest.

A High Court judge has told parties making part 36 offers that if they simply used form N242A “much of the difficulty” the scheme has caused litigants over the years would be avoided.

The number of motor insurance claims notified to insurers in the second quarter of 2020 fell by nearly half, but their value leapt by 31%, according to the Association of British Insurers.