Category: civil procedure rules

Contracting out of fixed costs in low value personal injury claims – Guildhall Chambers

Posted October 24th, 2022 in accidents, appeals, chambers articles, civil procedure rules, costs, news, part 36 offers, personal injuries by sally

‘In a low value personal injury claim, what is the proper interpretation of the phrase, “such costs to be the subject of detailed assessment if not agreed”? If the parties have agreed such a provision within a consent order compromising the claim, have they effectively ‘contracted out of’ the fixed costs regime that would otherwise be applicable to an ex-Protocol claim? The Court of Appeal considered these questions in this decision.’

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Guildhall Chambers, 13th October 2022

Source: www.guildhallchambers.co.uk

High Court ruling a warning to lawyers who ‘shoehorn’ claimants into class actions – OUT-LAW.com

Posted July 29th, 2022 in case management, civil procedure rules, class actions, damages, government departments, law firms, news, noise, personal injuries, solicitors by sally

‘Lawyers must take note of a court’s refusal to allow multiple claimants with widely differing claims to use a single claim form, a legal expert has warned.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 27th July 2022

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Unreasonable refusal to engage with ADR – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted July 29th, 2022 in civil procedure rules, costs, dispute resolution, indemnities, law firms, negligence, news by sally

‘In Richards & Anor v Speechly Bircham LLP & Anor (Consequential Matters) [2022] EWHC 1512 (Comm) HHJ Russen QC (sitting as a judge of the High Court) considered, inter alia, the most appropriate costs order to be imposed on the unsuccessful defendant law firm for refusing to consider and engage in mediation. He concluded, wrongly in my view, that a failure to mediate did not justify an order for costs on an indemnity basis.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 22nd July 2022

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

What if it is not just my fault? A whistle stop guide to making a contribution claim – Mills & Reeve

Posted July 27th, 2022 in chambers articles, civil procedure rules, compensation, contribution, damages, news, third parties by sally

‘In principle, a claim can be made against one responsible party for all losses suffered, even when other parties were involved (e.g. a claim against solicitors when a barrister may have also provided advice) but what if a claim is made against you and you aren’t the only one to blame?’

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Mills & Reeve, 26th July 2022

Source: www.mills-reeve.com

Court of Appeal rejects defendant’s fixed costs challenge – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted July 12th, 2022 in civil procedure rules, costs, news, part 36 offers by tracey

‘Fixed costs did not apply to a personal injury case which had fallen out of the protocol, the Court of Appeal has asserted. In Doyle v M&D Foundations & Building Services Ltd, Lord Justice Phillips ruled that there was no ambiguity in an agreed court order requiring the defendant to pay costs that were “subject of detailed assessment if not agreed.” ‘

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Law Society's Gazette, 11th July 2022

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Law firm overturns costs bill misconduct ruling – Legal Futures

Posted July 4th, 2022 in appeals, civil procedure rules, costs, law firms, news, professional conduct, solicitors by tracey

‘The rules on misconduct in the CPR do not apply to solicitor/client costs assessments, the High Court has decided in overturning a finding against a Manchester law firm.’

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Legal Futures, 4th July 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

A judge has discretion to grant relief from sanctions without a formal application or any application at all, Court of Appeal reaffirms- Farrar’s Building

Posted May 20th, 2022 in appeals, chambers articles, civil procedure rules, costs, judges, judiciary, legal representation, McKenzie friends, news, sanctions by sally

‘In Park v Hadi and Another [2022] EWCA Civ 581, the Court of Appeal (Holroyde, Stuart-Smith and Warby LJJ), reaffirmed the principle that a judge may, of her own discretion, grant relief from sanctions without formal notice or without any application at all. The Court went on to issue guidance as to how this judicial discretion ought to be exercised, observing that a judge should always act in accordance with the overriding objective and will likely only exercise her discretion to grant relief sparingly.’

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Farrar's Building, 5th May 2022

Source: www.farrarsbuilding.co.uk

Revision and variation of costs budgets on account of significant developments: Consequences of failing to obtain the court’s approval – Guildhall Chambers

Posted May 19th, 2022 in budgets, civil procedure rules, costs, news by sally

‘Once a Costs Management Order (“CMO”) has been made, parties are required to revise costs budgets if significant developments in the litigation warrant such revisions. If the revised costs budgets are not agreed, the Court’s approval of the variations must be sought by the revising party. The requirements for revisions to costs budgets and approval by the Court were in 3PD Paragraph 7.6 and, following amendments in 2020, are now in CPR 3.15A under the heading “Revision and variation of costs budgets on account of significant developments (‘variation costs’)”.’

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Guildhall Chambers, 2nd May 2022

Source: www.guildhallchambers.co.uk

The Limits of Applications to Remove Litigation Friends – Shirazi v Susa [2022] EWHC 477 (Ch) – New Square Chambers

Posted April 7th, 2022 in case management, chambers articles, civil procedure rules, litigation friends, news by sally

‘Jian Jun (JJ) Liew explores the practical implications for applications to remove litigation friends arising from the recent High Court case of Shirazi v Susa [2022] EWHC 477 (Ch).’

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New Square Chambers, 28th March 2022

Source: www.newsquarechambers.co.uk

Judge condemns “clearest breach” of witness statement rules – Legal Futures

Posted March 17th, 2022 in civil procedure rules, news, practice directions, witnesses by tracey

‘A High Court judge has condemned the “clearest case of failure to comply” with a new practice direction on witness statements that he had seen since it came into force last April.’

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Legal Futures, 17th March 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

New rules to tackle offshore crypto crime – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted March 1st, 2022 in civil procedure rules, cryptocurrencies, disclosure, fraud, news, service out of jurisdiction by sally

‘New rules to help the courts trace cryptoassets overseas are being drawn up to deal with the increasing volume of litigation in this area, the master of the rolls revealed yesterday. “In the world of crypto fraud, there are no national barriers and unlawfully obtained cryptoassets can be difficult to trace,” Sir Geoffrey Vos told an audience of lawtech specialists in London.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 25th February 2022

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Vos issues stern warning to chambers and law firms about embargoes – Legal Futures

Posted February 17th, 2022 in barristers, civil procedure rules, contempt of court, judgments, law firms, news, press releases by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has issued a stern warning about breaking embargoes on judgments after a leading chambers accidentally issued a press release a day before the ruling was handed down.’

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Legal Futures, 17th February 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Raising a criminal case in the civil courts – St John’s Chambers

Posted February 11th, 2022 in chambers articles, civil justice, civil procedure rules, criminal justice, disclosure, domestic violence, families, forfeiture, murder, news, police, striking out, unlawful killing by sally

‘Allegations of criminal behaviour are normally tried in the criminal courts. But where a crime is either not prosecuted, or cannot be proved beyond reasonable doubt, the question may end up being tried in a civil court, even where the allegation is as serious as it could be, such as murder. This may cause difficulties where the evidence relied upon has been obtained by a third party, such as a police force whether in England or abroad, and the claimant is not in a position to give a detailed account of the allegation until that evidence is available.’

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St John's Chambers, 1st February 2022

Source: www.stjohnschambers.co.uk

Novel consideration when balancing the imperatives of adjudication and litigation – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted February 7th, 2022 in civil procedure rules, construction industry, dispute resolution, news, stay of proceedings, winding up by tracey

‘The court may order a stay of a claim pursuant to CPR 3.1(2)(f) where the claimant has previously been ordered to pay the defendant sums in satisfaction of an adjudicator’s decision and the claimant has not done so. That power is exercised, in part, with the “pay now argue later” ethos of the Construction Act 1996 in mind. The key decisions to date (which I discuss below) balance a party’s rights of access to the court against those broader policy objectives. This post looks at a case in which the TCC applied and expanded the case law in this area, RHP Merchants and Construction Ltd v Treforest Property Co Ltd.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 2nd February 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Case Comment: Lloyd v Google LLC [2021] UKSC 50 – UKSC Blog

Posted February 2nd, 2022 in appeals, civil procedure rules, class actions, compensation, damages, data protection, internet, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘In this post, Kenny Henderson and Alex Askew of CMS comment on the Supreme Court’s decision in Lloyd v Google LLC [2021] UKSC 50, which concerned whether a representative data protection action seeking damages for loss of control of personal data could be brought on behalf of large numbers of unidentifiable class members.’

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UKSC Blog, 31st January 2022

Source: ukscblog.com

Civil Justice Council calls for improved procedure for claims under £500 – Courts and tribunals Judiciary

Posted January 31st, 2022 in civil justice, civil procedure rules, news, small claims by tracey

‘The Civil Justice Council has published its final report on the resolution of small claims (PDF, opens in a new tab), following an interim report published in June 2021.’

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Courts and tribunals Judiciary, 28th January 2022

Source: www.judiciary.uk

Class actions in England and Wales – OUT-LAW.com

Posted January 10th, 2022 in civil procedure rules, class actions, competition, news by tracey

‘There has been a growing impetus in recent years to enable individuals in the UK to come together to bring the same or similar claims against those they believe are responsible for wrongdoing. These claims are commonly known as “class actions”, a term particularly popular in US litigation, though they are also often referred to as “group actions” or “collective actions” too. However, in fact, the various terms describe a range of different procedures. In this guide, which focuses on the position in England and Wales, we use the overarching phrase “mass actions”.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 7th January 2022

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

The appearance of a substantial defence in possession claims, and property guardians and possession – Nearly Legal

Posted December 14th, 2021 in civil procedure rules, estoppel, landlord & tenant, licensing, news, repossession by tracey

‘Global 100 Ltd v Laleva (2021) EWCA Civ 1835. There is a hell of a lot packed into one appeal here, so I’ll try to be brief. This was Global 100’s appeal of a first instance appeal (our note here) in which HHJ Luba QC had held that the first instance District Judge had been wrong to decide the possession claim against property guardians and make a possession order at first hearing, as there was a defence which appeared to be substantial and required further evidence and hearing.’

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Nearly Legal, 6th December 2021

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Judges and lawyers call for curbs on misuse of SLAPPs – Legal Futures

Posted November 30th, 2021 in abuse of process, civil procedure rules, costs, freedom of expression, media, news, public interest by tracey

‘Senior judges and lawyers on a panel chaired by former Supreme Court president Lord Neuberger have called for legal reforms to curb “strategic lawsuits against public participation” (SLAPPs).’

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Legal Futures, 30th November 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

News focus: Where next for mass claims? – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 15th, 2021 in appeals, civil procedure rules, class actions, compensation, data protection, internet, news, Supreme Court, telecommunications by tracey

‘The Supreme Court’s ruling in Lloyd, blocking a multi-billion-pound claim against Google, exposes the lack of legislation providing redress in mass claims. But CPR 19.6 could offer a way forward.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 15th November 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk