Jack Andrew Swift –v- Carpenter Pursuant to the landmark Court of Appeal decision in Swift v Carpenter, handed down on 9th October 2020, it would seem not all issues were concluded and a particular dispute concerning costs and Part 36 was left unresolved. This matter has now been addressed at a hearing on 6th November…
Jessica Wiggins The Court of Appeal offered some very welcome guidance as to how the amount of a payment on account of costs may be calculated in the case of Mousavi-Khalkali v Abrishamchi & Anor [2020] EWCA Civ 1493. Prior to this case we did, of course, have the authority of Mars UK Ltd v Teknowledge…
Rebecca Mogford As many of you will know, the issue of Guideline Hourly rates has been a hot topic over the last few weeks following the decision from Master Whalan in the case of PLK & Ors (2020) (MRN previous article) Speaking at the Association of Costs Lawyers annual conference on Friday 13 November 2020,…
Matthew Waring This case is of interest to litigators who seek interim payments following the making of Costs Orders in favour of both parties, or as was the case here, seek to oppose an Application for an interim payment. The matter before the Court stemmed from three Applications brought by the Defendant: To strike…
Gemma Taylor Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service v Susan Ann Veevers [2020] EWHC 2550 (Comm) Helpful guidance has been provided by the High Court on recoverability of inquest costs during the course of a personal injury claim. Distinction has in the past been drawn between circumstances in which an unqualified admission of liability has…
Helen Appleby As all Practitioners should be aware, the Civil Procedure Rules contain specific Guidelines in relation to Part 36 offers, which was incorporated to provide certainty as to reliance upon the offers made between the parties and the consequences of the same. Specifically, CPR Part 36.5 states:- (1) A Part 36 offer must— (a)…
Kathryn Regan In the recent Judgment of Belsner –v- Cam Legal Services Limited, Mr. Justice Lavender, on appeal, considered the question of whether a firm’s terms of business allowed them to charge more than would have been allowed on an inter partes basis and whether informed consent was required for the client to agree to…
Holly Archbold The long awaited judgment of Swift -v- Carpenter [2020] EWCA Civ 1295 has clarified the method for calculating accommodation claims. Practitioners will be busy considering the effect of the judgment, however, the importance of reviewing approved cost budgets in cases to be impacted should not be overlooked. Consideration needs to be given whether…
Rebecca Mogford This morning it was announced that a significant step had been taken in the Courts accepting that the Guideline Hourly rates that had been in place since 2010 (and indeed not updated) were no longer reasonably viable. Master Whalan, has provided commentary in a case which concerned an Appeal to the challenge on…
Louise Satterthwaite Introduction of a new protocol The situation the country as a whole has faced during this Covid 19 Crisis has affected may work practices and the legal profession is one of those. There has been a recognition of the particular difficulties faced on clinical negligence matters during this time, which rely on medical…