We recently published an article on the new rules coming into force as of the 1^st October 2023 through which fixed costs will apply to most civil claims up to £100,000.

 

In a move that may have strong implications for this, the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (“APIL”) have issued judicial review proceedings over aspects of the Ministry of Justice’s (“MOJ”) plans to extend fixed costs.

 

Following a letter before action from APIL, the MOJ issued a consultation asking for views on the fixed costs reforms prior to their implementation.

 

This is because the new rules suggest that clinical negligence claims would be on the intermediate track if breach of duty and causation were admitted but that this would not take into account the time of these admissions or potential significant amount of work incurred prior to this. If implemented, there is a risk that practitioners would refused to take on clinical negligence cases of this value because they would not be cost effective. It would also potentially act as an incentive to defendant solicitors to make late admissions and a disincentive for claimant solicitors to take on these cases because of the risk that they will be allocated to the intermediate track with lower fixed costs after an 11^th-hour admission. This would have serious implications for access to justice.

 

We will continue to monitor this as the situation develops.