header-logo header-logo

High Court departs from conventional ‘costs in the case’ order

08 November 2024 / Sophie Houghton
Issue: 8093 / Categories: Features
printer mail-detail
Sophie Houghton on why it doesn’t pay to put forward overly ambitious figures in costs budgets
  • Parties should not presume that following a costs management hearing a ‘costs in the case’ order will be made.

Recently there have been two decisions by Master Thornett sitting in the King’s Bench Division of the High Court in respect of the appropriate costs order to make following a costs management hearing. In both cases, the master made clear that it should not be presumed by the parties that an order for ‘costs in the case’ will be made following this type of hearing. Although an order for ‘costs in the case’ is frequently made at the end of a costs management hearing, parties may be in the habit of thinking that this will always happen, which is not the case.

Disproportionality

The first of these decisions is Worcester v Hopley [2024] EWHC 2181 (KB), which involved a clinical negligence claim concerning the defendant’s treatment of the claimant’s mental health. Following

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Freeths—Ruth Clare

Freeths—Ruth Clare

National real estate team bolstered by partner hire in Manchester

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Partner appointed head of family team

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

Firm strengthens agriculture and rural affairs team with partner return

NEWS
Conveyancing lawyers have enjoyed a rapid win after campaigning against UK Finance’s decision to charge for access to the Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has launched a recruitment drive for talented early career and more senior barristers and solicitors
Regulators differed in the clarity and consistency of their post-Mazur advice and guidance, according to an interim report by the Legal Services Board (LSB)
The dangers of uncritical artificial intelligence (AI) use in legal practice are no longer hypothetical. In this week's NLJ, Dr Charanjit Singh of Holborn Chambers examines cases where lawyers relied on ‘hallucinated’ citations — entirely fictitious authorities generated by AI tools
The Solicitors Act 1974 may still underpin legal regulation, but its age is increasingly showing. Writing in NLJ this week, Victoria Morrison-Hughes of the Association of Costs Lawyers argues that the Act is ‘out of step with modern consumer law’ and actively deters fairness
back-to-top-scroll