Law Weblog

The Jackson Report long-awaited, worth waiting for

Friday 15 January 2010 at 9:16 pm | In News | Post Comment Significant reforms should be introduced to prevent litigation costs from spiralling, Lord Justice Jackson announced this week as he unveiled his long-awaited review into the cost of civil litigation.

Jackson LJ who spent a year reviewing rising civil litigation costs, has outlined a series of proposals aimed at increasing competition and thereby reducing fees.

The key recommendations include:

* Success fees and after-the-event insurance premiums should cease to be recoverable in conditional fee arrangements (CFAs)
* Success fees in CFAs should be capped at 25 per cent of damages and awards of general damages raised by 10 per cent
* The use of referral fees should be banned
* A contingency fee model should be introduced, but these must be properly regulated and an independent lawyer should advise on what structure it will take
* Judges, litigators and barristers should receive training on costs budgeting
* A standard costs management procedure should be established
* Increased judicial responsibility for controlling costs

The reforms will hit personal injury practitioners hard, but could also be applied to clinical negligence, judicial review and defamation claims.

“Access to justice is important not only for claimants who have valid claims, but also for defendants who have a valid defence,” Jackson LJ said.

Big ticket litigation will be largely unaffected, although Jackson LJ proposed that disclosure in large commercial cases should be conducted on a ‘menu’ basis.

Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge and Master of the Rolls Lord Neuberger have given their full backing to the Jackson report.   Commentators are saying that this excellent report will secure his future in the highest echelons of the judiciary.