Costs reforms: proposed changes to costs budgeting, guideline hourly rates and pre-action costs

Last week the Civil Justice Council (CJC) published the Final Report in its Costs Review, conducted by a working group led by Lord Justice Birss. Its recommendations are separate to, but take into account, the planned extension of fixed recoverable costs to cases valued at up to £100,000 which is now due to come in from 1 October this year.

Key recommendations include:

a pilot of a “lighter touch” approach to costs budgeting for cases in the Business and Property Courts, and cases valued at up to £1 million in other courts, though there is no detail as to what that lighter touch approach would entail;
creating a new band of guideline hourly rates for complex, high value, commercial work, and including counsel’s fees within the guideline hourly rates regime; and
potential new powers for the courts to make costs orders where matters settle pre-issue but the parties have not agreed costs.

For further details please read this post on our Litigation Notes blog.