Behind the scenes, costs can often get very complex and in the case of Bateman v Devon County Council, the issue was raised around how costs should be applied. The Claimant in this instance accepted a sum of £1,500.00 in settlement of his claim and simply walked away from the case with his settlement, leaving the solicitor to argue their costs.  

 

This took a long and complex procedure where case law from various prior cases including Prescott v The Trustees of the Pencarrow 2012 Maintenance Fund, Williams v Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (a Court of Appeal Case) and Quader v Esure (another Court of Appeal Case) to finally obtain a decision on a claim that was, to the Claimant, worth only £1500.00. This is a far cry from the multi-million pound cases which grace the front pages of the daily newspapers, but the Judge on that day was required to consider the same standard of case-law and arguments as those in the larger headline news cases. 

 

This case involved a wide-ranging argument over different legal protocols and just which of three separate ones would have been correct to follow to present the claim and thus, dictate how the costs were applied. In Bateman, the Claimant succeeded and recovered their costs on a “reasonable” basis – on the time spent on the claim rather than the usual fixed costs regime. However, this is the exception rather than the norm and 99% of cases are dealt with firmly under the fixed costs regime. 

 

MG Legal, your local personal injury solicitor Garstang, knows that assessing the prospects of success and dealing with each claim properly from the outset is key to avoiding these disputes. Sometimes, however, they are unavoidable and we will do our best to ensure that each clients case is not affected by these disputes. What solicitors ask, in return for acting under a Conditional Fee Agreement, is that clients cooperate with them to ensure the case can progress to a conclusion as swiftly and as easily as possible. 

 

If you have been involved in any type of incident and sustained a personal injury, contact MG Legal, your local personal injury solicitor Garstang, to discuss how we can act for you on a Conditional Fee Agreement. We have offices in Garstang, Lancaster and Longridge and we are happy to speak to you at each of these offices, via the telephone or email and web-contact form to discuss your claim today.