Legal Cost Specialists

Statement of Costs

The old Costs Practice Direction 45.3 used to read:

“No party should file or serve a statement of costs of the detailed assessment proceedings unless the court orders him to do so.”

I can find no corresponding provision in the new rules.

Presumably the normal default provision under the new Practice Direction 9.5(4) to CPR 44.6 therefore applies:

“The statement of costs must be filed at court and copies of it must be served on any party against whom an order for payment of those costs is intended to be sought as soon as possible and in any event—

… 
(b) for all other hearings, not less than 24 hours before the time fixed for the hearing.”

Having said that, the Costs Officer at the Senior Courts Costs Office I was before yesterday didn’t take any issue with the statement being produced at the end of the hearing.

12 thoughts on “Statement of Costs”

  1. Truly Eminent Costs Professional

    I find it is tactically better to produce at the end of the hearing if receiving.

    A large statement can effect whether you actually recover da costs, as the judge will have this in their mind when considering offers made.

    I.e. it is disproportionate to pursue an extra £500.00 substantive costs when spending an extra £5,000.00 da costs.

  2. Statement of Costs

    Of more concern is the new N260, which requires almost as work as a formal bill of costs.

    Does anyone believe that the Court actually want to see all this information on summary assessment?

  3. Is it the case that since its assumed detailed assessments will be no more in light of fixed costs and budgets, then they scrapped the rule under their remit of removing obsolete rules, not thinking about the fact there are cases where costs exceed £75k etc. In the same way they removed the option of inserting a figure for costs on the Directions Questionnaire.

    As for the new N260, I always included it as a matter of good practice to help justify the fee so no change there.

  4. Truly Eminent Costs Professional

    I personally do not think there are going to be any less detailed assessments.

    Controversial view maybe, but almost all cases settle pre da anyway.

    With the certainty of the £1,500.00 limit there are going to be many more provisional assessments which in turn will lead to more detailed assessments requested by the Court.

    There is also the new rules on proportionality which (hopefully) Simon and his chums will seize upon to test the issue to the hilt, heralding a new era of ”costs wars”

  5. PD9.5 (2)(3)

    “Statement of costs to follow format of N260 and must be signed”. That relates to summary assessment after trial etc.

    Now see

    See PD44 1.1

    ” No statement of Truth Required in DA proceedings” given that N260 are usually signed as a Statement of Truth i think we are still back to the old position!!

  6. Brian Dempsey

    The answer is in paragraph 22 (10) of the Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2013:

    “The provision made by rule 47.20(1) to (5) and (7) in the Schedule (liability for costs of detailed assessment proceedings) does not apply to detailed assessments commenced before 1 April 2013 and in relation to such detailed assessments, rules 47.18 and 47.19 as they were in force immediately before 1 April 2013 apply instead.”

    The same should therefore apply to the Practice Directions. No need to file and serve Statement unless assessment proceedings have commenced after 1 April 2013.

  7. Thanks Simon.

    Thanks Brian too; I agree with you – with the caveat that it appears to me that, by virtue of [new] CPR 44 Practice Directions 9.5(1) and 9.2, if a detailed assessment hearing lasts more than one day, a statement of costs still need not be filed and served before the hearing.

  8. Brian, you are quite wrong, there is no transitional provision dealing with the serving of statements of costs to accompany that particular rule regarding 22(10), which deals solely with the liability for costs, not the need to quantify and notify those costs.

  9. Brian Dempsey

    The transitional provision keeps CPR 47.18 intact for cases commenced before 1 April, and must keep the Practice Direction acompanying that rule intact. There CPR 47.18 PD 45.3 still applies.

  10. no, sorry, it doesnt. the PD ceased to exist save where specifically retained by section 22 transitionals, and there isnt one.

  11. Could you please tell me if one can claim expenses (later on) which one has forgot to claim in the statement of costs.

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