The current prediction is that Lord Justice Jackson will recommend fixed fees are extended to all claims with a value of less than £100,000. If this is true, and subsequently introduced, there are two obvious issues to comment on:
- Without undertaking a detailed statistical analysis, it is reasonable to estimate that a figure of £100,000 is likely to mean at least twice as much costs work will survive as if the figure had been set at the previously mooted figure of £250,000. That is a good thing.
- A number of costs firms appear to have muddled through the original Jackson reforms as a consequence of the additional work generated by costs budgeting compensating, in part, for the loss of other work. Fixed fees for all claims under £100,000 will coincide with costs budgeting being abandoned for this category of claim. This, combined with the other significant losses in work that will result from the extension of fixed fees, is likely to see civil costs work decline in volumes by 80-90% compared to current levels, and that is against the serious job losses that have already been seen. That is a bad thing.
1 thought on “Impact of Jackson extension of fixed fees”
I have heard that it will be a ‘cap’ of an amount per phase up to £100,000.00. That way it still is in line with the indemnity principle. If this is true then presumably someone will still need to ‘cost’ the phases.