Dominic Regan salutes a return to form by Sir Rupert Jackson
On 13 May Sir Rupert Jackson returned to the reform arena. He delivered the Harbour Lecture, accompanied by Lord Dyson MR. The key points made by Lord Jackson were as follows. Each reference is to the relevant paragraph of his talk, which was entitled “Confronting Costs Management”.
- He was defiant about the sustainability of the process and declared that in a decade people will wonder why it created such a fuss upon inception (10.6). He already believes that younger practitioners are less resistant and more amenable to the concept (10.5).
- There are problems with the present rules and their application. This is due to a variety of factors including inadequate or unsatisfactory training. The judicial materials should be perfected and shared with practitioners so everyone will know what is intended (8.9).
- The most pressing problem is the large delay which the process has generated in London clinical negligence claims. A one-off drastic solution would be to cancel costs management in those matters listed
