At long last the definitive fixed costs rules were published at the end of last month. With the accompanying Practice Direction they run to 107 pages. While not effective until 1 October, palpable anxiety is already coursing through the legal profession.
Time to act
The impact of the rules will vary, depending upon the subject matter of the claim. If it is for personal injury, the measures will only apply where the cause of action accrued on or after 1 October. For disease cases, it is the date of the letter of claim which is decisive—so the well-organised will ensure that it is dispatched before then.
For all other cases, the rules will apply to everything issued from October. Again, there is time to act and issue promptly so as to lawfully evade the changes which will inevitably reduce fee income.
Those used to recovering costs at large will feel
