The speed of change continues apace in the world of litigation, with a constant stream of challenges provided by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and the courts. We look at two key areas here, interim billing and ethics, but there will doubtless be others.
Bills bills bills
The first key area of interest we address for litigators is the question of interim billing of costs and the impact of s 70 of the Solicitors Act 1974, recently reported to have been described as a ‘relic’ by Lord Justice Coulson. It is critical to consider whether the firm wants its interim bills to be merely on account, or statute bills, with the consequences which flow on being able to sue on them, time limits for challenge, and generally the inability to charge for anything omitted from the bill. There have been several examples of courts ordering detailed assessments of law firms’ bills amounting to many millions of pounds years after they were submitted and
