Litigation/Dispute Resolution

Hundreds of police officers who brought data breach and misuse of private information claims where their pre-issue costs alone were £1.2m have seen their claims struck out.

The government last week backed a private member’s bill aimed at extending the new law on SLAPPs beyond economic crime to all types of litigation but lawyers have expressed concerns.

The court modernisation programme – which was originally meant to have concluded in 2020 – has been extended once more, with elements of it ditched as well.

Leading consumer law firm Bott & Co has become the latest to step up its focus on car finance mis-selling cases, unveiling a “strategic collaboration” with a CMC.

Fifteen law firms and the Government Legal Department have joined forces to develop the newest legal apprenticeship, for costs lawyers, with final approval of the scheme anticipated in the summer.

Many in-house lawyers expect to see more disputes over the next three years, with employment litigation likely to grow faster than any other type, according to new research.

The Civil Procedure Rule Committee rejected some of the government proposals to amend the extended fixed recoverable costs regime that will come into force this year, it has emerged.

London firm Mishcon de Reya has acquired a majority stake in Somos, a global group actions management business set up by two of the founding partners of PGMBM.

Clyde & Co and 4 New Square were the most active law firm and chambers in the High Court in 2023, a year that saw commercial dispute numbers stay steady and insolvency matters on the rise.

Dechert has settled the UK portion of a long-running dispute with an Iranian-born American businessman who accuses the international law firm of trying to ruin him.

The Ministry of Justice is set to commission the Civil Justice Council to consider whether third-party litigation funding needs to be regulated, it emerged this week.

The Ministry of Justice is pressing ahead with reforms to the fixed recoverable costs regime that came into force in October, opening the door to a possible court challenge.

The Government Legal Department has apologised to the Upper Tribunal after a trainee solicitor failed to properly advise the Home Office about undertakings in a consent order.

HM Courts & Tribunals Service is set to roll out a new bespoke platform for remote hearings in the autumn, replacing the Cloud Video Platform, it has revealed.

Claims over mis-sold car finance are shaping up to be the big new growth area for consumer litigation practices, with Pogust Goodhead launching myfinanceclaim.com.