Dec 23, 2022
Don’t forget if you need a mediator we are here.
Dec 11, 2022
Unfortunately there are still insufficient legal protections in place for couples who split up and are not married. If a couple who are married argue about the finances following separation, the divorce courts will help them to divide the marital assets fairly and...
Dec 7, 2022
The time between issue and trial for fast- and multi-track claims now takes 75 weeks, according to the latest government figures. This is despite volumes for all civil actions remaining below pre-pandemic levels, according to the latest civil justice...
Dec 6, 2022
We are seeing an increase in reported cases where the Courts are asked to consider departing from the usual costs rules because if the other party’s conduct including failure to mediate. This is always a useful argument to raise in order to show unreasonable conduct,...
Dec 6, 2022
Sometimes once is not enough. If a case doesn’t settle at a first mediation why not have a second, or even third, bite of the cherry? I have dealt with cases where two or three mediation sessions have taken place. The question in this post is: does the Court expect...
Nov 5, 2022
Court of Appeal Court of Appeal Mediation Scheme Litigants with cases that go as far as the Court of Appeal might be wondering whether the opportunity to resolve a case has long gone by that stage. By its very definition, cases that reach the Court of Appeal will have...
Nov 1, 2022
The president of the family division has dlievered a speech about the benefits of avoiding Court. https://www.bailii.org/uk/other/speeches/2022/344JJ.html He asks “When families fall apart, do they fall too easily into court?“ Lord Macfarlane says that: “To be a child...
Nov 1, 2022
The Court of Appeal recommended mediation to save costs, after refusing an appeal against a costs decision penalising a party who had refused to mediate. In a recent case (TMO Renewables Limited v Timothy Yeo and Others...
Oct 28, 2022
In a recent case, https://www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/format.cgi?doc=/ew/cases/EWHC/KB/2022/2688.html the Court was asked to look at whether the parties’ conduct, including failure to mediate, should lead to an indemnity costs order instead of a standard order. In this...
Oct 22, 2022
We have long lobbied for businesses to engage with the ADR Regulations for consumer disputes as many refuse to use ADR, preferring to defend claims and shunning compromise. Sadly we left the EU and with it the EU dispute resolution process. Proposals have now been...
