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17 January 2025 / Stephen Gold
Issue: 8100 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Civil way
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Civil way: 17 January 2025

Costs rates up; forget the merits; specials interest down; parking ticket escape; tale of 94 dodgy divorces; reporters rule, OK!

XMAS BOX

Guideline rates for the summary assessment of costs increased by 3.65% as from 1 January 2025, thanks to service producer price inflation values up to and including the first quarter of last year. Subsequent inflation is promised to be captured in future annual uplifts.

The guidelines received a major overhaul in 2021 after 11 years in slumber (see ‘Civil Way’, 171 NLJ 7950, p17) and last rose by 6.66% from January 2024. At the top of the league, grade A centrally based London fee earners in very heavy commercial and corporate work now weigh in at an hourly rate of £566. The poorest paid at grade A are those on the national 2 band who will now make do with an hourly guideline of £282.

The good news should be communicated to those clients who may be impacted.


LAW BITES

Tribunal stuff

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Clarke Willmott—Matthew Roach

Clarke Willmott—Matthew Roach

Partner joins commercial property team in Taunton office

Farrer & Co—Richard Lane

Farrer & Co—Richard Lane

Londstanding London firm appoints new senior partner

Bird & Bird—Sue McLean

Bird & Bird—Sue McLean

Commercial team in London welcomes technology specialist as partner

NEWS
The legal profession’s claim to be a ‘guardian of fairness’ is under scrutiny after stark findings on gender imbalance and opaque progression. Writing in NLJ this week, Joshua Purser of No5 Barristers’ Chambers and Govindi Deerasinghe of Global 50/50 warn that leadership remains dominated by a narrow elite, with men holding 71% of top court roles
A legal challenge to police disclosure rules has failed, reinforcing a push for transparency in policing. In NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth examines a case where the Metropolitan Police required officers to declare membership of groups like the Freemasons
Bereavement leave is undergoing a quiet but profound transformation. Writing in NLJ this week, Robert Hargreaves of York St John University explains how the Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a day-one right to leave for a wider range of losses, alongside new provisions for pregnancy loss and bereaved partners
Courts are beginning to grapple with whether AI-generated material is legally privileged—and the answers are mixed. In this week's issue of NLJ, Stacie Bourton, Tom Whittaker & Beata Kolodziej of Burges Salmon examine US rulings showing how easily privilege can be lost
New guidance seeks to bring order to the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Minesh Tanna and David Bridge of Simmons & Simmons set out a framework stressing ‘transparency’, ‘explainability’ and ‘reliability’
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