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07 April 2011 / Dominic Regan
Issue: 7460 / Categories: Features , Personal injury
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Dark days ahead?

Claimant solicitors face a bumpy road ahead says Dominic Regan

The good news is that the government is not looking to increase the small claims limit of £1,000 in injury claims. That is the end of the good news. Claimant solicitors will be appalled at the extreme changes anticipated in two major pieces of government thinking published last week. The first was the response to the Jackson consultation. All the lobbying and meetings behind closed doors has had as much impact as a blow from a wet lettuce leaf upon Mike Tyson. The core Jackson proposals are embraced wholeheartedly. I am not going to recite them, but a few issues do call for comment.

Success fees

One profound argument against ending recoverability of success fees is that the claimant will not recover full compensation. Out of damages there will be paid a contribution to the success fee, capped at 25% of the damages with future loss immune from deductibility.

It is disingenuous of the government to say that there is no such principle as

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Ward Hadaway—Nicola Williams

Ward Hadaway—Nicola Williams

Specialist tax expertise expands with partner appointment

Howard Kennedy—Caroline Urban

Howard Kennedy—Caroline Urban

Firm strengthens corporate and capital raising specialism with partner hire

Payne Hicks Beach—Lucas Moore

Payne Hicks Beach—Lucas Moore

Commercial disputes partner succeeds Robert Brodrick as chair of management board

NEWS
Pro Bono Connect will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a reception and awards ceremony at the Supreme Court on 9 July, marking a decade of facilitating pro bono legal support for those unable to afford legal advice or representation
Cheshire West, which established an ‘acid test’ for deprivation of liberty safeguards, has been overturned by the Supreme Court
The Chancery Division and other segments of the High Court are to be replaced by a new Business and Property Division (BPD), in a major civil justice shakeup
Law firms that hold client money will need to file annual accountants’ reports and make a declaration, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) confirmed this week
Two district judges and a tribunal judge have been sanctioned for delays in delivering judgments and orders
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