header-logo header-logo

08 December 2017
Issue: 7773 / Categories: Features , Technology , CPR
printer mail-detail

The evolution of litigation

nlj_7773_litigators

If today’s litigators refuse to embrace change, they might find their own futures very uncertain, says Jonathan Lafferty

The strength of the English legal system is its adaptability to changes in society; as Lord Hope noted in Chartbrook Ltd v Persimmon Homes Ltd , ‘one of the strengths of the common law is that it can take a fresh look at itself so that it can keep pace with changing circumstances.’ But with so much unprecedented uncertainty in the justice system and broader society, how can litigation in England & Wales adapt to meet that uncertainty successfully? This article seeks to predict what factors will affect litigation in the next five years and what that will that mean for lawyers, judges and litigants themselves.

All quiet on Aldwych

An instructive start in determining how litigation will look in five years is to consider how litigation looked five years ago. Since then, the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) have gone through several dozen updates. One of the biggest changes since 2012 was the Jackson

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Clarke Willmott—Kevin Joynes & Neil Gosling

Clarke Willmott—Kevin Joynes & Neil Gosling

Clarke Willmott bolsters housebuilder expertise in Birmingham

Carpmaels & Ransford—Kevin Cordina

Carpmaels & Ransford—Kevin Cordina

Firm adds former Simmons Simmons patent head to engineering and tech team

ACTAPS—Sally Goodger

ACTAPS—Sally Goodger

Freeths strengthens its voice in national disputes with ACTAPS committee appointment

NEWS
4PB chambers has announced the 2026 winner of its Alan Inglis Memorial Essay Prize, now in its third year
Murder could be split into first and second degrees, under Law Commission proposals for a historic overhaul of homicide offences
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Australian-style ban on social media for under-16s will be difficult to enforce, lawyers have warned
One in two women in law say their current working pattern is unsustainable for their long-term health, according to a report by the Next 100 Years project
The Legal Services Board (LSB) has highlighted a lack of safeguards where people use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help with legal problems
back-to-top-scroll