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26 September 2025 / Charlie Mercer , Astrid Gillam
Issue: 8132 / Categories: Features , Fraud , Commercial , Insolvency , International , Jurisdiction , Dispute resolution
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Insights into shifting commercial fraud trends

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Charlie Mercer & Astrid Gillam deliver the data on civil fraud claims in the English courts
  • New data shows that civil fraud claims have increased since 2014.
  • The general King’s Bench Division is now the most popular court, indicating an increased proportion of lower-value claims.
  • The English courts remain attractive to and respected by foreign users, but there are challenges.

In 2023, Stewarts and data analytics platform Solomonic produced a report looking at data relating to civil fraud claims in the English courts. It was the first of its kind. For the first time, it provided hard data to interrogate perceptions of fraud litigation in England and Wales.

This summer, we have revisited and updated that data. This article discusses our findings and other important current developments for the future of fraud litigation in the UK.

Volume of claims

In 2023, the key point we wanted to test was whether civil fraud litigation had increased in England and Wales.

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NEWS
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NLJ this week: Appeal court reins in ‘wrong defendant’ switcheroo

The Court of Appeal has slammed the brakes on claimants trying to swap defendants after limitation has expired. In Adcamp LLP v Office Properties and BDB Pitmans v Lee [2026] EWCA Civ 50, it overturned High Court rulings that had allowed substitutions under s 35(6)(b) of the Limitation Act 1980, reports Sarah Crowther of DAC Beachcroft in this week's NLJ

NLJ this week: CPR tweak closes third-party disclosure gap
A seemingly dry procedural update may prove potent. In his latest 'Civil way' column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold explains that new CPR 31.12A—part of the 193rd update—fills a ‘lacuna’ exposed in McLaren Indy v Alpa Racing
NLJ this week: Court of Appeals wrestles with Mazur fallout
The long-running Mazur saga edged towards its finale as the Court of Appeal heard arguments on whether non-solicitors can ‘conduct litigation’. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School reports from a packed courtroom where 16 wigs watched Nick Bacon KC argue that Mr Justice Sheldon had failed to distinguish between ‘tasks and responsibilities’
NLJ this week: Driving test fraudsters steer towards jail
Cheating in driving tests is surging—and courts are responding firmly. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort Law School charts a rise in impersonation and tech-assisted fraud, with 2,844 attempts recorded in a year
NLJ this week: Deepfakes demand data law muscle
As AI-generated ‘deepfake’ images proliferate, the law may already have the tools to respond. In NLJ this week, Jon Belcher of Excello Law argues that such images amount to personal data processing under UK GDPR
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