|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Latest Press Releases No Win No Fee News |
 |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The government is concerned about the high costs of CFAs, particularly in clinical negligence cases against the NHS The governing body is targeting no win, no charge agreements in its drive to chop costs, it was declared today. The Ministry of Justice stated that it would consult in the autumn on implementing Lord Justice Jackson's suggestions on the reformation of the way civil legal action cases are subsidized, in the expectation of achieving "heavy cost savings". "Conditional charge agreements ( CFAs ) have played a part in giving access to justice to a variety of folks. But elevated costs under the present agreements have now become a significant concern, especially in clinical neglectfulness cases against the NHS Legal proceedings Authority and in defamation proceedings," legal help minister Jonathan Djanogly related in a written ministerial statement today. Media organisations have criticized the utilisation of CFAs which enable barristers to take libel cases against papers on a no win, no charge foundation for making defamation cases very costly, while insurers disagree that if they've got to pay more to protect claims they're going to have to charge more for insurance. But CFAs provide access to justice for those that can't afford to chase legal action and who aren't fit for public funding. Barristers also share the danger of legal disputes they're not paid if they lose a case, but can charge a "success charge" of at least one hundred percent ( relying on the chance embedded in the case ) on top of basic costs if they win and as such it is disagreed that CFAs inspire solicitors to take on dangerous or troublesome cases. Insurance can be taken out by parties to guard against the danger of having to pay their opponent's costs if they lose. Under the present agreements both success charges and these "after the event" premiums can be recovered from the losing party as well as basic costs. Jackson's suggestions include annulling such recoverability, which will require first legislation together with an increase of 10% in the level of general damages for personal injury, defamation and other tort claims. Djanogly recounted the consultation would take notice of the legal help reform offers, due in the autumn. Separately, the govt. is also considering Lord Young's conclusions on the compensation culture.
Lord Young is reportedly poised to recommend an end to 'no win, no fee' adverts - but would that be a good thing? Photograph: Dave Gadd/Allstar One man's compensation culture is another man's access to justice, and which side of this debate prevails may shortly be determined in the highest levels of central authority. In a move that would change the face of daytime TV, it's been said that Lord Young of Graffham commissioned by David Cameron to analyze safety and health laws and the compensation culture is to counsel an end point to advertising by "no win, no fee" merchants. Though a few of these are law practises, the majority are claims management firms ( CMCs ), whose first business structure is to collect claims, typically thru advertising, and then sell them on to solicitors. It's an industry worth almost £400m. From one standpoint, these are needless costs that inflate the value of counsels ' fees and finally drive up insurance premiums, as it is responsibility insurers who pay them. From another, they're selling costs that counsels would encounter anyhow. Young's anti-CMC language has been robust and he could also try to reinstate the ban on these so-called referral costs, which was lifted by the Law Society in 2004. In doing therefore he would echo Lord Justice Jackson's suggestions early on in the year on reducing the price of legal action ( a brief Young has publicly supported ). But pronouncing the way forward on Jackson last month, the justice minister Jonathan Djanogly especially excluded a call on referral costs outstanding recommendation from the Legal Services Board ( LSB ), the super-regulator which is presently inspecting the issue. In papers released under the Liberty of Info Act, it has appeared the LSB's view subject to a consultation the month after next is that the proof doesn't supply a case to prohibit. This comes after no less than four influential reports printed since might have disagreed that referral costs do not harm consumers, but essentially enable CMCs to boost access to justice by informing folk of their rights. One of the reports, produced by a council lead by the economic expert Professor Stephen Nickell, a previous member of the Bank of England's financial policy council, even looked at CMCs ' profitability and found nothing unordinary. Unquestionably there's a need to enhance the transparency of the agreements. The LSB announces there must be as much, if not more, stress on the simple fact of the referral and the inalienable right to select a lawyer as there's on the quantity of the charge itself. Their perspective accords with earlier research which recommends purchasers are not comfortable with the idea of referral fees till they have the arrangement explained correctly. This desires to be backed by effective enforcement. Statistical data don't bear out the concept of a compensation culture : with the exception of road traffic accidents, personal injury claims have stayed static during the past decade. But Young asserts a fusion of media reporting and assertive advertising by CMCs has made the belief that one exists, which is driving risk averse behavior, instead of more reasonable risk administration. This all puts the Ministry of Justice in a hard position. For one thing, the ministry controls CMCs the sole industry at once controlled by a govt dep. because it can't find anybody else to accomplish the job. Therefore regardless of the praise the ministry has received for reining in the indulgences of the sector, feedback of how CMCs still operate can be seen as feedback of the dep. itself. Meanwhile, if the body charged with overseeing the legal sector ( and which reports to the ministry ) comes to an evidence-based conclusion that there's not too much wrong, how do Djanogly and the lord chancellor, Ken Clarke, handle Lord Young exclaiming the opposite with the backing of the P. M. ? Looking further ahead nevertheless, the referral charge debate arguably becomes redundant. When possession limitations on legal practises fall away with the arrival of alternative business structures in October 2011, it appears unavoidable that bigger CMCs will obtain legal firms and take a case all of the way from primary enquiry to the final costs check themselves. All of a sudden , the ban on advertising becomes their best worry. CMCs are guessed to spend around £40m a year on the T. V. advertising, a sum the industry could hardly stand to lose at this time. This is, naturally, the prime minister's old stamping ground. Could he do that to his previous comrades?
|
Liverpool Areas A |
Thomas Street |
|||||
Liverpool Solicitors | Site Map | Resources | Home
©2010 liverpoolSolicitors.co.uk All rights reserved.