Civil Litigation Costs - 2026 Virtual Conference

Introduction

Chaired by Professor Dominic Regan, this conference will provide a comprehensive update on the evolving landscape of civil litigation costs. With leading practitioners addressing recent case law, procedural developments and practical challenges, the programme delivers authoritative analysis and clear guidance on how the courts are approaching costs issues and the implications for practice.

Conference Agenda

This live and interactive 5-hour conference will cover the following:

10am-11am: Alternative Dispute Resolution

Professor Dominic Regan

The Churchill decision of November 2023 was codified by amendments to the Civil Procedure Rules in October 2024. Judges are now exercising their power to order parties to mediate.

This talk will consider:

• Understand how the October 2024 CPR amendments empower judges to require ADR and what this means in practice
• Identify the forms of ADR now favoured by the senior judiciary
• Recognise when there may be a ‘good reason’ to reject ADR and how to justify that position safely

11:10am-12:10pm: Budgeting and Assessments of Costs in the Courts

Dominic Woodhouse, Advocate/National Training Manager, Partners in Costs

There are limited occasions on which the Court will directly involve itself in the costs that you have incurred or will spend in the future, and each one is an opportunity for you (and also for your opponent), be it a costs management hearing, interlocutory summary assessment, or determination of costs following the conclusion of a claim, either by provisional or detailed assessment.

Not everything depends on the judge on the day, and your preparation for those occasions will be of central importance in achieving something resembling success. With ever-dwindling judicial resources, the opportunity will be brief and not getting it right from the opening may well be costly. This talk will therefore focus on the essential points you need to cover in these varied scenarios to best advance your client’s case and protect your position.

Key Learning Objectives:

• Preparation for a Costs Management Hearing - what to do, and what not to do
• Steps to take in readiness for summary assessment
• Dealing with costs at the end of the case - making sure not to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory

12:10pm-1:10pm: Future Developments in Litigation Funding

Robert Marven KC, 4 New Square Chambers

Litigation funding remains one of the most dynamic areas of civil practice. In this session, Robert Marven KC will outline the evolving funding landscape, from new funding models and upcoming reforms to regulatory trends and developments before the Competition Appeal Tribunal. Delegates will gain insight into how these changes could reshape the economics of litigation.

• Explore current and emerging funding models and their practical implications
• Anticipate regulatory and reform trends likely to impact litigation funding
• Understand how funding issues are playing out in the Competition Appeal Tribunal

2-3pm: Solicitors' Retainers: Getting the Terms Right

Colin Campbell, Consultant, Kain Knight

Solicitors write their own retainers. whether that be on a privately paid basis, under a conditional fee agreement, damages-based agreement or litigation funding agreement, and the clients seldom have any input into the terms. Despite that, many of these agreements have been found by the courts to be unenforceable, so the solicitors are paid nothing for their work. This talk will address why solicitors have got into these difficulties and how they can be avoided in the future.

• Ensuring that retainers are enforceable for best results
• Explaining the extent to which retainers should be disclosed to the opponent
• How to avoid challenges to retainers under the Solicitors Act 1974

3:15-4:15pm: Conduct and Costs

Professor Dominic Regan

CPR 44.11 empowers the court to disallow costs in whole or in part where a party or their legal representative has acted unreasonably or improperly.

• The Bamrah guidelines
• What went wrong in McNamee v LB Brent October 2025
• What sanction is appropriate?
• Does pre-action activity count?

Recording of live sessions: Soon after the Learn Live session has taken place you will be able to go back and access the recording - should you wish to revisit the material discussed.