The defendants sought to argue that the conditional fee arrangement used by the claimant’s solicitors had been void under the 2000 regulations. They claimed that the solicitors had failed to disclose an interest in the policies sold.
Held: No interest existed which should have been disclosed. The test was whether a reasonable person would think that it might affect the advice given: ‘regulation 4 is concerned with giving the client who is considering entering into a CFA sufficient information and advice to enable him to take a properly informed and considered decision. He can only do so if he is given information and advice which are not in any way affected by the solicitor’s self-interest. ‘ The position of the solicitors here was quite different from those in earlier cases, and ‘the overriding consideration was the quality of the Accident Line ATE policy. That was why the solicitors subscribed to the scheme and recommended the policy to their clients. They kept the scheme under review and only renewed their membership of it if they regarded it as in their clients’ interests to do so.’
Sir Anthony Clarke MR, Dyson LJ, Jackson LJ
[2008] EWCA Civ 1375
Bailii, Times
Conditional Fee Agreement Regulations 2000, Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 58
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Hollins v Russell etc CA 22-May-2003
Six appeals concerned a number of aspects of the new Conditional Fee Agreement.
Held: It should be normal for a CFA, redacted as necessary, to be disclosed for costs proceedings where a success fee is claimed. If a party seeks to rely on the . .
Approved – Garrett v Halton Borough Council CA 16-Mar-2007
The defendants argued that the conditional fee agreement in use by the claimant’s solicitors was void and so in breach of the rules.
Held: In assessing whether there was any ‘interest’ for the purposes of the Regulation, the court looked to . .
Cited – Locabail (UK) Ltd, Regina v Bayfield Properties Ltd CA 17-Nov-1999
Adverse Comments by Judge Need not be Show of Bias
In five cases, leave to appeal was sought on the basis that a party had been refused disqualification of judges on grounds of bias. The court considered the circumstances under which a fear of bias in a court may prove to be well founded: ‘The mere . .
Cited – Jones v Wrexham Borough Council CA 19-Dec-2007
The claimant appealed against a decision that the conditional fee agreement with her solicitors had been unenforceable because the solicitors had not disclosed to her a conflicting interest in recommending insurers. The issue was whether the CFA was . .
Cited – Hollins v Russell CA 25-Jun-2003
The court considered whether a successful party should be refused his costs to the extent of the costs associated with a particular argument they had lost.
Held: In a weighty matter the court should not disallow the costs of arguments which . .
Cited – Rogers v Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council CA 31-Jul-2006
The Court considered the validity of after the event legal expenses insurance and conditional fee agreements schemes, and in particular whether an ATE premium was recoverable by a successful claimant. The damages had been agreed in the sum of pounds . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Legal Professions
Updated: 01 November 2021; Ref: scu.278665