New style bill of costs
It has been in the mix for some time that a new style bill of costs was going to be introduced. This is a result of Lord Justice Jackson’s interim report and supports the costs management process he introduced.
The current style, referred to by Jackson as ‘based on the style of a Victorian account book’, was considered to be unhelpful to the Courts. Jackson went so far as to say the current form of bill made it easy for a receiving party to ‘disguise or even hide what has gone on’. Harsh and accusatory? Perhaps it is, but despite consultation the feedback was not positive for the current presentation.
The new style bill is a format based on phases, tasks and activities that correlates with the current Precedent H, designed to provide transparency and be user-friendly. The bill will enable an instant comparison to the costs budget.
You may already have heard of the J-codes, a set of codes to record time under electronically. These have been introduced to facilitate the billing process in a manner compatible with the current Precedent H.
The introduction of the costs management process and the follow-on from that was intended to reduce the costs of the detailed assessment process. The voluntary pilot is due to commence in October 2015 in the SCCO, the compulsory pilot being scheduled for next Spring. The intention is to make the new format mandatory in all cases where there is an order for costs made after April 2016.
The new bill and guidance documents are currently out for consultation. The consultation period ends on 18 September 2015. Any fee earner dealing with bills of costs and costs management would be wise to get involved in the consultation. Further details can be found here.
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