The costs team at Hailsham Chambers is widely recognised as a leader in its field. Our specialists offer advisory and advocacy services in relation to every area of costs law and practice. They regularly appear in courts at every level and have been involved in many of the most important appellate cases, including Lownds v The Home Office, Factortame (No 8), Roach v Home Office, Accident Line, Minkin v CKFT, Medway v Marcus, Simmons v Castle, Coventry v Lawrence, Blankley, Excalibur, BNM v MGN, Frost v MGN (No 2), Hislop v Perde, Gavin Edmondson Solicitors v Haven Insurance, Malmsten v Bohinc, King v City of London and Infinity Distribution v Khan Partnership LLP.
Hailsham is home to many of the leading authorities on costs law, not least Dr Mark Friston, the author of Friston on Costs. Dan Stacey, David Juckes, Stephen Bailey and Imran Benson also contribute to this definitive bible of costs law. Furthermore, two members of the Costs Group sit as Deputy Masters of the Senior Courts Costs Office.
All of our team members are true costs specialists. However, almost all also practise in other areas, meaning that they can bring wider litigation experience to bear on their costs practices and provide a full spectrum service to clients whose litigation needs extend beyond pure costs issues.
Members of our costs team have extensive experience of every aspect of inter partes costs disputes and can add value at any stage of the proceedings, whether advising on costs budgeting, providing advocacy at a CCMC, dealing with security for costs, undertaking argument about costs at the end of a heavy piece of litigation (including issues relating to Part 36 and other offers), dealing with fixed costs, advising on costs recovery or appearing on detailed assessment.
Members of Hailsham will slot seamlessly into any professional team to deal with costs issues which might arise at any stage of litigation.
Several members of the team have experience of acting for potential class representatives and defendants in applications for collective proceedings orders in the Competition Appeal Tribunal.
We have been at the forefront of the recent rise in the number of costs disputes between solicitors and clients. Our team members are familiar with the intricacies of s. 70 Solicitors Act 1974 and technical arguments about the status of bills, contentious and non-contentious business agreements, special circumstances and arguments relating to costs estimates. Members of Hailsham have been involved in disputes worth millions of pounds.
Our team members can act for applicants or respondents in applications for wasted costs orders and non-party costs orders and have appeared in some of the recent key cases, including Willers v Joyce and Goknur v Aytacli.
Members of our costs team have a particular expertise in structured litigation financing, ranging from traditional UK-based litigation funding all the way through to more adventurous B2B arrangements involving overseas hedge funds. They are able to deal with facilities agreements, deeds of priority, litigation management agreements, securities, and contracts of retainer (including those with counsel).
Additionally, the team is able to draft or revise contracts of retainer and to advise in statutory billing procedures generally.
