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GLOSSARY

Legal Services Commission definition

Published by a LexisNexis Practice Compliance expert

What does Legal Services Commission mean?

A non-departmental public body which is responsible for running the legal aid scheme in England and Wales.

It is responsible for two schemes; the Community Legal Advice (CLA) service dealing with civil legal aid and the Criminal Defence Service (CDS) dealing with criminal legal aid

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Request for detailed assessment—checklist

Request for detailed assessment—checklist When making a request for detailed assessment using form N258, it is important to ensure that you provide all the documents required as set out in CPR PD 47 para 13.2. These are listed below in the form of a checklist. You will also need to provide an estimate of the length of time the detailed assessment hearing will take. Request for Detailed Assessment Hearing (general form) (Form N258) Where the request is made by a party other than the receiving party—in such cases, the requesting party should provide all documents listed below which are in their possession (CPR PD 47, para 13.2(k)). Practice direction para reference Document Have I provided it? CPR PD 47, para 13.2(a) A copy of the notice of commencement of the detailed assessment proceedings CPR PD 47, para 13.2(b) A copy of the bill of costs CPR PD 47, para 13.2(c) Document giving the right to detailed assessment. This is set out in CPR PD 47, para 13.3...

Documents required for provisional assessment—checklist

Documents required for provisional assessment—checklist This Checklist sets out the documents each party will need to provide to the court to enable it to undertake a provisional assessment. This procedure is intended to be a quick means of assessing costs as the court is to use ‘its best endeavours’ to undertake a provisional assessment within six weeks of receipt of the request for detailed assessment and the supporting papers. The document/court form required as well as the applicable CPR provisions are noted in this Checklist. Paying party The paying party must provide the following documents to the receiving party to enable them to file a request for an assessment. CPR provision/Form Document Comments Provided CPR PD 47, para 14.3(e) Completed points of dispute and any reply This is precedent G CPR PD 47, para 8.3 An open letter stating what sum, if any, the paying party offers to pay in settlement of the total costs claimed. This is the open settlement letterNote: the paying party may...

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Varying public contracts

Varying public contracts Stop Press: On 24 February 2025, the main provisions of the Public Procurement Act 2023 (PA 2023) come into force. We are reviewing and updating our content accordingly. Note, however, that procurements begun on or after 24 February must be carried out under PA 2023, whereas those begun under the previous legislation (the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015), the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016, the Concession Regulations 2016, and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011) must continue to be procured and managed under that legislation. For information, see Practice Note: Key Implications of the procurement Act 2023 for Construction Lawyers. Brexit impact—public procurement The UK public procurement regime derives from EU public procurement laws, and is therefore impacted by the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. For general updates on the process and preparations for Brexit, see Practice Note: Brexit timeline. For further reading on the impact of Brexit on public procurement, see Practice Note: Brexit—the implications for public procurement [Archived]. Of particular relevance to the variation of public contracts are the...

Setting aside default judgment—discretionary grounds (CPR 13.3)

Setting aside default judgment—discretionary grounds (CPR 13.3) Where a claimant has obtained judgment against a defendant who failed to file an acknowledgment of service or a defence (known as a default judgment or judgment in default), the defendant can ask the court to exercise its discretion to set aside that default judgment even though it was validly obtained. For guidance on the circumstances in which the court must set aside a default judgment, see Practice Note: Setting aside default judgment—mandatory grounds (CPR 13.2). For guidance on the procedure for making an application to set aside a default judgment, see Practice Note: Setting aside default judgment—making the application. For guidance on what is a default judgment, see Practice Note: Obtaining default judgment—general principles. This Practice Note provides guidance on the interpretation and application of the relevant provisions of the CPR. Depending on the court in which your matter is proceeding, you may also need to be mindful of additional provisions—see further in the section Court specific guidance below. The court’s...

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On what grounds can a contracting authority refuse a request from a bidder to clarify aspects of a bid already submitted in a public procurement process?

On what grounds can a contracting authority refuse a request from a bidder to clarify aspects of a bid already submitted in a public procurement process? This Q&A covers procurements carried out under Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015), SI 2015/102 and where the request to clarify the bid has been made after the deadline for bids to be submitted. General rule There is no general duty on a contracting authority to allow a bidder to correct its tender. In J.B Leadbitter v Devon County Council, the authority rejected the tender based on the fact it was incomplete and the court ruled that the contracting authority did not have a general duty to admit a late tender or allow the correction of a non-conforming tender. In R (on the application of Hersi & Co Solicitors) v Lord Chancellor (as successor to the Legal Services Commission), Coulson J also held It is the responsibility of the tender to submit a full, complete and compliant tender and...

If a party to litigation has the benefit of a public funding certificate, can they claim costs awarded in their favour and payable by their opponent at private client rates (eg in accordance with the guideline rates) or are they restricted to the hourly rate that the legal aid board will pay to their solicitors?

If a party to litigation has the benefit of a public funding certificate, can they claim costs awarded in their favour and payable by their opponent at private client rates (eg in accordance with the guideline rates) or are they restricted to the hourly rate that the legal aid board will pay to their solicitors? In this Q&A it has been assumed that it is referring to a situation in which the legal aid certificate was issued after 01.04.2013, and have taken into consideration the issues raised in relation to the indemnity principle and the amount which lawyers who undertake legal aid work (legal aid lawyers) can be paid for that work. The indemnity principle The indemnity principle operates so as to prevent a receiving party recovering a greater amount in costs than it is liable to pay to its solicitors (see: Costs orders—overview). The receiving party must be liable to pay its solicitor no more than is claimed for every item which is claimed (see...

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Minutes of the CPR Committee meeting—5 March 2021

Dispute Resolution analysis: The minutes of the CPR Committee (CPRC) meeting of 5 March 2021 (held via video conference due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic) cover a number of areas including the RTA portal (whiplash) amendments to the CPR, proposals for amendments in relation to judicial review (CPR 54), proposed amendments to CPR PD 5B for payment card compliance, the considerations of the Lacuna sub-committee, and a discussion relating to the migration of the CPR online rules to Gov.uk.

Minutes of the CPR Committee meeting—5 June 2020

Dispute Resolution analysis: The minutes of the CPR Committee (CPRC) meeting of 5 June (held via video conference due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic) cover a number of areas including proposed amendments to CPR 73, consequential changes arising out of the recent changes to statements of truth, changes to costs tables in CPR 45, requests for evidence post Brexit, recovery and matters related to coronavirus (including issues relating to the stay on possession proceedings under CPR PD 51Z as well as the extension of time limits under CPR PD 51ZA), amendments to CPR PD 52C, the Contempt Sub-Committee and CPR 81, the Commission for Justice in Wales, pilot PDs for review (including the Business and Property Courts Disclosure Pilot (CPR PD 51U), various other pilots in the Business and Property Courts, namely the Capped Costs Pilot (CPR PD 51W), the Insolvency Express Trials Pilot (CPR PD 51P) and the Financial Markets Test Case (CPR PD 51M), the Costs for Summary Assessment Pilot (CPR PD 51X) and the Video Hearings...

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