Q&As

When dealing with costs in a consent order does the order have to stipulate who the paying party will be?

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Produced in partnership with Alex Bagnall of Total Legal Solutions
Published on: 19 October 2020
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This Q&A assumes that none of the parties are a litigant in person, child or patient.

An order for costs is a judgment like any other. It therefore needs to be drafted in a way which makes it possible to understand its effect(s).

The general rules in CPR 40.3 for the drawing up and filing of orders apply.

In addition, CPR PD 44, para 9.4 specifically states that:

‘Where an application has been made and the parties to the application agree an order by consent without any party attending, the parties should seek to agree a figure for costs to be inserted in the consent order or agree that there should be no order for costs.’

If the purpose of

Alex Bagnall
Alex Bagnall

Total Legal Solutions

Alex has worked in legal costs since 2007 and qualified as a Costs Lawyer in 2014. He has served as the Technical Director of a large multi-site firm of costs draftsmen, was the Head of Commercial Litigation Costs at another national firm and was a Senior Associate at a firm of solicitors which specialised in costs litigation. He is currently the Technical Manager at Total Legal Solutions.

Alex's practice consists of complex, technical and high-value claims for costs. He appears regularly as an advocate in Courts throughout the country and has acted as an advocate in Supreme Court assessments on a number of occasions. His extensive experience includes conducting costs appeals in the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, costs of arbitration (including challenges to arbitrators' fees), costs disputes between solicitors and their clients and those between professional Trustees and Beneficiaries of Trusts.

Alex frequently delivers training to lawyers on costs issues and teaches a module in costs litigation as part of an SRA-regulated Professional Skills Course.

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Key definition:
Costs definition
What does Costs mean?

Money ordered to be paid by one party to another in respect of the costs incurred in the course of litigation, in bringing or defending a claim.

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