PI & Clinical Negligence specific funding and costs

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This Overview looks at funding and costs issues specific to personal injury and clinical negligence claims.

Conditional fee agreements

Although conditional fee agreements (CFAs) are common in personal injury and clinical negligence cases, it is worth noting that solicitors have a responsibility to discuss funding options with their clients. It is important to discuss with a client the different methods of funding available and to provide guidance as to which method would be the most appropriate given the client’s specific circumstances.

From 1 April 2013, the general rule is that the success fee and after-the-event (ATE) insurance premium are not recoverable from the losing party but they can be recoverable from the successful client.

From 1 April 2013, success fees for personal injury and clinical negligence cases are regulated by the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013, SI 2013/689 and cannot exceed 25% of general damages and past losses net of any sums recoverable by the Compensation Recovery Unit (CRU). The only exception is for claims that go to appeal where the cap is increased to 100% of general damages and past losses net of

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Latest PI & Clinical Negligence News

PI & Clinical Negligence weekly highlights—8 January 2026

This week's edition of PI & Clinical Negligence weekly highlights brings you key procedural and policy updates, including the updated 2026 guideline hourly rates. We review a variety of important developments, with analysis of issues such as covert recordings in expert assessments, liability in road traffic accidents involving excessive speed and an occupiers’ liability case involving trespass. We also look at a range of clinical negligence decisions addressing obstetric care, surgical treatment and breach without causation. In addition, we have our usual round-up of other news, cases and webinars.

New terms of reference for UK product liability reform project

Life Sciences analysis: On 8 December 2025, the UK Law Commission published its Terms of Reference (ToR) for its product liability law review, providing some further insight into the project. As we anticipated earlier in the year, the scope of the project is broad and the trend may well be towards a more claimant-friendly regime, as in the EU. The Life Sciences team at Freshfields LLP considers the issues.

The Law Society’s AI strategy and response to government

The Law Society has responded to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology’s call for evidence on the AI Growth Lab, stressing the need for a proportionate regulatory approach that supports innovation while maintaining professional standards. In a press release dated 6 January 2026, the sector’s widespread willingness to embrace lawtech was highlighted, with two-thirds of lawyers said to ‘already use AI tools in their work’, alongside an ongoing uncertainty as to the risks and ‘exact requirements for data security, oversight and liability’. Separately, The Law Society’s ‘Introduction to lawtech’ guide published on 29 December 2025 observed that client demand for ‘greater efficiency, transparency and cost control, especially in corporate legal services’ has been a key driver for AI usage, with larger firms leading adoption and medium-sized firms catching up. The Law Society says it will continue to work with the government to ensure AI benefits both firms and clients, with its strategy focused on the following three key outcomes: i) innovation in legal service delivery; ii) an effective AI regulatory landscape, influenced by the legal sector; and iii) integrity through responsible AI use, supporting the rule of law and access to justice. Links to consultation responses and downloadable submissions on a range of AI-related issues, including data processing, ransomware resilience and the use of AI outputs in criminal proceedings (among others), are included on The Law Society’s ‘AI and lawtech: government policy and regulation’ page (updated on 18 December 2025), which also invites members to share their views and identify any gaps in support or guidance.

Master of the Rolls updates solicitors’ guideline hourly rates for 2026

The Master of the Rolls has announced updated guideline hourly rates for solicitors, effective in England and Wales from 1 January 2026, implementing a 2.28% uplift to reflect more recent service producer price inflation figures up to Q1 2025. Sir Geoffrey Vos, as Head of Civil Justice, has confirmed that the update follows the Civil Justice Council’s recommendation as part of its strategic review of costs, following a previous 6.66% inflationary uplift applied in January 2024, and has indicated that a Civil Justice Council working group is examining whether new guideline rates should also be developed for counsel’s fees and complex commercial work, with an interim report expected later in 2026.

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