Litigation Notes

High Court orders commercial parties to mediate shortly before trial

Pre-action protocols: Civil Justice Council proposes bespoke protocol for commercial cases, including mandatory pre-action "dispute resolution process"

Whether and how the recommendations are implemented will be a matter for the Civil Procedure Rules Committee.

The without prejudice rule: High Court finds there is no separate "mediation privilege"

The decision also proposes modest expansions to two key exceptions to the without prejudice rule

Offers to mediate: It is not the offeror's responsibility to chase a response

The Court of Appeal has overturned a trial judge's refusal to impose costs sanctions on a party who failed to respond to an offer to mediate, where …

Proposed rule changes regarding the court’s power to compel ADR

The Civil Procedure Rule Committee (CPRC) is consulting on draft amendments to the Civil Procedure Rules regarding the court’s power …

High Court refuses to stay proceedings commenced in breach of valid ADR clause

The High Court has exercised its discretion against ordering a stay of proceedings that had been commenced in breach of a clause which obliged the …

Commercial litigation podcast series – Episode 22: General update

Article published - UK compulsory mediation ruling still leaves courts leeway

The Court of Appeal's landmark judgment in Churchill v Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council, handed down in late November, established that the courts …

Courts can compel parties to engage in ADR: Court of Appeal finds comments to the contrary in Halsey not binding

In a landmark decision handed down today, the Court of Appeal has held that the court can order the parties to engage in ADR, or stay the proceedings to …

Commercial litigation podcast series – Episode 21: General update

Correspondence about possibility of ADR was not "without prejudice" despite being marked as such

Pre-action protocols: Civil Justice Council recommends mandatory pre-action ADR but will consider more flexible bespoke protocol for commercial cases

The Civil Justice Council (CJC) has issued a report recommending substantial changes to the regime of pre-action protocols (PAPs) which parties are …