Costly tendency

I was surprised to read the view that the increasing tendency of the Supreme Court Costs Office to slash inter partes costs was, in any sense, a triumph for the Woolf reforms (see [2001] Gazette, 31 August, 4).As a civil litigator, my view is quite the opposite.

I believe the statistics show that the cost effectiveness of court proceedings for successful litigants is decreasing as the extent and predictability of inter partes costs recovery is reduced.The wholly unjust consequence of this tendency is to leave the successful party even further short of full indemnity for the costs actually spent in conducting the litigation.This failing is particularly serious as compliance with the court rules is now significantly more time-consuming than before the Woolf 'reforms'.Robin Tilbrook, Ongar, Essex