Temperatures tagged

In the fevered world that is conditional fee agreements (CFAs) at the moment, it is hardly a surprise that each side is using every opportunity to claim victories over the other.

But the external PR machine used by Manchester firm Rowe Cohen - acting for The Accident Group in its high-profile litigation - almost blew up in smoke last week after the senior costs judge's decision on a key preliminary issue.

Hailing it as a landmark ruling, a press release explained breathlessly: 'Master Hurst ruled that TAG clients are entitled to recover their legal insurance premium, and solicitors acting on their behalf can recover their costs from the defendant.' A landmark ruling indeed, only let down by the tiny detail that this part of the press release bore absolutely no resemblance to Master Hurst's actual ruling.

A revised and far more accurate release arrived the following day, but this little episode is unlikely to have brought the temperature down much.