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David Crawford, are you in fact a qualified solicitor? Your comments read as though you are either a 16 year old teenager studying GCSE law (and getting it wrong), or a dinosaur who thinks the White Book is the latest in the Dan Brown series...?

If you lack understanding then have the decency and professionalism to acknowledge it and pipe down.

The Judge got this absolutely spot on. Yes the claim failed on full causation, but was successful on part causation. The evidence to undermine the full causation claim came to light at the 11th hour, or so it seems. The Claimant lawyer had two choices - march on to Trial without ATE approval and without expert opinion, or accept the P36 offer on the table. The latter is the obvious choice. The client benefits from the damages, the ATE pays the Def's costs and the Claimant firm loses all costs since the date the initial offer expired.

The lesson here for Defendants, and indeed Claimants, is to withdraw offers you no longer wish to make. Its pretty basic CPR stuff - even for teenagers and dinosaurs.