New consultation for a more affordable and equitable civil justice system

A consultation on proposals for primary legislation on the expenses and funding of civil litigation has been published, with all those involved in or considering litigating in the civil courts encouraged to make their views known.

The proposed bill would increase access to justice by:

The main focus of the consultation is the elements of Sheriff Principal James Taylor’s Review of Expenses and Funding of Civil Litigation in Scotland (2013) identified in the Scottish government’s response to the review as requiring implementation by primary legislation.

Included is a package of proposals on speculative fee agreements, damages based agreements and qualified one-way costs shifting to provide safeguards and ensure that those embarking on civil litigation do so with full information on the likely financial impact of winning or losing the case.

The consultation also seeks views on some outstanding recommendations from Lord Gill’s Scottish Civil Courts Review (2009), including the potential to introduce a procedure for multi-party actions and provisions relating to the auditor of court and sheriff court auditors.

The consultation closes on April 24.

Community safety and legal affairs secretary Paul Wheelhouse (pictured) said: “The role which expenses play in the context of civil litigation cannot be underestimated.

“As Sheriff Principal Taylor set out in his review, the current unpredictability of the costs of civil litigation impacts on access to justice.

“The Scottish government agrees that the current situation where the unpredictability of costs represents a barrier to justice is not acceptable. I am convinced that the proposals in our consultation will go a long way to making the Scottish civil litigation system much more accessible to the people of Scotland.”