Nicholas Bacon QC who led the appeal for the Claimant in the Court of Appeal described the decision as probably the most significant costs case post Jackson. It brings to an end years of uncertainty over the assignment of solicitors’ retainers and legitimatises the transfer arrangements which were deployed in the case and thousands of others. It is a tremendous victory for the solicitors profession and indeed for those members of the Bar whose fees were caught up in the assignment arguments up and down the country.
Hot off the press this morning comes the much anticipated handing down of the judgment in Budana v The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.This case has been closely followed due to the vast implications on the legal profession as a whole, and more specifically those firms that have based their business models on buying cases and transferring the benefits of the prior funding arrangements entered into.Having been ‘leapfrogged’ to the Court of Appeal directly from the County Court, today’s hand down of judgment legitimises the assignment of solicitors’ retainers and the transfer of arrangements which were deployed in thousands of cases.Quite a few firms will breathe a collective sigh of relief I am sure…
