Paying party meaning

This Checklist outlines how to secure an order for assessment of costs owed to a solicitor by their client, together with the steps to be taken. CPR 46.10 sets out the assessment process and identifies the court documents that must be filed. Timing in which an application for assessment must be made Section 70 of the Solicitors Act 1974 (SA 1974) provides the route by which either the solicitor or the ‘party chargeable’ (usually the client) may seek assessment of the solicitor’s bill. When proceeding under SA 1974, s 70, timing is crucial because strict deadlines apply. Whether the invoice has been paid is also material. Under SA 1974, s 70(1), if the client asks for assessment within one month of delivery of the bill, the solicitor is barred from starting any action on the bill, and the client is entitled to an assessment as of right without paying any sum into court...

JXX (a protected party by his litigation friend ABB) v Archibald [2025] Lexis Citation 43 In JXX (a protected party by his litigation friend ABB) v Archibald [2025] Lexis Citation 43, Costs Judge Rowley addressed a challenge where the defendant said the claimant’s Bill of Costs was defective because no expert fee notes were supplied and there were no separate itemisations for the medical agency’s charges and the experts’ own fees. The defendant invited the court either to strike out the Bill or to assess the expert fees at nil. Having examined the key points, the judge concluded that comparisons could be drawn with the often sparse detail on counsel’s fee notes, which still require judicial scrutiny. Mr Mallalieu submitted—and the court accepted—that further particulars can be demanded where necessary. However, on a standard basis assessment the evidential burden rests with the receiving party. If a terse invoice prompts the court to doubt whether a bare figure on a fee note is reasonable, it is the receiving party who...

Appeal by Dmitrii Ovsiannikov over UK Russia sanctions conviction Dmitrii Ovsiannikov, once a politician for Russia’s ruling party, has filed an appeal after his April conviction for breaching the UK’s Russia sanctions. He was found guilty of six counts of circumventing sanctions under the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, SI 2019/855, alongside two counts of money laundering. At Southwark Crown Court, a judge handed the former Russian trade minister and ex‑governor of Russian‑occupied Sevastopol a 40‑month prison term. Liam Lane of Peters & Peters, who acted for Ovsiannikov, confirmed an application had been submitted on his behalf. Ovsiannikov’s brother, Alexei Owsjanikow, received a 15‑month sentence, fully suspended, after he too was convicted of circumventing sanctions for paying the school fees of Ovsiannikov’s children. Owsjanikow’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment. These convictions and sentences were the first in the UK for breaches of its sanctions on Russia and linked individuals...

VMA Services Limited v Project One London Limited [2025] EWHC 1815 (TCC) What are the practical implications of this case? The decision underscores that where an employer (or main contractor) does not issue a compliant Payment or Pay Less Notice, the contractor (or sub‑contractor) becomes entitled to the notified sum — namely the figure stated in the payee’s default payment notice — and the adjudicator may direct immediate payment of that amount, without need for a further adjudication. Paying the notified sum is a mandatory, immediate legal obligation of payment. A true valuation adjudication cannot be used by the employer (or main contractor) to challenge liability or quantum until the notified sum has first been paid in full. Accordingly, serving valid Payment or Pay Less Notices is essential to preserve the right to contest payment figures through the adjudication process and to avoid surrendering the opportunity. It also confirms an adjudicator’s jurisdiction to make a monetary award in favour of a responding party where, within the scope of...

Fixed recoverable costs (FRC) Fixed recoverable costs (FRC) set out the sums recoverable from the paying party in litigation, introduced to promote clarity and proportionality in legal spend and process. The intention is that would-be litigants are not deterred by the risk of adverse costs exposure. FRC are now routine across several litigation spheres, though they are not universally applicable in every claim. As the landscape continues to change, this tracker seeks to chart the major milestones in the reform of FRC and offer granular guidance on particular stages and phases. CPR provisions on fixed costs For an overview of the present fixed costs rules and a pathway to related materials and analysis, see: Fixed costs (position on or after 1 October 2023)—checklist. Timeline of key events in fixed recoverable costs reform October 2025 (consultation closes on 5 January 2026) — The Civil Procedure Rule Committee (CPRC) has opened a consultation assessing the effectiveness of the FRC expansion, inviting feedback and evidence as...

THIS PRACTICE NOTE APPLIES IN RELATION TO DEFINED BENEFIT OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEMES This Practice Note sets out approaches for addressing a section 75 debt in the context of a transaction, with particular emphasis on multi-employer schemes where a range of options may exist. It also outlines considerations connected to the Pensions Regulator's clearance process and the notifiable events regime. For trustee-focused considerations when deciding how a section 75 debt should be managed on an employment cessation event, see Practice Note: employment cessation events—trustee decision-making process. For matters specific to section 75 debts triggered during a group reorganisation, see Practice Note: Intra-group reorganisations and pensions. Determining whether a section 75 debt will be triggered Section 75 debt triggers A section 75 debt (often called an 'employer debt') may become payable by the employer of a defined benefit occupational pension scheme where: the scheme is a multi-employer arrangement and an employment cessation event occurs in relation to that employer (described in this Practice...

This Practice Note offers a concise outline of the principal considerations relating to detailed assessment. Use it as a starting guide and read it alongside the following Practice Notes, which provide fuller, more detailed coverage: Detailed assessment—what is it, who does it and where? Detailed assessment—commencement Detailed assessment—the hearing Detailed assessment—costs, settlement and agreement What is detailed assessment? A detailed assessment is the process by which the court decides what sum the paying party must pay the receiving party for litigation costs. It applies where the parties cannot reach agreement on costs and where a summary assessment is not suitable. For an introduction to summary assessment and the circumstances in which it is undertaken, see: Summary assessment—overview. The framework for detailed assessment is set out in CPR 47 and CPR PD 47. As a general rule, the costs of the proceedings (or any part of them) are not assessed on a detailed basis until the case has concluded. The court...

1 Amount of interest We will credit a reasonable amount of interest to clients or third parties on any client funds we are holding for them. 2 Circumstances in which interest will not be paid We will not pay interest: 2.1 on funds we are directed to keep outside of a client account in a manner that earns no interest, eg cash held in our safe; 2.2 where the amount of interest, as assessed under this policy, falls below £[ 30 ] [ —on the basis that the costs financially associated with paying that interest are disproportionate to the amount involved overall ] ; 2.3 where we agree an alternative arrangement, in writing, with the client or third party for whom the money is held—when this occurs, we will provide sufficient appropriate information to enable the client or the third party to give informed consent (see ‘Contracting out’ at section 9 below); 2.4 [ on money held for the Legal Aid...

3 Agreement to surrender Summary of the Agreement between the Landlord, Tenant [and Guarantor] dated [date] for the Lease of the [Property or Surrendered Property]. It adopts the Standard Commercial Property Conditions (Third Edition—2018 Revision) with modifications. Key defined terms include Actual Completion Date, Surrender Date, Premium, Rent, Interest and VAT. On the Surrender Date, the Tenant surrenders its interest with [full or limited] title guarantee by executing the Deed of Surrender or Transfer, settling Rent to date, and yielding possession [and keys]. The Landlord accepts by executing the counterpart, taking possession [and paying any agreed Premium/Chattels Price]. Deposits, apportionments and any Rent Deposit follow the Agreement and Standard Conditions. Subject to stated carve-outs, mutual releases apply from the Actual Completion Date; any outstanding Insurance Rent and Service Charge are payable on demand. Completion mechanics, Interest on delay, and any Guarantor’s consent are as set out. Costs, Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 matters, entire agreement, severance, continuation for any Remainder, governing...

[ Insert client’s address ] 1 Purpose of this letter This letter sets out how income tax and National Insurance contributions (NICs) apply when staff entertainment (for example, parties) and gifts are provided, and the implications for both employees and the employer. For the purposes of this letter, references to employees also include directors and other office holders, eg the company secretary, of the employing company. 2 Staff entertainment—income tax and NICs treatment Offering a party or staff event to employees will ordinarily create a taxable benefit for each individual, subject to income tax and Class 1A NICs. The benefit must be reported on the P11D, or covered by a PAYE Settlement Agreement (PSA) if one is in place with HMRC. A PSA is used where the employer agrees to settle any income tax and the associated Class 1A NICs arising on the provision of minor or irregular benefits on behalf of its employees, with the employer instead paying Class 1B NICs under the PSA. This...

A rentcharge is an amount due from a landowner to a third party lacking any proprietary stake or right in that land, and so it clearly differs from ground rent, which a leaseholder pays to the freeholder. Developers frequently used rentcharges to facilitate development and building on land without paying the landowner a premium for it, with the owner receiving an ongoing income from the land instead. The Rentcharges Act 1977 (RcA 1977) banned the creation of any new rentcharges, save for narrow exceptions, and mandated that most existing rentcharges would end by the year 2037 (RcA 1977, s 3). An estate rentcharge remains one such preserved exception...

IR35 The off-payroll IR35 framework applies where: from 6 April 2017, the engager is a public authority; and from 6 April 2020, a private sector organisation (other than one that is ‘small’) hires a worker via an intermediary, for example a personal service company (PSC). The legislation takes effect in respect of payments made on or after those dates, even where such payments relate to services delivered before those dates. This applies without regard to precisely when the work was performed. In essence, and in practical terms, the off-payroll IR35 rules move the task of deciding whether IR35 applies from the PSC to the end client in relevant cases and, where IR35 does apply, they place the duty to deduct income tax and National Insurance contributions (NICs) on the party nearest to the PSC in the contractual chain (whether that is the end client contracting directly with the PSC, or another intermediary within more complicated contractual structures). IR35 is engaged...

In financial remedy proceedings, it is usual for one party to earn on a self-employed footing as a sole trader in practice. Instead of using a separate legal personality, for example a company acting as the primary earning vehicle and paying salary and dividends, they trade in a chosen style or their own name and settle personal income tax on profits. Business costs are set off in the ordinary manner, and accounts are normally drawn up for this very purpose. Some sole traders simply run income and outgoings through a personal bank account, while others prefer to operate from a separate, dedicated business account...