SCCO meaning

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...

The Executors of the Estate of Kenneth Collins v The Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police [2026] EWHC 117 (SCCO) What are the practical implications of this case? Costs Judge Whalan’s decision that wrongful interference with goods may amount to an intentional tort will interest practitioners bringing claims against the police, particularly where disputes over fixed recoverable costs might arise in that arena. Of broader significance are the conclusions on how the fixed costs transitional provisions in the Civil Procedure (Amendment No 2) Rules 2023, SI 2023/572, should operate. The court received an extensive and wide‑ranging submission from the claimants on those provisions. That submission relied on the Minutes of the Civil Procedure Rules Committee from November 2023, which suggested that fixed costs were not engaged where the only live proceeding was a costs‑only Part 8 claim. The court has determined that costs‑only proceedings do qualify as a ‘claim’ for the purposes of the 2023 transitional provisions and, consequently, FRCs do apply where such proceedings are commenced on...

Challis v Bradpiece [2024] EWHC 1124 (SCCO) What are the practical implications of this case? This appears to be the first judgment (so far as the writer is aware) to squarely consider whether qualified one-way costs shifting extends to detailed assessment proceedings. The ruling will assist claimant solicitors, who can now confidently tell clients that QOCS protection runs for the full duration of a personal injury claim. Those representing defendants are likely to be dismayed, as this removes a valuable bargaining lever, notably in matters where the principal claim was issued before the April 2023 revisions to the QOCS rules. As the hearing took place in the Supreme Court Costs Office, its precedential weight is, in most situations, persuasive rather than binding, and therefore does not rule out further challenges. Even so, the deputy costs judge undertook a comprehensive examination of the submissions and authorities, meaning that fresh, compelling grounds would probably be required to convince a court to disapply QOCS in later cases...

This Practice Note summarises key and illustrative rulings on the use of the court’s discretionary power under CPR 3.1(7) to vary or revoke an order, covering: Instances where the court has varied or revoked an order under CPR 3.1(7) Instances where the court has refused to vary or revoke an order under CPR 3.1(7) For the governing principles and guidance on applying to vary or revoke under CPR 3.1(7), see Practice Note: Varying or revoking orders—court’s general power under CPR 3.1(7). For a tabular summary of the different CPR mechanisms for amending court orders, see: Judgments and orders—overview. Examples of when the court has varied or revoked an order under CPR 3.1(7) Case details Stockler v The Corporation of the Hall of The Arts and Sciences, 21 November 2025, County Court at Central London, Senior Courts Costs Office, [2025] EWHC 3080 (SCCO) Key notes from the decision In this matter, part two of the defendant’s bill of costs...

For an at‑a‑glance, high‑level outline of the civil court structure and hierarchy in England and Wales, see: Courts and Tribunals Judiciary—Structure of Courts and Tribunals System. Several civil courts issue a court guide explaining how business in that court should be managed, which operates alongside, and in addition to, further guidance given in the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR). For further details, see Practice Note: Court guides and other guidance. For information on: claims that must be brought and issued in the County Court, see Practice Note: Starting civil claims in the County Court commencing a claim under CPR 8 (alternative procedure for claims where there is no substantial dispute of fact), see Practice Note: CPR Part 8 claims (alternative procedure for claims) High Court or the County Court? Whether proceedings ought to be issued in the High Court or the County Court is, in the main, determined by the claim’s value. This Practice Note addresses starting a claim under CPR 7. The...

This Practice Note sets out where to start detailed assessment proceedings, which documents must be lodged and/or served, the deadline for commencing such proceedings, and the repercussions of failing to do so in time. It also addresses whether the paying party may obtain a stay of the detailed assessment while an appeal is pending. Be aware that paras 10.1–10.7 of the Senior Courts Costs Office Guide offer general guidance on the commencement of detailed assessment proceedings. CE-File electronic filing is compulsory in the Senior Courts Costs Office (SCCO) (CPR PD 5C, para 1.3(d) and CPR PD 5C, para 2.1(a)). For further details on electronic filing in the SCCO, see Practice Note: CE-File—electronic filing in the Senior Court Costs Office. Informal negotiation prior to the commencement of detailed assessment In McNamee v LB Brent (2025), the judge observed that an essential part of the costs recovery process is for informal negotiations about the receiving party’s costs to occur during the period before detailed assessment proceedings are commenced...