Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Disputes definition

What does Disputes mean? In legal practice, disputes are disagreements giving rise to potential legal rights and remedies between parties, addressed through dispute resolution including litigation, arbitration and ADR such as mediation and negotiation. The term is descriptive rather than a defined statutory concept; the substantive rights and procedures arise from statute and common law. Typical features include identification of the cause of action, applicable limitation periods, choice of jurisdiction and forum, compliance with pre-action protocols or pre-action correspondence, disclosure/discovery, evidence, settlement, costs and enforcement. Usage is broadly consistent across England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland, though civil procedure differs: CPR in England...

Drafting settlement agreements in civil disputes: parties, consideration, conditional obligations, releases/estoppel, third-party rights, payment/CCA, allocations, costs, confidentiality, ADR, Tomlin orders, and execution—England and Wales

Published by a LexisNexis Dispute Resolution expert

Practice notes

This Practice Note explores the principal considerations when preparing a Settlement Agreement: correctly identifying the parties (including any relevant third parties), expressing obligations with clarity and sufficient compulsion (covering time is of the essence and endeavours provisions), drafting the release (the ‘full and final settlement’ estoppel), and incorporating appropriate boilerplate clauses and execution formalities.

For guidance on making a settlement offer and deciding how to record it, see Practice Notes:

Settling Disputes—settlement offers (Calderbank, WPSAC and Part 36)
Settling disputes—how to document a settlement
Settling at a mediation

For Precedent draft settlement agreements, see:

Draft Settlement agreement—pre-action settlement
Draft Settlement agreement—for settling disputes post-commencement of proceedings

For guidance on disputes arising from a settlement agreement, see Practice Note: Resolving disputes concerning settlement agreements.

Key requirements—drafting the settlement contract

As with any contract, attention should be given to these core elements:

consideration (unless executed as a deed)—see: Drafting settlement agreements—consideration below
parties to the agreement/deed—see: Drafting settlement agreements—parties and authority below
the effective date—see: Drafting settlement agreements—the effective date below
the parties’ obligations—see: Drafting settlement agreements—the parties’ obligations below
relevant warranties and indemnities—see: Drafting settlement...

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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