Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Summary assessment definition

What does Summary assessment mean? A court’s on-the-spot determination of the amount of costs one party must pay the other at the end of a hearing, instead of applying fixed costs or sending the bill to detailed assessment. In England and Wales, summary assessment of costs is provided for by CPR r 44.6 and PD 44 and is commonly made after interim applications and at the end of fast track trials. The receiving party typically serves a statement of costs (Form N260/N260A). The judge assesses what is reasonable and proportionate on the standard or indemnity basis, taking into account conduct, offers (including Part 36), and...

Summary assessment of costs under CPR: guidance from the Commercial Court, Circuit Commercial Court, King's Bench Division, SCCO and TCC, plus Rolls Building practice note (England and Wales)

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Practice notes

This Practice Note sets out guidance on Summary assessment for matters in the Commercial Court, King’s Bench Division (KBD), Senior Court Costs Office and the Technology and Construction Court (TCC). The material in the court guides is supplementary to the CPR and its practice directions. Note: the Chancery Guide 2022 contains no dedicated guidance on summary assessment...

Commercial Court Guide

F13.1–F13.3 of the Commercial Court Guide deal with Costs. A short overview of key points from those paragraphs is outlined below...

Circumstances in which the court may summarily assess costs—applications

Paragraph F13.1 confirms that the rules governing the award and assessment of costs are set out in CPR 44, 45, 46, 47 and 48. The court will adopt summary assessment in the following situations:

Ordinary applications, ie those lasting less than half a day
All cases where the successful party’s schedule of costs does not exceed £250,000

Further, parties should be ready for the court to undertake a summary assessment even for a heavy application where costs are above that level (Commercial Court Guide, para F13.2)...

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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