You may have heard me explain this before but, below a certain level, bringing a claim through the courts is unlikely to be cost-effective. Where that level is depends on the client and the circumstances but I have heard anything from £50,000 to £300,000.
Well from Monday, that ‘level’ gets nudged a little higher as the cost of issuing a claim at court is being hiked up (see below). The Law Society campaigned against the increases but they were sanctioned last night in the House of Lords.
It makes financial sense for the government – the hope is that the levy will bring in £120m a year to fund the court service – but for businesses, mediation may well be the smarter option. And from Monday, in most cases, mediation fees will also cost less than paying the court fee to file the claim.
| Value of claim £ | Fee now £ (paper) | New fee £ | Increase in fee £ | % increase |
| 20,000 | 610 | 1,000 | 390 | 64% |
| 40,000 | 610 | 2,000 | 1,390 | 228% |
| 90,000 | 910 | 4,500 | 3,590 | 395% |
| 150,000 | 1,315 | 7,500 | 6,185 | 470% |
| 190,000 | 1,315 | 9,500 | 8,185 | 622% |
| 200,000 | 1,515 | 10,000 | 8,725 | 576% |
| 250,000 | 1,720 | 10,000 | 8,280 | 481% |