In Higgins & Co Lawyers Ltd v Evans, the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court held that the death clause contained in the standard Law Society Model Conditional Fee Agreement, which allows a firm to terminate the agreement on the client’s death and recover basic charges from the estate, is valid and enforceable.
CPR 3.8 provides that any sanction arising from a litigant’s failure to comply with a rule, practice direction or court order will have effect “unless the party in default applies for and obtains relief from the sanction”. In Boodia v Yatsyna, the Court of Appeal confirmed that this does not fetter the court’s ability to grant such relief of its own motion.
On behalf of the Practical Law Dispute Resolution team, we would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all our bloggers for their excellent contributions to the blog this year and to you for reading. We wish you a joyful festive period and a happy, healthy and safe New Year.
The Practical Law Dispute Resolution blog will resume in January. Until then, should you find yourself short of legal reading over the holiday period, why not pick up our Article, Practical Law Dispute Resolution: what to expect in 2022.
