Group litigation: the bigger the better?

By Tim Barr, Womble Bond Dickinson

US class actions may not currently exist in the UK, but with the establishment of damage-based agreements, collective conditional fee arrangements and a growing litigation funding market, we have an increasingly supportive litigation environment for group litigation. As at 22 May 2018, the High Court had issued 105 group litigation orders (GLOs) and there have been many more large groups of claims that have been court managed without the GLO label. Becoming adept at handling this type of litigation and managing the significant level of legal costs arising is therefore crucial to both sides of the claimant/defendant divide. The recent cost management guidance provided by Chief Master Marsh at the costs management stage in Various Claimants v Scott Fowler Solicitors and Others [2018] EWHC 1891 (Ch) is therefore worthy of consideration for those involved in UK group litigation.