Why did I jinx everything yesterday with this post? False dawn – we didn’t even get to dusk.
This is a week in which an LSC assessor did not understand that a Committal for Sentence, on a guilty plea, is a Cat 1 standard fee as per CBAM 3.5.7 (this section of CBAM appears to be mis-numbered*). A single example but one which demonstrates the problem we deal with all the time – assessors not understanding the basic rules.
This has been compounded by another, worse example in the last 24 hours. I am not going to go into the detail, we hope they will quietly accept this being pointed out and relax with our clients.
There is clearly a bigger problem here, especially with regard to CMs training in costs assessment – however when the “specialists” get it wrong too where does that leave you? I have said it before and I will say it again you do not have the necessary “competence” in this area until you have done 5 presentations before a Cost Committee.
I always couch my telephone advice re costs on a, “would I be prepared to argue that point before a CC of 3 knowledgeable lawyers” basis. We would certainly see a more cautious, less self assured approach/attitude if CMs knew that that was where they were going to end up.
* This is the level of anorakedness we get to at JRS. (Just spotted another at table 9a of the Civil payment annex).
