Tour operators should benefit from reforms to litigation costs and funding introduced as part of the Jackson Reforms, according to a travel law expert.
Lord Justice Jackson’s reforms, introduced in April this year, are the biggest changes to court procedures in more than a decade.
They seek to make court costs more proportionate to the case and end Conditional Fee Agreements, better known as ‘no win, no fee’ arrangements, which were driving up court costs.
Under the reforms, the success fee can no longer be recovered from the losing party.
To offset this, a 10% increase in general damages has been introduced and lawyers will be able to take a cut from any damages won by the claimant.
Speaking at a Vantage Insurance Services professional seminar held for tour operators, Alex Padfield, managing director of law firm Hextalls, said:
“Tour operators will be slightly better off. I think what we will see is that more cases will be settled more quickly.
“Cases that are “bent” will be more worthwhile fighting because the risk you take is less.
“In the old days, solicitors could double their fees if they won at trial. The Jackson reforms have taken that away.
“They [solicitors] will still get their costs but they are not allowed to charge as much as before. They have to charge costs that are proportionate to the damages.”