Recovering Your Industrial Disease Costs
Highly effective costs team with vast experience in personal injury costs claims. We have had great success in handling and negotiating costs in industrial disease claims for unsafe working conditions, including claims for NIHL, HAVS, RSI, VWF, dermatitis and high-value mesothelioma claims.
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Industrial Disease Costs
A claim for compensation can be brought against an employer if they have not followed the correct Health and Safety Procedures, leading to an employee sustaining an injury as a result. Common types of industrial disease claims include Noise Induced Hearing Loss, repetitive strain injuries and injuries such as dermatitis caused by a dangerous substance.
Winning industrial disease claims also result in a claim for legal costs.
Dealing with costs in claims for industrial disease compensation can be particularly challenging due to their often multi-Defendant nature. Many of these claims can involve complex medical evidence, multiple experts, causation challenges, as well as multiple paying parties and their insurers. This inevitably makes dealing with the costs of these claims notably difficult.
Industrial disease costs can be subject to fixed recoverable costs if they are low value and settle on the Portal, otherwise they will fall into the open costs regime. When industrial disease cases exit the MOJ Portal, they inevitably become complicated matters given the aforementioned factors, and costs can subsequently build as a result.
Why Choose ARC Costs?
ARC Costs have developed a specialist in-house team to help maximise your industrial disease costs recovery.
Industrial disease costs claims are often for a considerable amount given the extensive investigative and evidential requirements, and due to this they are regularly challenged by paying parties, particularly on a proportionality basis. ARC Costs specialise in recovering at least 50% of your costs incurred as an interim payment in the early stages of a dispute, with most costs claims resolving within 1 – 2 months of service of the Bill. If the claim is to be contested to a detailed assessment hearing, generally we will obtain 70% of the costs claimed as an interim payment on account, ensuring you can continue to fund other cases.
How Can We Assist?
Proportionality and apportionment are highly disputed aspects of industrial disease costs, with common law continuously developing in this area. ARC Costs are at the forefront of leading these arguments, being highly successful in ensuring assessments correctly apply the proportionality principle, and also in ensuring that paying parties pay their full 100% liability for costs, with arguments often arising as to how costs should be split between Defendants and insurers.
Dependant upon the claim type, it is recommended you seek advice at the outset of any claim. High value asbestos-type matters warrant higher hourly rates given the complexity, and it is worthwhile ensuring you get your retainer and hourly rates right from the outset.
Further input will be necessary throughout the claim, particularly in preparing and negotiating your Costs Budget (as disease matters are often allocated to the Multi Track), which is critical to get right to ensure maximum recovery on assessment. On high-value matters, if Judgment is also entered, it is crucial an interim payment for damages and costs is secured on account to ensure ongoing funding of the claim. On successful conclusion, following preparation of the Bill of Costs we will assist in negotiating recovery of your outstanding industrial disease costs, ensuring that any
What We Do Best
Our dedicated and experienced law costing team provide a wide array of legal costs services to fee earners and solicitors. Find out more by following the links below.
Bills of Costs
A well-prepared bill of costs should accurately explain the work undertaken and provide a defensible basis for recovery. Our costs draftsmen prepare bills covering fee earner time, disbursements and the relevant stages of litigation.
We review the supporting records, identify issues that may affect recovery and help present the claim clearly. Our service can continue through Points of Reply, negotiations and detailed assessment where agreement cannot be reached.
Costs Budgets & Management
Costs budgets need to reflect the proposed directions, anticipated evidence and resources required to conduct the case. Underestimating future work can create difficulties later, while unrealistic assumptions may undermine negotiations.
We prepare Precedent H budgets, assist with Precedent R budget discussion reports and advise on revisions where developments warrant them. Our costs lawyers can also provide representation at costs and case management conferences.
Points of Dispute
If you have received a claim for costs, we can examine whether the hours, rates and items claimed are properly recoverable.
We prepare points of dispute supported by the circumstances of the case, rather than relying on general objections. We also advise on settlement offers, the likely costs of continuing the dispute and whether further proceedings are proportionate.
Detailed assessment and advocacy
Where negotiations do not resolve the issues, our costs lawyers can assist with detailed assessment proceedings and representation within their authorised scope of practice.
Preparation includes reviewing the disputed items, supporting evidence and relevant authorities. We explain the strengths and weaknesses of your position so you can decide whether to settle or proceed.
Legal aid and specialist litigation costs
We support legal professionals with legal aid billing and costs claims, alongside work involving personal injury, clinical negligence, commercial litigation, housing disrepair and Court of Protection matters.
The appropriate approach depends on the funding arrangements, proceedings and applicable rules. We establish those requirements before preparing the relevant documents.