Nicholas Bacon QC
Costs
There is not an area of the law of costs that Nick Bacon does not or cannot deal with.
Nick Bacon is probably one of the best-known leading barristers in his specialised field of costs. He is described in the Legal 500 as having “probably the biggest costs practice at the Bar” and by Chambers and Partners as being "top of the tree in this field". He has appeared in practically all of the most important costs funding cases in recent years. He is a recognised specialist in that area having been appointed as an Assessor in the High Court on appeals against costs assessments.
He advises on all aspects of inter parties and Solicitor Act assessments and represents both claimants and defendants, insurers and funders and solicitors either pursing costs or defending clients’ challenges to their fees. He has been instructed in some of the largest costs claims to come before the courts, including the BCCI v. Bank of England claim where the costs exceeded £70M. He is currently retained in the largest costs assessment in English legal history involving over £105M.
He is an advisor to a number of Unions and Incorporated Associations and Membership Organisations in respect of Collective Conditional Fee agreement structures and related legal expense insurance arrangements.
He has advised some of the leading Third Party funders in the market on terms of indemnities and “premium” recovery.
He is often retained by the leading ATE insurers to advise not just on premium recovery but on the form and content of LEI policies underlying the insurance. He is often instructed to advise on and draft associated panel solicitor documentation.
He was junior counsel in the House of Lords for the successful claimant in Callery v Gray (HL) (2002) 1 WLR 2000 which was and remains the leading case on the recovery of success fees and insurance premiums. He appeared as Counsel in the House of Lords in KAC v. Iraqi Airways Company on an Incidental Petition concerning the recovery of costs. He has been instructed in most of the significant conditional fee agreement/ after the event insurance premium cases in the Court of Appeal including the seminal case on the enforceability of conditional fee agreements, Hollins v Russell (CA) (2003) 1 WLR 2487 and subsequently Garrett v. Halton Borough Council; Myatt v. National Coal Board [2007] 1 WLR 554. He appeared for the Appellant in the Court of Appeal in the first discounted fee agreement test case of Gloucestershire County Council v. Evans [2008] EWCA Civ 21 and in Butt v. Nizami [2006] 1 WLR 3307. He represented the successful Respondent before the Master of the Rolls in the recent fixed costs case of Kilby v. Gawith [2008] WLR (D) 163.
He appeared for the successful Respondent in the lead Costs Capping case of Willis v. Nicholson [2007] EWCA Civ 199
He was instructed at first instance and on appeal in the Court of Appeal in the Claims Direct Test Cases [2003] Lloyd’s Law Reports 67 and subsequently in The Accident Group Test Cases [2004] 3 All ER 325. He was instructed for the Defendant in the RSA Pursuit Test Cases (27 May 2006) where he achieved the largest reduction to any of the premiums claimed.
He was a member of Lord Justice Jackson’s working group on the report into Civil Costs Review.