Case-track limits and the claims process for personal injury claims

The long-awaited and much heralded government proposals for the reform of personal injury litigation have united claimant and defendant solicitors alike in their condemnation of what is proposed and what is not. In its editorial of 24 July the Law Society Gazette reminded us of the declaration of the previous Lord Chancellor that ‘real reform’ was needed, commenting that whether he was right or wrong, this is not it. ‘Climb down’, ‘ducked’, ‘bit the dust’, ‘missed opportunity’, ‘substantial backtracking’, ‘avoidance of the real issues’, ‘failure’, ‘retreat’, ‘tinkering’ ‘widespread disappointment’ and ‘a waste of time and effort’ are epithets we have taken at random from statements in the legal press. Although the consultation was about public injury claims, the reforms have been emaciated by excluding employer’s and public liability claims from the proposed new process, and by including only road traffic claims up to £10,000.