Capping in group litigation

Various claimants v Corby BC [2008] EWHC 619 (TCC) 1 April

The claimants were children born to mothers who had lived in or close to Corby during the 1980s and 1990s. They claimed that the defendant council had been negligent in its carrying out of regeneration works on sites formerly occupied by the British Steel Corporation in and around the town. They alleged that as a result of the negligent works, toxins had escaped and had affected pregnant women so as to cause birth defects in their offspring. The defendant denied breaching its duty of care. The case was a complex one. The claimants’ costs estimate amounted to £1.5m and the defendant’s to £2.3m.