Court expenses bill published at Holyrood

Proposals for new laws offering protection from “potentially crippling court costs” in Scottish civil cases have been put forward at Holyrood.

The Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Bill, aimed at making civil justice more affordable and accessible, has been published in the Scottish Parliament.

If passed by MSPS, the bill will protect people who lose personal injury claims from hefty expenses and make the cost of court action more predictable.

The legislation will also enable solicitors to offer a type of “no win, no fee” agreement, where the fee is calculated as a percentage of the damages recovered.

And it will allow groups of people pursuing the same or similar claims against the same defender or defenders to sue collectively in the civil courts.