Just after a bit of advice. I have successfully defended a claim brought against me and at the end of the hearing I asked the Judge if I could submit financials for consideration. I was told I could claim £45 for a half day hearing attendance but no more. The case has actually cost me £1200 to defend (time off work, mileage, parking etc) which is of course a tad annoying. Seems unfair that I can be dragged through the civil legal system, win the case and be out of pocket. Is this normal?

Was this a small claim? If so, the amount that can be claimed for expenses is extremely limited. I'm also finding it a little difficult to work out how it could have cost you £1200 to defend unless you instructed a solicitor.

Was this a small claim? If so, the amount that can be claimed for expenses is extremely limited. I'm also finding it a little difficult to work out how it could have cost you £1200 to defend unless you instructed a solicitor.

Yes it was small claims court. £1200 in lost wages due to the hours spent writing my defence etc ( I work for myself and charge by the hour).

Unfortunately costs in small claims are limited to £50 plus time spent at the actual hearing. Whilst frustrating, this is so that people aren't put off using the Courts because of the risks of paying the other parties costs, which are often completely disproportionate to the amount of the claim.

I appreciate that someone who is self-employed often works very long hours, but most people would have been able to deal with the paperwork around their work commitments. The only chance would have been if you could prove that the claimant's behaviour was unreasonable from the outset, but that is a very high bar to cross and the fact that they lost is nowhere near enough.

It may be small consolation, but at least you did win.

Yes it was small claims court. £1200 in lost wages due to the hours spent writing my defence etc ( I work for myself and charge by the hour).

Long Defence at that rate? self employed - ever been on a jury and tried to claim over above their figure

Long Defence at that rate? self employed - ever been on a jury and tried to claim over above their figure

Took a lot of time to put together. No, never been on Jury duty thankfully!

Llp rate would have to show how got to the figure, even high grade solicitor has a ceiling by grade on cost etc, you are dreaming in regards that figure and be shown as a chancer by a judge,, no doubt they will see straight thru it, jury i.e self employed , by the way jury service is not voluntary you would need a good excuse not to attend, but the experience can be an eye opener for you of what things are happening around you that you do not know.

Llp rate would have to show how got to the figure, even high grade solicitor has a ceiling by grade on cost etc, you are dreaming in regards that figure and be shown as a chancer by a judge,, no doubt they will see straight thru it, jury i.e self employed , by the way jury service is not voluntary you would need a good excuse not to attend, but the experience can be an eye opener for you of what things are happening around you that you do not know.

Yes, appreciate that there are ceilings etc. I'm not self employed but company owner. It's very easy to reach £1200 very quickly with hours put in and mileage, parking etc etc. Just seems unfair that someone can be dragged through the legal process, win the case and be out of pocket. Never mind, it's all done now so time to move on I guess. As for Jury service, one of my lads has just done it this month. Very interesting by all accounts although I would rather not get called up personally.

Thanks for the replies all.

unfortunately that is the so called legal service of this country, when you think the DJ is on £100,000 + per year and causing misery in most cases

As mentioned above..this is the norm in a small claim...as a litigant in person in can work to your advantage, for example many companies need to employ a solicitor at a cost of at least £100 - £200 per hour, on the small track they cant claim this back so its often uneconimical for them to chase you for small amounts.

Actually losing £1200 does sound excessive to be honest, as mentioned you should be able to fit the work around your work..actually having days off and losing money is rare.

There are some ways to get costs (this is how you should refer to it)...first is to use the strike out process to get rid of the claim completely (or partially) at a very early stage, pre-allocation, pre-allocation means before it has been allocated to track (small) and therefore the normal costs rules DO apply. The otjher is to point out to the judge the other side behaved unreasonably or did something that made you incur more costs or dragged the dispute out.

Read the CPR as all of this is covered > https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil