The Civil Procedure (Amendment No 4) Rules 2014 came into force on 22 April 2014. They introduce a single county court ("The County Court") which will sit at various locations throughout England and Wales. They also clarify the rules introduced in 2013 regarding costs management which extended the courts' management powers in respect of costs. Cases to which cost management will apply and costs budgets are to be filed are more clearly defined and apply to Part 7 multi-track claims except where the claim (which is commenced on or after 22 April) is valued at or over GBP 10 million. This is a significant shift from the previous limit of GBP 2 million and means that many more cases will be subject to the rules on costs management. The courts retain discretion to implement costs management in any other case and parties will be able to apply for costs management if appropriate in the circumstances of the individual case.
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/867/made
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