The Civil Justice Council (“CJC”) has extended its consultation as part of its review into litigation funding.

We have previously commented on the CJC’s work in this area here, including the publication of its interim report.

The review followed the Supreme Court’s decision in R (PACCAR) v Competition Appeal Tribunal [2023] UKSC 28 (“PACCAR”) which cast into doubt the validity of many third-party funding agreements. In response to PACCAR, the previous government introduced the Litigation Funding Agreements (Enforceability) Bill 2024 which sought to overturn the effects of the judgment. However, the Bill failed to become law before the general election.

The Government has stated that it does not intend to reintroduce the Bill to Parliament. Instead, it will consider the conclusions of the Civil Justice Council (“CJC”), which launched a broad-sweeping review of litigation funding earlier last year.

The consultation addresses, among other things:

• How effective third-party funding is in securing effective access to justice and promoting equality of arms between parties to litigation;
• What risks or harms may be associated with third-party litigation funding;
• Whether the same regulatory mechanisms should apply to all types of litigation and English-seated arbitration;
• Whether third-party funders should be exposed to paying the costs of proceedings they have funded;
• Whether a funder’s return on any third-party funding agreement should be subject to controls, such as a cap (and if so, what that cap should be and who should set it);
• What alternatives exist to third-party funding and whether they should be encouraged;
• What role the court and the Civil Procedure Rules should play in controlling the conduct of litigation supported by third-party funding;
• Where the court should be required to approve settlements in proceedings that are funded by third-party agreements; and
• Whether the availability of third-party funding encourages specific forms of litigation (including unmeritorious or vexatious claims).

The consultation will now close on 3 March 2025, and more information can be found here.