In the last year, FCJ has worked tirelessly to expose the hidden realities of ‘no win, no fee’ arrangements and their impact on genuine access to justice and collective redress. This work has involved countless meetings and FCJ- hosted events such as the FCJ Access to Justice Breakfast Event at Labour Party Conference, where individuals who have fallen victim to predatory litigation met with MPs such as Oliver Ryan to discuss their experiences (below).
This week, Seema highlighted the dangers of ‘no win, no fee’ arrangements on the BBC Radio 4 programme, “No Win No Fee… No Thanks?”. The show puts to the forefront the reality of consumer exploitation by litigation funders, law firms and claims management companies, in cases such as the Cavity Wall Insulation Scandal.
Seema highlighted the growing commodification of justice in the UK, citing the Post Office Horizon scandal, where only around 20% of settlement funds reached victims, with the remainder absorbed by lawyers and funders.
The programme reveals explosive growth in Housing disrepair claims, which are legal cases brought by tenants over unsafe or poorly maintained rental homes.One social housing provider in the South of England with an estate of 85,000 homes has seen a 375% rise in the number of legal claims launched by tenants in the last 5 years.
This has put continuous pressure on vulnerable tenants, and questions whether the SRA has learned from the 2024 SSB Law collapse, which left hundreds of people with a great amount of unexpected bills despite ‘No Win No Fee’ assurances.
Seema warned that many claimants are unaware of the hidden costs involved in ‘no win, no fee’ cases and called for a stronger UK system of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and ombudsman schemes to keep more claims out of overstretched courts.
Listen to the full programme using the link, or Seema’s snippet below:
BBC Radio 4 – File on 4 Investigates, No Win No Fee… No thanks?
