Civil Procedure Rules on Costs
Leveson Inquiry · An Inquiry into the Culture, Practices and Ethics of the Press · Issued 29 November 2012 · Addressed to: UK Government
Government responseUK Government: Not accepted (Mar 2018)
DeliveryUK Government says not accepted (May 2024)Department for Culture, Media and Sport says not accepted (Feb 2024)Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (2017 to 2023) says not accepted (Mar 2018)Ministry of Justice says in progress (Apr 2013)
Recommendation, verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
The Civil Procedure Rules should be amended to require the court, when considering the appropriate order for costs at the conclusion of proceedings, to take into account the availability of an arbitral system set up by an independent regulator itself recognised by law. The purpose of this recommendation is to provide an important incentive for every publisher to join the new system and encourage those who complain that their rights have been infringed to use it as a speedy, effective and comparatively inexpensive method of resolving disputes.
Leveson Inquiry, An Inquiry into the Culture, Practices and Ethics of the Press · 29 Nov 2012 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
AI-generated evidence summary
The Inquiry recommended amending civil court costs rules to incentivise joining a recognised regulator. In May 2024, Parliament enacted the Media Act 2024, which omitted section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 on awards of costs (Media Act 2024, section 50, May 2024). In February 2024, Julia Lopez, Minister of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, stated that the government was not proposing to instruct the Civil Procedure Rule Committee to amend rules of court to support section 40, aligning with its commitment to repeal it (Julia Lopez, Feb 2024).
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 1 Oct 2026.
Report-level response context
Government response
●UK Government · Not accepted · 1 Mar 2018
Mr Speaker, we have decided not to commence Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 and to seek repeal at the earliest opportunity.
Extract from: Leveson Consultation Response
Delivery
●UK Government says not accepted · 24 May 2024
(2) Section 40 (awards of costs) is omitted.
●Department for Culture, Media and Sport says not accepted · 7 Feb 2024
The Government is not proposing to instruct the Civil Procedure Rule Committee to amend rules of court to support the commencement and implementation of section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013. This aligns with its commitment to repeal section 40.
From: Culture, Practices and Ethics of the Press Inquiry (written question 12565)
●Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (2017 to 2023) says not accepted · 1 Mar 2018
find a legislative vehicle to repeal section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 at the first appropriate opportunity, without commencing it first; and
●Ministry of Justice says in progress · 25 Apr 2013
Provisions in the Crime and Courts Bill, which is currently before Parliament, give effect to the recommendations made by Lord Justice Leveson relating to aggravated and exemplary damages (Recommendations 71 and 72) and the awards of costs (Recommendation 73). These provisions will introduce strong and effective incentives for relevant publishers to join a recognised independent self-regulator.
From: Culture, Practices and Ethics of the Press Inquiry (Commons written answer), Jeremy Wright, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice
Earlier statements on delivery (0)
●Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (2017 to 2023) · 1 Mar 2018
Costs provisions were included in section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013, but they remain uncommenced. These provisions would create a presumption that publishers which are members of a recognised self regulator would be exempt from paying legal costs, even if they lost a court case; and that newspapers outside a recognised self-regulator would have to pay legal costs, even if they won a court case.
●UK Government · 18 Mar 2013
We will also change the rules on costs in civil claims against publishers so that there is a strong incentive to come inside the regulator, with its independent arbitration system.
From: Royal Charter on Press Conduct (House of Commons emergency debate), David Cameron, Prime Minister
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