Electronic Bill Pilot in Senior Courts Costs Office

Andrew Gordon-Saker, the Senior Costs Judge, has released a note on the pilot that starts 1 November 2022. ​

The note states that from 1 November 2022 until 28 April 2023, professional deputies appointed by the Court of Protection, their legal representatives and other legal professionals involved in Court of Protection cases, may file their bills in respect of general management and other applications where the relevant authority has been obtained from the Court of Protection in electronic spreadsheet form.

The bill must follow an approved template available on the judiciary website and must be filed using CE File.

"This applies to new proceedings and also to existing matters which have a CE File reference number. Legal aid bills, bills with a legal aid element, and bills for work done in relation to applications to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority may not be filed in electronic form in this pilot. When filing an electronic bill, please use the options beginning “COP-E”. The assessed bills will be returned by the court by electronic means only."

The new bill was devised by a working group chaired by Costs Judge Colum Leonard and was the subject of focused consultation between 1 February and 3 May 2022, following which some adjustments were made. If the pilot is successful, it is hoped that use of the electronic bill will be permitted after it ends.

Read the note in full on the Judiciary website