NOTICE

Supreme Court Civil Procedure (Amendments) Rules, 2023

View the Supreme Court Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules here

The Rules Committee has passed the Supreme Court Civil Procedure (Amendments) Rules, 2023 which is expected to be gazetted today. The amendment will take effect immediately. 

The main objective of the Supreme Court Civil Procedure (Amendments) Rules, 2023 is to correct several typographical and structural errors in the Supreme Court Civil Procedure Rules, 2022. There were also some sections which were inadvertently omitted from the draft which had earlier been promulgated and reviewed. This is particularly so in the case of Parts 19, 47, 71 and 72.

Other adjustments to part 71 and 72 (the Costs provisions) were made as a result of advocacy from the Bar Association. The structure of the costs regime nonetheless remains the same. The general position is that the judicial officer will summarily assess costs and any resort to a detailed assessment will only occur where absolutely warranted. Fixed costs will continue to apply. Prescribed costs will also continue to apply for liquidated damages claims. In respect of prescribed costs, the arbitrary valuation in the sum of $50,000 for non-monetary claims has been removed. As a consequence of this, the cap of 10% for interlocutory claims had to be formally removed. Notwithstanding the removal of the cap, judicial officers will nonetheless be mindful that the assessment of the costs in interlocutory matters ought not to ordinarily exceed 10% of the likely award of costs at trial. 

Sir lan Winder

Chief Justice

View the Supreme Court Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules here