Beechwood Construction Ltd v Afza & Anor

Beechwood Construction Ltd v Afza & Anor

The court has jurisdiction to make a third party debt order where the judgment debtor has the benefit of public funding and the LSC has a statutory charge, but payment must be made to the judgment debtor's solicitor in accordance with regulation 18, and any surplus after satisfaction of the statutory charge is payable to the judgment creditor. The order must not bypass the statutory scheme for payment and discharge.

Parties
Judgment Creditor: Beechwood Construction Limited; Judgment Debtor: Nudrat Afza; Third Party: Stan Batty
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
31 October 2008
Procedural Posture
Civil Appeal / Appeal Against Final Third Party Debt Order
Outcome
Appeal allowed in part; third party debt order upheld but varied
Legal Topics
Third Party Debt Orders, Statutory Charge, Costs Assessment, Public Funding
Civil Procedure Legal Aid Third Party Debt Orders Statutory Charge Costs Assessment Public Funding

Case Brief

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Parties

Beechwood Construction Limited

Judgment Creditor

Nudrat Afza

Judgment Debtor

Stan Batty

Third Party

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Appeal Against Final Third Party Debt Order

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether a third party debt order can be made where the judgment debtor had the benefit of public funding and the Legal Services Commission has a statutory charge
  2. 2 Whether the court can order payment direct to the judgment creditor bypassing regulation 18 of the CLS (Costs) Regulations 2000
  3. 3 Whether costs orders were properly made in light of the Access to Justice Act 1999

Ratio Decidendi

The court has jurisdiction to make a third party debt order where the judgment debtor has the benefit of public funding and the LSC has a statutory charge, but payment must be made to the judgment debtor's solicitor in accordance with regulation 18, and any surplus after satisfaction of the statutory charge is payable to the judgment creditor. The order must not bypass the statutory scheme for payment and discharge.

Court Disposition

Appeal allowed in part; third party debt order upheld but varied

Orders

  • Reference to costs of Bradford proceedings omitted from paragraph 1 of DJ Anderson's order
  • Paragraphs 2, 4–9 of DJ Anderson's order omitted