ABSTRACT
The Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) 1998 has an overriding objective which seeks, among others, to cut costs of litigation by discouraging litigation and encouraging early settlement as per rule 1.1(2). The post-Woolf Reforms CPR were purposively designed to realize more efficient civil justice, the justice which is readily accessible and cost-effective. It is believed that part 36 of the CPR can be used as a significant tool in realizing this objective. In Petrotrade Inc v Texaco Ltd [2001] 4 All ER 853, Lord Woolf described Part 36 offers and payments as one of the cornerstones of procedural reforms realized by the CPR. This is, perhaps, because Part 36 is a well-structured mechanism of offer-to-settle designed specifically to encourage parties to a civil litigation to resort to resolve their disputes without proceeding to a trial. Accordingly, this lays out a platform for a party, called offeror, to make an offer to settle or make payment to resolve a dispute, which if it has been rejected by the other party, offeree, may be taken into consideration in determining whether the case was a waste of court’s time and resources, if it proceeds to trial. Despite all the benefits that come with the use of Part 36, recent scholarly work has neglected the study thereof. This is a contribution towards closing this gap.
Khondiwa, Thom, Part 36 Offers and Payments, Cost Control and Access to Justice (May 25, 2025).
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