For most registrants the question on an appeal is not whether the grounds are arguable. It is what happens if the appeal fails and the regulator's costs land on top of their own — at the exact point that a suspension or a strike-off has removed their ability to earn.
That risk can be limited. On a statutory appeal the Civil Procedure Rules allow an appellant to ask the court to cap the costs they could be ordered to pay, assessed against their actual assets and income.
The application has to be made under CPR 52.19 when the appeal is lodged, so that the court decides the costs exposure before it decides the appeal. Made late, it is worth much less. Full protection is rare; a cap is not — courts will limit recoverable costs to a manageable figure, and a ceiling in the region of £2,500 changes what an unsuccessful appeal actually costs.
We advise on the grounds and on the costs protection application, and we will tell a client plainly when an appeal cannot succeed. Sequentus is not on the record and does not have conduct of litigation.
