Grijns v Grijns & Ors [2025] EWHC 2853 (Ch)

Consideration of the failure to mediate and, in particular, whether a failure to respond to an offer to mediate is unreasonable enough to lead to cost sanctions. The court considered the case law and said: "What I take, also, from the foregoing is that a lack of response to a request to mediate, even one seriously made, is only one factor in the overall consideration of conduct, as applied in determining the incidence of costs and will not, therefore, automatically and without more give rise to a penalty in costs."

The Court ultimately found that The judge found that the defendants had not refused mediation outright.Even if they had declined, the court held that it would have been reasonable to do so given the weakness of the claimant’s case, and the unrealistic nature of the claimant’s settlement proposals.

The court reaffirmed that parties are not obliged to engage in ADR where it would be disproportionate or unlikely to succeed.

The defendants were the overwhelmingly successful parties, so the usual rule that costs follow the event applied.The claimant’s reliance on alleged failure to mediate was rejected and the defendants were awarded costs on the indemnity basis. No reduction or penalty was imposed for the defendants’ approach to mediation.