The deadlines at a glance
| Step | Time limit | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Commence detailed assessment: serve the notice of commencement (N252) and the bill | 3 months after the judgment, order or other event giving the right to costs | CPR 47.6 and 47.7 |
| Serve Points of Dispute | 21 days after service of the notice of commencement | CPR 47.9(2) |
| Request a default costs certificate (N254) | Once those 21 days have expired with no Points of Dispute served | CPR 47.9(4) |
| Serve Replies (optional) | 21 days after service of the Points of Dispute | CPR 47.13(2) |
| Request a detailed assessment hearing (N258) | 3 months after the end of the period for commencing detailed assessment | CPR 47.14(1) |
| Agree the sum due after a provisional assessment | 14 days after receipt of the provisionally assessed Precedent G | PD 47 para 14.4(2) |
| Request an oral hearing after a provisional assessment | File and serve on all other parties within 21 days of receipt of the notice of provisional assessment | CPR 47.15(7) |
| File the papers in support of the bill | Not more than 14 and not less than 7 days before the hearing | PD 47 para 13.11 |
| File the completed bill | 14 days after the end of the detailed assessment hearing | CPR 47.17(2) |
| Pay the costs | 14 days after the certificate stating the amount | CPR 44.7(1)(b) |
How the dates are counted
Days are clear days
A period expressed in days is counted in clear days: the day of the event that starts it is not included (CPR 2.8(2) and (3)). Points of Dispute due 21 days after a notice served on Monday 19 October 2026 are therefore due by Monday 9 November 2026. Periods of 5 days or less also leave out weekends, bank holidays, Christmas Day and Good Friday (CPR 2.8(4)), though none of the Part 47 periods is that short.
Months are calendar months
Three months after 18 October is 18 January: a period of months ends on the corresponding date. Where the later month has no such date, it ends on the last day of that month, so three months after 30 November is 28 February, or 29 February in a leap year (Dodds v Walker, House of Lords, 1981). The period for requesting a hearing is counted from the end of the period for commencing, which can differ by a day or two from six months after the order.
When the court office is closed
Where the last day for doing something at the court office, such as filing a request, falls on a day the office is closed, filing on the next day it is open is in time (CPR 2.8(5)). Court offices are closed at weekends, on bank holidays, Good Friday and Christmas Day, and on one further day over Christmas set by a table in Practice Direction 2A (24 December in 2026 and 2027), and on any other day the Lord Chancellor directs. That extension does not apply to serving documents on the other side.
Deemed service
Documents other than a claim form are deemed served under CPR 6.26. A document sent by email, sent by fax, delivered to a permitted address or served personally before 4.30pm on a business day is deemed served that day; otherwise it is deemed served on the next business day. A document sent by first class post or document exchange is deemed served on the second day after posting if that is a business day, or else on the next business day. Email can be used only where the party to be served, or its solicitor, has previously indicated in writing that it will accept service by email and given the address to use; an email address on a solicitor’s letterhead counts only where it says it may be used for service (PD 6A para 4.1).
For the forms themselves, see our costs forms and precedents guide; the terms are defined in the legal costs glossary. For a summary assessment at a hearing, our N260 statement of costs builder fills in the statement of costs.