Category: Claims handling · Reviewed by Simon Temme, Account Executive · Last reviewed 2026-06-11
A conference with counsel is a meeting between instructing solicitors, the lay or insurer client and the barrister(s) instructed on a matter, held to discuss the case, take instructions, refine strategy and prepare for substantive steps such as a key court hearing, mediation or trial.
Conferences (still sometimes called “consultations” outside London) are the principal means by which counsel and solicitor work together with the client to refine the strategic direction of a case. They are typically held at key decision points: shortly after instruction (to set the strategic frame), before a critical hearing (CMC, application for summary judgment), before mediation (to plan negotiation strategy) and immediately before trial (to prepare the witnesses and finalise the trial strategy).
A conference is more than a meeting. It is a structured forensic session in which the case is explored, the witnesses are tested, the experts are challenged and the strategic choices are crystallised. The skill of the conference is in extracting the client’s commercial concerns, the witnesses’ strengths and weaknesses, the expert reports’ robustness, and translating all of that into the trial advocacy plan.
The discipline is operational rather than rule-based. Underpinning duties:
For insurance matters, the conference is attended by counsel, the panel solicitor, the policyholder representative and the insurer’s claims handler (with claims manager for material conferences). Coverage advisers may attend where coverage is in play. Reinsurers above stated thresholds may attend conferences on the largest claims.
The conference is part of the insurer’s audit trail. Detailed attendance notes are kept; key decisions are recorded with reasoning; the resulting actions are tracked. The audit trail matters at the file-review stage, in any FOS complaint and (in extremity) in any coverage litigation.
A conference is organised by the instructing solicitor. The solicitor prepares an agenda, an updated chronology of the case, the most recent material documents (counsel’s opinion, the latest pleadings, expert reports, witness statements) and any specific questions to be addressed.
The conference itself runs through several stages:
Conferences with witnesses are particularly delicate. The objective is to ensure the witness understands the process and can present their evidence clearly; it is not to coach the witness. Counsel and solicitors are subject to strict ethical limits on witness handling (the Court of Appeal in Bahaa Aldin Adel Hussein v Wahba [2018] EWHC 2027 (QB) and other authorities have re-emphasised the limits).
Conferences with experts are typically structured around testing the expert’s analysis against alternative perspectives and ensuring the expert understands the procedural requirements (the CPR Part 35 framework, the duty to the court, the format of the report).
Conferences before mediation focus on negotiation strategy, the bottom line, the order of concessions and the handling of likely impasse points. The client’s authority to settle is confirmed and documented.
Conferences immediately before trial focus on opening submissions, witness deployment, exhibit handling, judicial deployment risk (judges with particular reputations on relevant issues), settlement opportunities up to and during trial, and the practical mechanics of the trial week.
“Initial conference” — held shortly after instruction to set the strategic frame and the litigation plan.
“Witness conference” — held with one or more witnesses to test their evidence and prepare them for cross-examination.
“Expert conference” — held with one or more experts to test their analysis and ensure CPR compliance.
“Settlement conference” — focused on the commercial position and the negotiation strategy.
“Pre-trial conference” — held in the final weeks before trial, dealing with practical preparation.
“Virtual conference” — conducted by video call. Common since 2020, often with the same effectiveness as in-person for routine matters; in-person typically still preferred for witness preparation and major strategy meetings.
A construction professional’s £3m PI claim approaches its CMC. The panel solicitor convenes a conference with leading counsel, the policyholder partner, the insurer’s senior claims handler and the structural engineering expert. The conference runs for four hours. First hour: counsel summarises the case and the procedural posture; the expert presents the structural analysis. Second hour: the expert is tested on counter-arguments derived from the claimant’s expert report received the previous week; alternative theories are explored. Third hour: strategic discussion of the disclosure scope, the witness statement priorities and the expert’s directions request at the CMC. Fourth hour: budget review against the strategy and decision-making on the principal next steps. The conference produces a clear action list: the expert to revise their methodology section in light of the counter-arguments tested; the panel solicitor to file the Precedent H budget at a revised £420,000; counsel to attend the CMC; the insurer to consider an early Part 36 offer at £900,000 conditional on the expert’s revised report supporting the merits range discussed. The conference costs approximately £18,000 in counsel fees and £12,000 in solicitor fees, attribution to the witness statements and CMC phases of the budget.
By Matt Bartlett, Director, on 2026-06-11. Next review: 2026-12-11.
This entry is part of the Apex Insurance Wiki. Last reviewed by Matt Bartlett on 2026-06-11. Apex Insurance Brokers Limited, FCA FRN 724952, Companies House 07014570. Not regulated advice — consult your broker on your specific position.
Apex Insurance Brokers serves UK professional services firms and commercial businesses. Call 0117 325 0027, email hello@apexinsurancebrokers.co.uk, or request a quotation.
Get a quote