Form N251: Notice of Funding — Who Still Needs It (2026 Guide)

What Form N251 Was For

Before 1 April 2013, a party who funded litigation through certain arrangements could recover the extra cost of that funding from the losing party:

• A conditional fee agreement (CFA) with a success fee — the “no win, no fee” uplift a solicitor charged on winning.
• After-the-event (ATE) insurance — a policy taken out after the dispute arose, covering the risk of paying the other side’s costs.
• An undertaking given by a membership organisation — such as a trade union funding a member’s claim.

Because those extras could land on the losing party, fairness demanded early warning. The rules required a party with such a funding arrangement to file and serve Form N251 — normally within 7 days of entering into the arrangement, or with the claim form or first document if the arrangement already existed. Failure to give notice meant the success fee or premium could not be recovered for the period of default without relief from the court.

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What Changed on 1 April 2013

Sections 44 and 46 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) abolished recoverability for funding arrangements entered into on or after 1 April 2013:

• Success fees under a CFA are no longer recoverable from the losing party — they are paid by the funded party, usually out of damages, and are capped in personal injury cases.
• ATE premiums are no longer recoverable — with a limited exception in clinical negligence cases for the part of a premium covering expert reports on liability and causation.

Once the losing party could no longer be made to pay these extras, the reason for the notice fell away. GOV.UK’s own description of Form N251 now states its scope plainly: it is for telling the court about a funding arrangement made before 1 April 2013. The old rules survive only as transitional provisions in CPR Part 48 for the cases that still fall under them.

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When N251 Still Applies in 2026

Two situations keep the notice of funding alive:

1. Funding arrangements made before 1 April 2013. If litigation is running today on a CFA or ATE policy genuinely entered into before that date, the pre-LASPO regime — including the notice requirement — continues to apply under the transitional rules. These cases are now rare, but they exist.
2. Mesothelioma claims. Parliament did not bring sections 44 and 46 of LASPO into force for claims for damages for diffuse mesothelioma. In those claims, success fees and ATE premiums remain recoverable under the old regime — and the notice requirement travels with it. If you are funding a mesothelioma claim through a CFA or ATE policy, N251 is still part of your procedure.

If your case is in either category, the mechanics below still matter. If it is not, skip to what applies instead.

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How to Complete Form N251 (Where It Genuinely Applies)

1. Get the current form — download it from the official GOV.UK publication linked at the top of this guide.
2. Enter the case details — court, claim number (or “to be issued” if filing with the claim form), and the full names of the parties exactly as they appear on the statements of case.
3. Identify yourself as the filing party — state whether you are the claimant or defendant.
4. Specify the funding arrangement — tick whether it is a CFA providing for a success fee, an insurance policy (give the insurer, policy date and, where the old rules require it, the level of cover), or an undertaking by a membership organisation (name the body).
5. Date it by reference to the arrangement — the date the CFA was signed or the policy incepted is what fixes your notice obligation.
6. Sign and date the form.
7. File at court and serve every other party — notice works only if it reaches the people who may end up paying. Keep proof of filing and service.

The 7-Day Deadline

Under the transitional regime, a funding arrangement entered into after proceedings have started must be notified within 7 days. An arrangement that predates the claim is notified when the claim form or the relevant first document is filed and served. Late notice risks losing the recoverable uplift or premium for the period of default — an application for relief is possible, but prevention is far cheaper than cure.

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Funded After April 2013? What Applies Instead

If your CFA, damages-based agreement (DBA) or ATE policy was made on or after 1 April 2013:

• There is no notice of funding to file. Your funding arrangement is a private matter between you and your solicitor or insurer; the other side has no exposure to your success fee or premium, so no warning is required.
• Costs transparency happens through the case management machinery instead — a costs budget (Precedent H) where costs management applies, fixed recoverable costs by complexity band on the fast and intermediate tracks, and a statement of costs (Form N260) for summary assessment.
• Filing an N251 anyway is not harmless — it signals to the court and your opponent that you are working from an out-of-date checklist, and it discloses funding information you are not required to reveal.

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Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Filing N251 for a modern CFA — the single most common error, usually copied from a pre-2013 precedent list. If your arrangement post-dates 1 April 2013 and your claim is not for mesothelioma, no notice is required.
2. Assuming “no win, no fee” still shifts the uplift to the loser — it has not done so for arrangements made since April 2013. Budget on the basis that the success fee comes out of your recovery.
3. Missing the 7-day deadline in a case where the old regime genuinely applies — the sanction bites on the recoverable amount itself.
4. Failing to serve every party — filing at court alone is not notice; the parties who may pay must be told.
5. Confusing ATE with before-the-event (BTE) insurance — legal expenses cover you already held (for example in a home insurance policy) was never within the N251 regime.

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The Rules That Apply

• LASPO 2012, sections 44 and 46 — ended recoverability of success fees and ATE premiums for funding arrangements made on or after 1 April 2013; section 48 preserved the old regime for diffuse mesothelioma claims.
• CPR Part 48 — the transitional provisions applying the pre-April-2013 costs rules to cases still governed by them.
• The pre-2013 CPR costs rules (former rule 44.3B and the old costs practice direction) — the source of the notice requirement and the sanction for default, preserved for transitional cases.
• The Recovery of Costs Insurance Premiums in Clinical Negligence Proceedings (No 2) Regulations 2013 — the narrow surviving ATE recoverability for expert reports in clinical negligence.

There is no court fee for filing a notice of funding. If you need the court’s relief for late notice, an application fee applies — check the current fee on GOV.UK.

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Related Court Forms & Guides

• Form N260: Statement of Costs — how costs are actually presented in the modern regime.
• Form N244: Application Notice — the form for interim applications, including relief from sanctions.
• Form N1: Claim Form — where a claim on paper begins.
• Civil Court Forms Index — every civil court form guide in one place.

How Chris Can Help

The hardest part of Form N251 in 2026 is not completing it — it is knowing whether it applies to you at all. Chris looks at when and how your case is funded and tells you which costs regime you are in. Then:

• If your case genuinely falls under the old regime — a pre-2013 arrangement or a mesothelioma claim — Chris drafts the N251 accurately and flags the service requirements and the deadline.
• If your case is under the modern regime, Chris drafts the costs documents that actually matter: your budget, your N260 statement of costs, and any application you need along the way.

Chris drafts the documents. You check, sign and file them. You stay in control — with professional-grade preparation behind you.

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Frequently asked questions

What is Form N251?

Form N251 is the notice of funding — the form that told the court and the other parties about a conditional fee agreement success fee, after-the-event insurance policy or membership organisation undertaking, in the era when those extra costs could be recovered from the losing party. That recoverability ended for funding arrangements made on or after 1 April 2013.

Do I need to file Form N251 for my CFA or ATE policy?

Only if the arrangement was entered into before 1 April 2013, or your claim is for diffuse mesothelioma. For any other funding arrangement made since that date there is nothing recoverable from the other side, and therefore no notice to give — filing an N251 for a modern CFA is a common error copied from out-of-date checklists.

Why did the requirement end?

Sections 44 and 46 of LASPO 2012 abolished recovery of success fees and ATE premiums from losing parties for arrangements made on or after 1 April 2013. Once the other side could no longer be made to pay those extras, there was nothing they needed early warning of. The old rules survive only as transitional provisions, and for mesothelioma claims where the sections were never commenced.

When does N251 still have to be filed, and by when?

In the surviving cases, an arrangement made after proceedings have started must be notified within 7 days; an arrangement that already existed is notified when the claim form or first document is filed and served. The form must be filed at court and served on every other party, and late notice puts the recoverable uplift or premium at risk for the period of default.

How does the court learn about my costs now?

Through the case management machinery: a costs budget (Precedent H) where costs management applies, fixed recoverable costs by complexity band on the fast and intermediate tracks, and a statement of costs on Form N260 for summary assessment. Your private funding arrangement itself does not need to be disclosed.

What happens if notice was required and I missed the deadline?

Under the old regime the sanction is real: the success fee or premium is irrecoverable for the period the other parties were not on notice, unless the court grants relief. If you are in that position, take it seriously — an application for relief needs a proper explanation and should be made without further delay.

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Related guides: Form N260 (statement of costs) · Form N244 (application notice) · Form N1 (claim form) · All civil court forms

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