“It’s slow. It’s often exhausting, but it’s absolutely essential.” This was the conclusion of Solicitor General Ellie Reeves MP as she addressed guests of The Collective Redress Lawyers Association’s (CORLA) 2025 Autumn Conference, which was held at our offices in Paternoster Square, London, last month.
This year’s Autumn event certainly boasted a line-up of high-profile, well- respected speakers from the UK’s collective actions sector, with Tara Flores, Niamh Tattersall, and Walter Merricks CBE all joining Ms Reeves to discuss this year’s theme: ‘Collective actions: Keeping the show on the road’.
The conference began with Ms Flores of Thorndon Partners, who provided a deep dive into the company’s recent research into how collective actions are perceived in the UK by the general public. This included a discussion of some of the most significant barriers to onboarding consumers onto a claim, with a lack of understanding of the claim’s legal issues and an unwillingness to share personal details – particularly bank details – the most problematic.
Next up was Niamh Tattersall of Verita Global, who unpacked the complexities of settling and distributing claims in class actions, a topic that has been of increasing interest as the UK’s first settlements are decided.
Ms Tattersall then handed over the reins to Walter Merricks CBE. Reflecting candidly on his recent collective actions settlement, Mr Merricks also used the conference as an opportune moment to announce his application to take over as proposed class representative for another high-profile claim. He also criticised funders’ use of arbitration as a means to resolve disputes between the funder and the class representative.
Concluding the conference, keynote speaker Ellie Reeves provided some words of encouragement to stakeholders within UK collective actions: “[Collective redress] ensures that, when wrong is done, people can come together, pool their strength and hold those in power to account. It’s about fairness, transparency, and restoring public confidence. That justice will not be done, but will be done equally, whether you are an individual, a community, or a government institution.
“The rule of law for many can feel abstract, but the values are not – equality before law, fairness in process, protection from arbitrary power. These are not distant notions. They are lived necessities.
“This government will embed it in policy, in action, in outcomes that matter, and tell our shared story. Collective action has a significant role to play in that story.”
Final thoughts
Collective actions in the UK stands at a crossroads. As such, it was reassuring to hear Ms Reeves echo our own sentiments on the value of collective actions in access to justice and securing redress for consumers and businesses that have been wronged.
Whilst we await the outcomes of the UK Government and the Solicitor Regulation Authority’s (SRA) consultations will be, this year’s conference has certainly demonstrated that the claimant side of the industry is not giving up on the regime.