Solomonic Half-Year Review 2025: Commercial Litigation Trends
The Solomonic Half-Year Review 2025 reveals the key trends in commercial litigation, including the top performing law firms, claim volumes in major courts and shifts in sector activity.
Solomonic, the leading multi-award winning litigation data and analytics platform, has released its biannual report on commercial litigation trends in the High Court (England & Wales) and Competition Appeal Tribunal. The report reveals developing areas to watch, sector activity shifts and the evolving risks facing law firms and businesses.
Back to business for commercial disputes
Where 2024 saw a slight decline in public claims issued compared with previous years, 2025 has seen new claims issued rising by 4% in H1 compared to the same period last year. The period also matched the volume of claims issued in the second half of 2024, with the second quarter exceeding the quarterly average for the last five years.
Unlike previous years, 2025 has not been characterised by any major concentration of claims on a particular issue, with only a handful of business interruption claims related to Covid coming through and similarly so for the Russo-Ukrainian war-related aviation claims.
Active public cases in the High Court rose by 15% compared to the previous half-year period, reaching their highest level to date - a further sign of significant levels of activity.
Public sector-related claims on the rise
This return to business as usual is evident in the financial sector, which again leads the pack in claim volumes, closely followed by professional services. However, both sectors have seen fewer claims than in the second half of 2024. In contrast, it has been busier for the public sector and for real estate, with both sectors generating more new claims (up 17% and 10%, respectively) than in the previous six-month period.
IP and property disputes increasing
The increase in new claims was seen mainly in the Chancery division, where Property and IP claims in particular were up compared to the previous six months. In contrast, the King’s Bench division saw fewer claims, and a new practice direction has seen more claims directed to the London Circuit Commercial Court and away from the Commercial Court (with the goal of focusing the Commercial Court on £7 million plus complex cases). The Technology and Construction Court (TCC) had a first half too, with the fewest new claims issued since the start of 2022.
Gloomy news on insolvencies
Winding-up petitions and activity in the Insolvency and Companies List more generally were the highest tracked since 2020, revealing concerning news for the economic outlook for the country. If winding-up petitions are issued at the same rate in the second half, we will see over 8,000 issued, more than 10% up on 2024 — which was itself higher than previous years.
Market share shifts
Law firm market share analysis shows a shift towards larger firms. The top 30 firms continue to hold a rock-solid 25% share of the market, though the top 15 firms enjoyed an almost 20% jump in market share to 19%. At the other end of the market, smaller firms accounted for just 14%, down 33% in 2024.
Overall, the first half of 2025 has revealed utilising civil high court litigation for dispute resolution to be in high demand, despite the non-appearance of any major new dispute seams.
Edward Bird, Solomonic CEO, added: “One of the key lessons we have learned from data is its transformative potential. Data not only helps us understand past trends but also predicts future outcomes, allowing us to stay ahead of the curve. Through rigorous analysis, we uncover patterns and correlations that might otherwise go unnoticed, providing our clients with a competitive edge.”