The obligation under s 345 of the Legal Profession Act 2004 is continuing, and a solicitor who was justified in commencing proceedings may nonetheless be liable for costs if the claim lacks reasonable prospects of success by the time of trial. Where a claim against a public authority depends on establishing breach of duty and overcoming s 43A of the Civil Liability Act 2002, the absence of expert evidence capable of establishing that the authority's conduct was so unreasonable that no authority could properly consider it reasonable will render the claim without reasonable prospects of success. The court left open whether s 43A operates as a defence or as a precondition to liability.
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