No .....the McCann's had such a solid case that CR were prepared to represent them on a no win..no fee basis...but as the express capitulated...the CFA was not necessary
A CFA is necessary before a legal firm begin work in order to ensure they receive payment. In my opinion Gerry was confusing a CFA with an ATE insurance, which is normally put in place at the same time as a CFA.
The McCanns consulted Carter-Ruck in January 2008. It was agreed that CR would take the case on a CFA basis. That CFA would have been in place before any action was taken at all. It took two months of wrangling before Express Newspapers capitulated, by which time an application had been made to the court. That's why both parties attended the court in March.
A similar complaint was made against Associated Newspapers. They also paid compensation and printed an apology, but never attended court. That means that no application to the court was made regarding that complaint. It has never been claimed that the money paid by them was donated to the Fund.