civil court system

Question 1

what cases do the county court deal with? (3)

Answer 1

-all contract and tort claims
-all cases for the recovery of land
-disputes over equitable matters such as trusts up to a value of £350,000

Question 2

what judges sits in the queen bench division? (2)

Answer 2

heard by a single judge but there is a right to jury trial for fraud, libel, slander, malicious prosecution and false imprisonment cases.

Question 3

what other courts in the chancery division? (1)

Answer 3

the companies court which deals with winding up companies.

Question 4

what are the 3 divisions of high court? (3)

Answer 4

-family division
-chancery division
-queens bench division

Question 5

what are the jurisdiction of the high court? (1)

Answer 5

can hear any civil case.

Question 6

what claims do the county court over see? (4)

Answer 6

claims for £100,000 or over
personal injury case claim for £50,000 or over

Question 7

what judges sit in the county court? (2)

Answer 7

cases in the county court are held by a circuit or district judge. for rare occasions a judge will sit with a jury of 8 but will only happen for cases of defamation or for torts of malicious prosecution or false imprisonment.

Question 8

what are the disadvantages of the civil court system? (3)

Answer 8

-cost- cost of taking a claim to court are often more than the amount claimed
-complicated process- are many preliminary stages to go through that add duration to a case.
-uncertainty- it is uncertain whether you will win a case. person who loses may have to pay the other sides costs.

Question 9

what is the hierarchy of the civil court system? (5)

Answer 9

-county court
-high court
-court of appeal
-supreme court
-the European court of justice

Question 10

what is the role of civil courts? (1)

Answer 10

to hear civil cases such as tort and contract claims.

Question 11

what are the advantages of using the civil court system? (3)

Answer 11

-the process is fair in that everyone is treated alike, judge is impartial.
-a trail is conducted by a legal expert with the decision being made by a judge who is an experienced and qualified lawyer.
-can be possible to get legal aid (though has been reduced) (not usually available in tribunals and other methods of dispute resolution)

Question 12

what are the specialist courts within the queens bench division? (3)

Answer 12

-commercial
-admiralty
-administrative

Question 13

what does the commercial court deal with? (3)

Answer 13

deals with matters such as insurance and banking

Question 14

what are the 3 tracks for claims? (3)

Answer 14

-small claims track
-fast claims track
-multi-claims track

Question 15

what is the purpose of a pre-action protocol? (1)

Answer 15

to reduce the time spent in court therefore reduce the costs.

Question 16

what type of judge sits in the family division? (1)

Answer 16

cases are heard by a single judge, though jury’s used to be used for divorces cases they are no longer used in this division.

Question 17

what is a pre-action protocol? (2)

Answer 17

this is a list of things to be done and if the parties do not follow the procedure and give the required information to the other party, they may be liable for certain costs if they then make a court claim.

Question 18

what type of judge is sat in a chancery division court? (1)

Answer 18

cases are heard by a single judge and a jury is never used.

Question 19

what is the jurisdiction of the chancery division? (6)

Answer 19

-insolvency both for companies and individuals
-the enforcement of mortgages
-disputes relating to trust property
-copy right and patents
-intellectual property matters
-contested probate actions

Question 20

what conditions are fast track claims heard? (3)

Answer 20

-will set down a very strict timetable for the pre-trial matters
-once a case is set down for hearing the case is supposed to be heard within 30 weeks but is more commonly 50 weeks.
-will be heard by circuit judge, has a more formal procedure than small claims.

Question 21

what does the access to justice act 1999 state? (1)

Answer 21

a second appeal will be considered unless the court has;
-considered the point of law
-considered the absence of a compelling reason

Question 22

what is the jurisdiction of the queens bench division? (1)

Answer 22

deals with contract and tort cases where the amount claimed is over £100,000 but can hear smaller claims if an important point of law is to be made.

Question 23

what is a second appeal? (1)

Answer 23

there is a possibility of a second further appeal but only for exceptional cases set out in s55 of the access to justice act 1999

Question 24

how could a claimant issue a claim? (3)

Answer 24

-if a claimant is using a county court they can be issued a claim in any of the 200 county courts in the UK
-if they are using a high court they can do so in any of the 20 district registries or the main court of London.
-they fill out a form called an N1 form.

Question 25

what does the administrative court deal with? (2)

Answer 25

supervises the lawfulness of the conduct of national and local government, of inferior courts and tribunals and other public bodies (by a process called judicial review)
-can also hear appeals on the law from decisions by the magistrates court in criminal cases

Question 26

when and how was a different family court made? (2)

Answer 26

the crime and court act 2013 created a new separate family court majority of family cases are dealt with through here.

Question 27

what happens if a defendant successfully defends a claim? (1)

Answer 27

the court will allocate the case to the most suitable ‘track’ or way of dealing with the case.

Question 28

what is the small claims track? (2)

Answer 28

for disputes under £10,000 except for personal injury cases where the limit is £1,000 but there are proposals to increase the limit to £5,000

Question 29

what is the fast track? (1)

Answer 29

for straight forward disputes of £10,000 to £25,000

Question 30

what happens if a defendant ignores a claim form? (1)

Answer 30

the claimant can ask the court to make an order that the defendant pays the money and cost is claimed.

Question 31

if you were to make a claim of under £100,000 or less what court would the case be started in? (1)

Answer 31

the county court.

Question 32

how could a defendant defend a claim? (3)

Answer 32

-the defendant may admit the claim and pay the full amount
-defendant may dispute the claim;
-either send an acknowledgment of service (form N9)
-or send a defence to the court within 14 days of receiving the claim.

Question 33

what claims does the small claims track deal with? (2)

Answer 33

-if the claim is £10,000 or less
OR
- a personal injury case claim for £1,000 or less

Question 34

what is a ‘leap frog’ appeal? (2)

Answer 34

when an appeal goes directly from the high court to the supreme court in which the appeal is of national importance or raises sufficient issues.

Question 35

what does an appeal in the civil division depend on? (3)

Answer 35

depends on the level of judge hearing the case;
-if a case is heard by a district judge then the appeal is to a circuit judge in the same county court,
-if the case was heard by a circuit judge then the appeal is to a high court judge

Question 36

what does an allocated judge have to do when receiving a case via the multi track? (4)

Answer 36

-identifying issues at an early stage
-encouraging parties to use alternative dispute resolutions (if appropriate)
-dealing with any procedural steps without the need for parties to attend court
-fixing timetables

Question 37

how much does it cost to file a claim? (2)

Answer 37

depends on the compensation they are hoping to be granted, for an £300 claim it would be a £35 fee

Question 38

what happens in a fast track case to speed up time? (1)

Answer 38

thee maximum time set for hearing is a day and only one expert witness is allowed.

Question 39

when can a appeal reach the supreme court? (1)

Answer 39

only if the supreme court or the court of appeal give permission to appeal.

Question 40

what does the admiralty court deal with? (1)

Answer 40

deals with maters related to shipping.

Question 41

what is the jurisdiction of the family division? (3)

Answer 41

hears family cases where there is a dispute about which countries law should apply and all international cases concerning family matters under the Hague convention also hears cases from family court.

Question 42

if you start a claim of £100,000 or over (or £50,000 or over for personal injury) what court would it be started in? (1)

Answer 42

a claimant can choose whether to start the case in county court or high court.

Question 43

what is the multi track? (1)

Answer 43

for cases over £25,000 of for complex cases under this amount.

Question 44

what type of judge hears a multi track case? (1)

Answer 44

each case is tried by a judge who is expected to manage the case from the moment it is allocated to this track.

Question 45

what conditions are small claims track cases heard under? (2)

Answer 45

usually heard in private but can bee heard in ordinary court
-heard by a district judge who undertake active proceedings