Civil Courts

Question 1

What is civil law?

Answer 1

An area of law that deals with personal matters and disputes between private parties.
- marriage, property, contracts, family etc.

Question 2

What are civil claims?

Answer 2

When an individual or business believes their rights have been infringed.

Question 3

What is a claiment?

Answer 3

The person/party that brings the claim to the civil courts.

Question 4

What is a defendant?

Answer 4

The person/party alleged.

Question 5

Name the three tracks and the value of each case?

Answer 5

Small = up to £10k
Fast = £10-25k
Multi = £25k+

Question 6

What types of cases are dealt with in the County Court?

Answer 6

Straightforward cases involving negligence contracts, consumer disputes, bankruptcy and property.

Question 7

What are the two types of judges in a County Court?

Answer 7

Circuit judge = hears cases over £15k and of importance/complexity.
District judge = full time and keep an overview to make sure its running smoothly.

Question 8

Is the Magistrates court used more for criminal or civil cases?

Answer 8

Criminal, but it has some civil jurisdiction such as family matters.

Question 9

Name the three divisions of the High Court?

Answer 9

Kings Bench Division, Family Division & Chancery Division

Question 10

What types of cases do the Kings Bench Division deal with?

Answer 10

High value claims for negligence and contract law.

Question 11

What types of cases to the Family Division deal with?

Answer 11

Complex divorce, adoption, fostering and custody cases.
Ethical cases about medical treatment, abortion, surrogacy and consent cases.

Question 12

What types of cases do the Chancery Division deal with?

Answer 12

Insolvency, partnership disputes, company law, wills, bankruptcy, mortgages, sale of land, tax disputes & copyright.

Question 13

How many judges are there currently in the Kings Bench Division?

Answer 13

62

Question 14

How many judges is there currently in the Family Division?

Answer 14

17

Question 15

How many judges is there currently in the Chancery Division?

Answer 15

18

Question 16

What are the key facts about the Court of Appeal?

Answer 16

• 38 judges in the CoA (April 2017)
• Hears appeals from the county & high courts
• This is a review of a case, not a re-trial
• To check that the judge has correctly interpreted the law

Question 17

What are the key facts about the Supreme Court?

Answer 17

• 12 judges
• Majority of appeals come from the CoA
• Leapfrog appeals from high court - miss out CoA
• The cases are normally matters of general public importance

Question 18

What reforms did Lord Woolf make?

Answer 18

He wanted the system of civil courts simplified and also cheaper.
Made a framework of civil law named: Access to Justice

Question 19

What reforms did Lord Briggs make?

Answer 19

Wanted a largely automated online process for the identification of the issues and the provision of evidence.

Question 20

What are the stages of pre-trial procedure?

Answer 20

1. Negotiation of the claim (finding an agreement)
2. Starting a claim (claim form)
3. Response from the defendant (have 14 days to agree to challenge a case)
4. Case management (allocation questionnaire establishing location and time of trial)
5. Allocating a track (small, fast or multi)
6. Between allocation & trial (period of at least 3 weeks)

Question 21

What are the advantages of using the courts?

Answer 21

1. Process is fair as the judge is impartial
2. Conducted by a experienced & qualified lawyer
3. Possible to get legal aid

Question 22

What are the disadvantages of using the courts?

Answer 22

1. Can be very expensive
2. Can be delays, perhaps even a few years
3. There is no guarantee of winning so you may have to pay the other sides costs