civil courts Flashcards
1
Q
what are the jurisdictions of the county court
A
- claims under £100,000, exceptions are personal injury claims over £50,000 and defamation of character cases- both go to high court
2
Q
receipt of claim and defending a claim
A
- once the defendant receives the claim they can either:
- admit the claim and settle
- send an acknowledgement of service form (form N9) within 14 days and his defence within an extra 14 days
- ignore- this is called a default and in this case, the claimant can ask the court to order the defendant to pay the claim and costs immediately
- once the claim is defended, the court will then allocate the case to the most appropriate ‘track’
3
Q
what are the three divisions of the high court
A
- queen’s bench division
- chancery division
- family division
4
Q
queens bench division
A
- over 70 judges
- deals with contract and tort cases with claims over £100,000
- single judge presides
5
Q
chancery division
A
- 18 judges
- deals with insolvency cases, enforcement of mortgages, copyright and patent cases, intellectual property rights
- single judge presides
6
Q
family division
A
- 19 judges
- deals with family cases where there might be disputes about which country’s laws apply or family matters under the Hague Convection
- also deals with application for habeas corpus where a child’s liberty is involved
7
Q
jurisdictions
A
8
Q
what are the pre-trial procedures
A
- letter sent to the defendant outlining the claim which the defendant then has 3 months to respond to
9
Q
what are the three tracks
A
- decision on which track is made by the district judge (CC) or the ‘Master’ (HC)
- small claims track
- fast track
- multi-track
10
Q
small claims track
A
- CC
- disputes under £10,000
- except for personal injury and housing cases where the limit is £1000
11
Q
fast track
A
- CC
- disputes between £10,000 and £25,000
12
Q
multi-track
A
- CC
- for cases over £25,000 or more complex cases
13
Q
advantages of small claims procedures
A
- low cost
if you lose, you do not have to pay the other person’s lawyers’ costs - you can take the case yourself
- procedure is quicker
- the district judge helps parties explain their cases
14
Q
disadvantages of small claims
A
- there is no ‘legal aid’
- if the other side is a business, they are more likely to use a lawyer
- only about 60% of claimants actually receive all the money awarded by the courts
15
Q
when is an allocation questionnaire used?
A
- once a case has been defended, the district judge will send out the allocation questionnaire and then decide whether the case can be fast-tracked
