Civil courts and other forms of dispute resolution - The three track system Flashcards
Example Question:
Explain the process of taking a civil action to court (pre action protocols/pre trial procedure). (8 marks)
Explain the civil court structure (Tracks - outline of courts)
The county court and high court are the two first instance civil courts, meaning what
Which means that civil cases are started in once of these courts
Who proposed the implementation of reforms to the civil court, and what did this result in
Since the implementation of reforms proposed by Lord Woolf, civil cases fall into three categories, called tracks.
What are these three tracks called
Small claims track
Fast track
Multi track
What is the purpose of these tracks
The allocation of a case to a particular track determines where it will be tried and the process under which it is dealt with.
Small Claims Track:
How much does small claims track hear cases up to
Cases up to 10,000
How much up to for personal injury
1,000
In what court is the small claims track cases tried in
Small claims court
What type of judge hears cases from the small claims track
A district judge
Describe a hearing for a Small Claims Track action
- The hearing takes place not in a courtroom, but an informal room like a **committee room **
- Without a **Court Clerk **present
- Parties are encouraged to **represent themselves*
- The claimant and the defendant will be given the opportunity to state their case, present witnesses and question the other party and witnesses.
- The District judge will **summarise **the evidence heard and then give judgement.
Fast track:
What amount do fast track cases go between
Cases between 10,00 and 25,000 (no more than 25,000) where there is an expectation that the trial will only last one day and involve no more than two expert witnesses
In what court is a fast track case tried
Tried in County court
What type of judge will hear a fast track case
Either a District or Circuit judge
What will happen before the hearing
- Before the hearing, the parties will be required to comply with a timetable laid down by the judge concerning the exchange of documents (discovery), and the number of witnesses to be called.
How long will the trail date be after the claim being formally made to the court
The trial date will be within 30 weeks of the claim being formally made to court.
Multi Track:
What type of track is this
This is the default track for all claims that do not fit into the other tracks.
It is the most complex track
In what courts is a multi track case tried in
Tried either in the county court or in the high court
Multi- track:
Claims between how much are heard for multi track cases
Claims between 25,000 - 100,000
Up to how much for personal injury and complex cases for multi-track
Cases over 50,000
Up to how much for non-personal injury claims for multi track cases
non-personal injury claims more than 100,000
For multi-track cases, what types of cases are likely to stay at the county court.
Cases between 25,000 and 100,000 are likely to stay at the county court
What types of multi track cases go to the high court
Cases over 50,000 for PI, complex cases and those over 100,000 generally will go to the High Court
What type of judge hears multi track cases and why
Since it involves the most money it will likely be heard by a more senior judge - either a Circuit judge or a High Court Judge. t is therefore clearly the most formal of the tracks and its procedure insists that the judge has a ‘hands-on’ approach to its case management.
The location of the trial within multi track depends on what two things
The location depends on the value of the claim or its legal complexity
What will happen before the trial
There will be a case management conference before the judge to lay down a timetable for discovery of documents and to discuss the likely length of the trial before the case is heard.
idk
Trial dates are set and strictly enforced with generally a 72-week maximum from allocation to trial permitted.
