Civil courts and other forms of dispute resolution

Question 1

What are the two courts of first instance?

Answer 1

County court and High court

Question 2

In what order is the hierarchy of civil courts?

Answer 2

Supreme courts, court of appeal, high court (family, kings bench, chancery), County court

Question 3

Why would someone use the civil courts? give 4 examples:

Answer 3

-Problems with faulty or poor quality goods
-Contesting a will
-Divorce
-Someone might have copied your work

Question 4

What is a court of first instance?

Answer 4

Where a case has it’s first hearing

Question 5

What judges work in the county court?

Answer 5

District and Circuit judges

Question 6

What issues will the county court deal with?

Answer 6

Contract, tort, recovery of land to any value, partnerships (business), trusts, and inheritance up to £30,000, bankruptcy, divorce

Question 7

What tracks will be heard in the county court?

Answer 7

Small claims, fast track, intermediate track, some multitrack cases

Question 8

How is the high court divided up?

Answer 8

The high court has three divisions and each division deals with different matters.

Question 9

What is the general jurisdiction of the high court?

Answer 9

The high court is the third highest court in the UK. It deals at first instance with all high value and high importance civil law (non-criminal) cases, and also has a supervisory jurisdiction over all subordinate courts and tribunals, with a few statutory exceptions.

Question 10

What is the jurisdiction of the King’s bench division of the high court?

Answer 10

The vast majority of the KBD’s work involves contract and tort matters, where the claim for damages is over £50,000 and some from £25,000 (multi-track).

Question 11

Give examples of the claims that would be held in the King’s bench division of the high court:

Answer 11

Personal injury, negligence, breach of contract, libel and slander, non-payment of debt, possession of land or property

Question 12

What does the chancery division of the high court deal with?

Answer 12

Business and property related disputes, competition, intellectual property claims (copyright, patent, design), insolvency claims, probate claims

Question 13

What des the family division of the high courts deal with?

Answer 13

All matrimonial matters, Children Act 1989 cases, cases under the child abduction and custody act 1985, matters under the adoption section inheritance act 1975, probate and court of protection work, other family matters under the family law act 1996 (e.g. issues relating to the family home and domestic violence)

Question 14

What two forms are involved in making a claim?

Answer 14

N1 form and N150 form

Question 15

What is the N1 form?

Answer 15

The way to start a civil claim and it gets sent to the defendant who has 14 days to respond to the claim. N1 form will contain the particulars of the case and an allocation form must be filled out.

Question 16

What is the N150 form?

Answer 16

The N150 is sent to both parties, if the claim is going to be disputed. The court uses the filled in forms to determines how the case should be allocated and the courts will look at this form to determine the track the case will take

Question 17

What steps should be taken by parties before a claim is made?

Answer 17

-Both parties have exchanged key documentation (insurance forms, witness statements etc) + the allocation questionnaire
-Each party must have an idea on how they would like to process with their case and a likely outcome
-have tried to resolve the issue outside of court (ADR)
-have tried to keep costs to a minimum

Question 18

What is a pre action protocol and what is it’s aim?

Answer 18

A court claim should only be considered as a last resort if a negotiated settlement can’t be reached or a form of ADR has failed. It aims to ensure that as many problems as possible can be resolved without the need for a court hearing as well as speeding up the court process if the hearing goes ahead.

Question 19

At what stage should the N1 and N150 form be completed in a civil claim?

Answer 19

In the pre action protocol stage

Question 20

What court would a civil case be allocated if it is less than £10,000 (or £1500 in a personal injury claim)?

Answer 20

Small claims court

Question 21

What court would a civil case be allocated if it is less than £100,000 (or £50,000 in a personal injury claim)?

Answer 21

County court

Question 22

What court would a civil case be allocated if it is more than £100,000 (or more than £50,000 in a personal injury claim)?

Answer 22

It can be started in either the county court or more likely the high court

Question 23

What are the three tracks that can be allocated to a civil case? and what will the track be allocated on the basis of?

Answer 23

Small claims, fast track, and multi-track
They will be allocated depending upon the amount being claimed and/or the complexity of the case

Question 24

What is the small claims court as the track allocated for small claims?

Answer 24

It is heard in the county court by a district judge who should be inquisitional. Strict time is allowed for these cases between 2 and 3 hours maximum, with a limited number of witnesses. It is recommended that parties come unrepresented.