Disputes/Making Claims

Question 1

Claimant

Answer 1

person taking case to court

Question 2

Injunction

Answer 2

order for a party to stop doing something

Question 3

Defendant

Answer 3

person case is taken against

Question 4

Outcome of case in civil case (verdict)

Answer 4

liable or not liable

Question 5

Verdict in criminal case

Answer 5

guilty or not guillty

Question 6

Civil trial

Answer 6

• led by judge/magistrate
• no jury

Question 7

Criminal trial

Answer 7

• led by judge
• verdict decided by jury

Question 8

civil courts

Answer 8

county court - lowest court in civil system
magistrates court - lowest in civil/criminal
- contract/tort cases
- disputes up to a value of £350,000

Question 9

Circuit judge

Answer 9

lowest level of judge

Question 10

The King’s Bench

Answer 10

• over 70 judges
• deals with tort cases with claims over £100,000
• can be a jury of 12 cases of fraud, slander
• Magistrates courts (appeal by way of case stated)

Question 11

Chancery Division

Answer 11

• single judge presides
• deals with insolvency cases, enforcement of mortgages, copyright and patent cases

Question 12

Family’s Division

Answer 12

• deals with family cases, family matters under Hague’s Convention
• also deals with habeas corpus

Question 13

Habeas Corpus

Answer 13

where a child’s liberty is involved

Question 14

Pre trial procedures

Answer 14

protocol must be followed:
- letter sent to the defendant outlining the claim, defendant then
has 3 months to respond to.
- if evidence needed, one legal expert should be agreed upon by both parties to look at the evidence.

Question 15

County Court

Answer 15

• For claims under £100,000, the case will start in (CC).

Question 16

High Court

Answer 16

• The exceptions are personal injury claims over £50,000 and defamation cases, both of which go to (HC).
• in the HC you are making your claim, you can either file it in one of 20 District Registries, or at the HC directly in London.

Question 17

Claims process

Answer 17

• Once the defendant receives the claim, he can either:
- Admit the claim and settle.
- Send acknowledgment of service form (Form N9) within 14 days and his defence within an extra 14 days.
- Ignore. called a default and claimant can ask the court to order the defendant to pay claim and costs
- Once claim is defended, court will then allocate the case to the most appropriate ‘track’.

Question 18

Track decision

Answer 18

• Decision on which track is made by District Judge (CC) or the ‘Master’ (HC).

Question 19

Small claims track

Answer 19

CC, disputes under £10,000, except for personal injury and housing cases where the limit is £1,000.
- quick procedure
- low cost
- no legal aid
- cases heard in public or private

Question 20

Fast track

Answer 20

CC, disputes between £10,000 and £25,000.
- aim to hear case within 30 weeks

Question 21

Multi track

Answer 21

CC. For cases over £25,000, or more complex cases. Both parties will be sent an allocation questionnaire. If necessary, the judge can allocate a case to a track that usually deals with higher value claims, or if both parties agree, to a lower value track. The judge can also decide to transfer the case to the HC or vice versa.
- can take longer than a day

Question 22

Woolf Reforms

Answer 22

Woolf argued that the civil courts were not delivering justice in a fair or
accessible way. He proposed:

• Encouraging the use of alternative dispute resolution.
• Giving judges more responsibility for managing cases.
• More use of information technology.
• Simplifying documents and proceedings.
• Shorter timetables for cases to reach court for lengths of trials.