#Exam 1-Legal System- Civil Courts Flashcards
What is civil law ?
Civil law are claims made in civil courts when an individual believes their rights have been infringed upon in some way
What are the two courts which deal with civil cases ?
The county court
The high court
How many county courts are there ?
There are 200 courts, however the government is planning to close 50
What does the county court do ?
The county court can try nearly all civil cases:
All contract and tort claims
All cases for the recovery of land
Disputes over matters such as trusts up to £350,000
What type of judge will overhear the county court ?
They are overheard by circuit judges or a district judges, judges will ask a jury of 8 to sit for cases such as false imprisonment
What is the high court ?
A court which has the power to hear any type of case and can specialise in certain cases
Where is the high court based ?
The High court is based in London but has judges sitting in several towns and cities in England and Wales
What are the three divisions of the Hugh court ?
Queens bench division
Chancery division
Family division
What does the Queens Bench division do ?
It deals with contract and tort cases when amount claimed is over £100,000 or involves point of law
Who oversees Queens Bench cases ?
They are normally tried by a single judge but there is a right to a jury for cases such as fraud and false imprisonment cases
What does the administrative court in the Queens Bench division do ?
They supervise the lawfulness and conduct or the national and local government of inferior governments
What does the chancery division do ?
The main business of the division is: Solve issues such as insolvency Enforcing mortgages Disputes relating to trust or property Copyright
Do juries ever overhear chancery division cases ?
No they will only ever be heard by a single judge
What is the family division?
The division which overlooks family matters and a country’s point of law
How many judges are likely to overhear cases within the High court division
1
What did the crimes and courts act 2013 enforce
It created a new separate family court
What is the first part of pre-trail procedures ?
Usually trying to solve an issue outside of court through ADR ( see ADR deck )
What are the Pre-action protocols?
Parties encouraged to give information to each other before a claim is issued
Why are there pre-action protocols
This is to stop loads of different court cases opening up
When would the county court be used when starting to claim ?
Claims for £100,000 or less and £50,000 in personal injury
When would the high court oversee a case ?
Claims for £100,000 or above and £50,000+ in personal injury
Defending a claim can go which three routes:
Defendant receives claim and pays full amount, they receive claim and dispute it, if defendant ignores them they can be forced into paying by the court
Who makes decision on what track should be followed ?
The county court district judge
What are the three tracks
Small claims track- £10,000 except for personal injury where it is £1,000
Fast track- £10,000-£25,000
Multi track-£25,000+
Different between the three track system
Small claims people are encourage to represent themselves and the case being heard can be flexible
Fast tracks and multi tracks have very strict timetables and will usually last longer
Who started law reforms in 1999
Lord woolf
What did lord Woolf recommend
Civil justice should be faster, cheaper and less complicated for those using
What is the route of going for an appeal
District judge (CC)-Circuit Judge(CC)- High Court judge- Court of appeal- Supreme Court
Advantages of using civil courts
Process is fair
Conducted by legal experts
Legal aid is available
Appeal process
Disadvantages of using civil courts
Costs are still expensive
Complicated process still for people who aren’t legally trained
There is still high uncertainty on case outcomes
