Media Law: 4 Civil courts & procedure Flashcards
types of civil case in which jury CAN be used
[4]
- defamation
- malicious prosecution
- fraud
- false imprisonment
admin HQ of High Court
[1]
- Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand
divisions of High Court (and what they do)
[3]
- Family Division - marriages, children, families
- Chancery Division - money and property (business disputes, bankruptcy, tax cases)
- Queen’s Bench - biggest (specialist commercial/shipping, breach of contract, tort)
DEF: tort
[3]
- civil version of a crime
- against individual rather than society/state
- can sue wrongdoer for compensation
financial minimum for tort / contract case in High Court
[2]
- £15,000
- £50,000 for personal injury claims
DEF: branch of Queen’s Bench in which public law is heard
[1]
- Administrative Division
cases heard in county court
[4]
- debt repayments
- housing disputes
- some family cases
- tort / contract NOT heard in High Court
number of county courts
[1]
- approx. 300
number of county courts designated ‘divorce courts’
[1]
- approx. 170
standard of proof in civil cases
[3]
- lower than in criminal
- ‘on a balance of probabilities’
- basically means over 50% chance they did it
settlements
[4]
- happen between parties before court starts
- legally binding between parties, but NOT same as court decision
- settlements do NOT set precedents for future cases
- no one has “won”, so don’t use the word!
costs
[1]
- judge decides who pays (usually loser pays the winner’s costs)
recent developments avoiding paying costs
[6]
- conditional fee agreements
- ‘no win, no fee’
- since 1990s
- client pays no costs if loses
- lawyer paid percentage over normal fee if they win
- solicitor organises insurance to cover costs
rules on processing civil litigation
[2]
- Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR)
- courts have responsibility to ensure each party treated fairly but resources also allocated sensibly
making a claim
[3]
- claimant fills in claim form outlining claim and remedy they want
- court sends to defendant, who has 14 days to reply with their defence
- if not enough time then they can send an ‘acknowledgement of service’ (extension to 28 days)
if defendant doesn’t bother to fight
[3]
- judgement made ‘in default’
- in claimant’s favour
- still needs hearing to discuss damages
‘tracks’ of civil litigation
[3]
- small claims track
- fast track
- multi-track
small claims
[3]
- county court
- under £5,000
- faster, simplified procedure in which claimants can represent themselves
exception to small claims track
[1]
- cases of possession (e.g. landlord evicting tenant who doesn’t pay rent), even if under £5,000
fast track
[4]
- usually county courts
- £5,000-£25,000 (or £50,000 for personal injury)
- heard within 30 weeks
- hearing not longer than a day
multi-track
[2]
- for most complex cases
- trial date not always set immediately
pre-trial procedure
[4]
- both sides submit a ‘statement of case’
- witness statements, evidence, etc, laid out
- experts chosen (if needed)
- majority of cases settle and never pass this stage
court procedure for fast/multi-track
[9]
- judge given ‘trial bundle’ to read before case starts
- claimant’s witnesses called first
- claimant’s lawyer asks whether their statements are true, plus maybe some supplementary questions
- cross-examined by defence, and maybe judge
- defence calls witnesses (same procedure)
- lawyers both address judge
- [if jury] judge sums up and jury retires
- [if no jury] judge may sentence immediately, or reserve judgement (in writing, either read out in court or ‘sent down’)
- judge makes order about who will pay legal fees
DEF: lay person helping someone representing themselves
[1]
- Mackenzie friend
differences in small claims procedure
[5]
- often take place in judge’s office (though still a public hearing)
- less formal (esp. rules on what can be put forward as evidence)
- designed for claimant to represent self (can ask a friend to represent instead)
- judge asks questions to get to truth
- decision there and then, and judge must explain decision
licensing
[4]
- for alcohol, public entertainment and late-night food
- previously magistrates decided
- now local council committee (Licensing Act 2003)
- appeal can still be made to magistrates
child safety orders
[2]
- when child committed / was in risk of committing criminal act (if they were older)
- local authority applies to magistrate to have restrictions placed on child
sex offender orders
[1]
- compel sex offenders to comply with court (e.g. obeying curfew or staying away from children)
what does any civil appeal need?
[3]
- PERMISSION
- either from court that tried it originally or from appellate court
- only if realistic chance of success or compelling reason to re-hear (interesting point of law, etc.)
DEF: when High Court appeal by-passes Court of Appeal
[2]
- ‘leapfrog procedure’
- appeal involves Lords’ precedent, so Court of Appeal is waste of time
IMPORTANT: reporting appeals
[2]
- judges on the same panel can disagree
- ensure you know whether judge is with or against the majority when you report them
DEF: judge against majority on panel
[1]
- ‘dissenting’ judge
number of judges on Court of Appeal panel
[1]
- 3
number of judges on Supreme Court panel
[1]
- 5 to 9 (for very important cases)
judicial review
[3]
- mechanism by which decisions of public bodies can be held to account
- alleges that the decision is UNLAWFUL
- not concerned with issue of whether decision was right or wrong
ways in which decision can be considered unlawful
[3]
- illegality
- irrationality
- unfairness
illegality
[3]
- authority has misunderstood law
- acted within excess of its powers
- refused to act, believing (wrongly) that it did not have the power to do so
irrationality
[2]
- decision ‘so unreasonable that no reasonable authority could have made it’
- ‘Wednesbury unreasonableness’
unfairness
[2]
- if way in which decision was made was unfair
- e.g. one side didn’t get fair hearing, or possible prejudice against one side
if judicial review goes against public body
[3]
- High Court overturns decision
- can make decision itself or turn it back to the public body
- decision may not necessarily change after all this
breach of contract
[3]
- when terms of a contract are breached
- some terms agreed between parties, some by law
- can sue for damages
negligence
[3]
- most important tort (civil wrong) in modern law
- damages should return claimant to position they were at before being affected by negligence
- insurance covers most negligence damages
Hunt v Severs
[2]
- fiancee sued fiance for car accident but still married him
- ACTUALLY suing insurance company
nuisance
- unreasonably interfering with person’s use of their land (either owned or rented)
trespass
- interfering with another’s land (inc. throwing things onto it, etc.)
- trespass of person (touching someone)
- trespass of property (moving someone’s shit)
