pre-action (week1)

Question 1

what is the purpose of pre-action protocols?

Answer 1

designed to force the parties to have a more ‘cards on the table’ approach to resolving the dispute.

Question 2

what court does a claim get issued in if claim is £100,000 or less?

Answer 2

county court

Question 3

what court does a claim get issued in if claim is £100,000 or more?

Answer 3

may be commended in either the high court or county court

Question 4

what is the figure that should be used for personal injury claims - what is the cut off for county courts and high court?

Answer 4

figure is if less than £50,000 = county court
more than £50,000 = high court

Question 5

what should you disregard when calculating the value of a claim?

Answer 5

interest, cost, any counterclaim, any contributory negligence and any deduction of social security benefits.

Question 6

what are the five reasons why a claim should start in the high court?

Answer 6

• financial value of claim
• complexity of the facts
• legal remedies/procedures involved
• importance of outcome to public in general
• C believes claim should be in high court

Question 7

for a claim to go to the high court, what needs to be satisfied?

Answer 7

• over £100,000 financial threshold
• facts and issues are complex
• there is a wider interest in the outcome of the matter and there is a wider importance to the public

Question 8

what 3 considerations are there in relation to service of a claim form?

Answer 8

• who will effect service?
• how should service be effected?
• when must the service form be served?

Question 9

when must a claim form be served?

Answer 9

claim form must be completed before 12:00 midnight on the calendar day 4 months after the date of issue of the claim form.

Question 10

when is an instant method of deemed date of service? what ways can you deliver which are ‘instant’?

Answer 10

if done before 4:30pm on a business day (deemed served the same day). otherwise: deemed served the next business day.
eg, personal service, fax, email, delivering/leaving at a permitted address

Question 11

when is a non-instant method of deemed date of service? what ways can you deliver which are ‘non-instant’?

Answer 11

deemed served 2nd day after posting/giving to DX provider, if a business day. otherwise deemed served the next business day.
eg, post/document exchange

Question 12

what is the purpose of statement of case?

Answer 12

informs parties of each other’s case, enables the parties and court to identify the points of dispute. It also provides the judge with a concise statement of each party’s case

Question 13

what is included in a statement of case?

Answer 13

A claimant sets out the factual basis of its claim and the relief sought, and D gives its own position in relation to the alleged facts and the alleged entitlement to relief.

Question 14

what is a statement of truth?

Answer 14

formal way of a person signing confirmation that they believe the document is true. if document turns out to be false they can be held in contempt of court.

Question 15

what is the purpose of a claim form?

Answer 15

the document used to commence proceedings and to set out key elements of the claim (the identity of the parties)

Question 16

what is a particulars of claim?

Answer 16

the statement of case where the C sets out the case in detail

Question 17

if particulars of claim are separate from claim form how long after claim form must they be served?

Answer 17

up to 14 days after service of the claim form

Question 18

what is a prayer in a particulars of claim?

Answer 18

in the particulars of claim it closes with a summary of the remedies sought by the C.

Question 19

what are the consequences for non-compliance of the pre-action protocols?

Answer 19

• party at fault pays costs of the proceedings
• party at fault pays those costs on an indemnity basis
• if C is at fault then get awarded less interest at lower rate than would normally be awarded
• if D is at fault has to pay a higher rate (not exceeding 10%)