Statements of Case

Question 1

What is a common implied term in a service contract?

Answer 1

There is an implied term that the contract must be carried out with reasonable care and skill

Question 2

What is a common implied term relates to goods sold to you by description?

Answer 2

Under s.13(1) of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 there is an implied term that the goods will correspond to that description

Question 3

When is an exact calculation of interest used?

Answer 3

Only used in practice if the claimant is making a specific claim ( a debt or a specified/liquidated damages claim)

Question 4

What would you need to set out in pleading interest on a specified claim?

Answer 4

The applicable percentage rate, the dates from/to which interest is being claimed, the total amount claimed up to the issue of the claim form, and the daily rate of interest thereafter.

Question 5

What is a general denial and where should it be on the defence?

Answer 5

This denies the entitlement of the claimant to the sum being claimed either in full (if they are denying in full – when they deny that anything is owed) or partially (if they are denying liability only in part).

Insert at or near the end of a defence paragraph.

Question 6

What implied terms are there for services contracts?

Answer 6

Reasonable care and skill (s.13 SGSA 1982)

Question 7

What are the three implied terms for goods contracts stemming from the SGA 1979?

Answer 7

1. Sale by description - goods should correspond to description - s.13(1) SGA 1978
2. Satisfactory quality (s.14(2) SGA 1979)
3. Particular purpose made known (s.14 SGA 1979)

Question 8

What are the 7 things that every statement of cast must contain?

Answer 8

1. A heading
2. Numbered paragraphs
3. Pages numbered consecutively
4. All numbers and dates in figures
5. Reference in the margin to every document mentioned that has already been filed at court
6. The name of the person who drafted the document (The statement of case will therefore contain the name of an individual barrister or the firm of solicitors
7. A statement of truth

Question 9

What are the 4 things that the title should state at the heading of a claim form?

Answer 9

1. The number of the proceedings
2. The court and division in which they are proceeding
3. The full name of each party
4. The party’s status in the proceedings (i.e claimant/defendant)

Question 10

What should the statements of case set out?

Answer 10

1. All the material facts and allegations necessary to establish the party’s case i.e the claimant’s cause of action or the defendant’s defence. If it does not set these out, it is liable to be struck out
2. Sufficient background facts to enable the reader to understand the factual basis of the claim or defence

Question 11

Where does the right to claim interest on the principal amount being claims?

Answer 11

The right may be set out in the contract or, if not, them there is a statutory right to interest

In debt cases - contract clauses

Question 12

What is the Statue interest rate to claim in a damages claim?

Answer 12

8% per annum

• s.35A Senior Courts Act 1981 (High Court)
• s. 69 County Courts Act 1984 (County Court

Question 13

What do you need to set out in pleading interest on a specified claim?

Answer 13

You would need to:

1. Set out the applicable percentage rate,
2. the dates from/to which interest is being claimed,
3. the total amount claimed up to the issue of the claim form, and
4. the daily rate of interest thereafter.

Question 14

What types of damages would naturally fall into the unspecified interest claim?

Answer 14

1. Loss of goodwill or damage to reputation – which can usually only be estimated
2. Loss in the value of an asset – where the starting value is difficult to ascertain
3. Loss of future earnings or profits – which remain to be quantified and where the starting point might be difficult to ascertain exactly
4. Any damages where remoteness, foreseeability and/or mitigation is an issue

Question 15

What is the main client objective in making an interest claim?

Answer 15

From your client’s perspective, the key point is that the claim for interest is actually made. In most damages cases, this is the important point rather than whether it is correctly set out as a specified or unspecified claim for interest.

Question 16

How do you calculate the daily rate?

Answer 16

The amount claimed divided by 365 times annual rate of interest (here 8% per annum) rounded up or down to the nearest penny.

Question 17

What do you do with the interest when you are making a hybrid claim?

Answer 17

1. Either treat the two claims separately and work out the interest for the specified claim and make a general claim for the unspecified claim

Or

2. You say that the two claims together come to a total which is an unspecified claim and therefore treat the whole claim as an unspecified claim.

Question 18

When should you admit in defence?

Answer 18

You should admit anything that is not disputed or non controversial in order to narrow the issues and save costs and time.

Question 19

When should you deny something?

Answer 19

Denials are used to dispute any facts which, if they had occurred, would have been within the defendant’s knowledge.

Question 20

What should a defendant do in defending something?

Answer 20

If a defendant denies an allegation it must give reasons.
If it wishes to put forward a different version of events, it must state its version in the defence.
It is not acceptable to make a bare denial. I.e denying an allegation without giving reasons.

Question 21

What are the two denials in a contract defence case?

Answer 21

1. The debt is due – explaining why not: because it has already been paid
2. The term relied upon exists – explaining why: because the sale was not in the course of business

Question 22

When should you require proof of something in defence?

Answer 22

Used if the defendant is unable to either admit or deny because the fact that is alleged is something about which the defendant did not and could not know. The defendant therefore asks the claimant to prove the allegation.

Question 23

What would the defendant usually require proof of in a contract claim?

Answer 23

In contract claims, the defendant usually requires the claimant to prove the amount of the alleged loss and damage.

Question 24

What does omission imply in a defence reply?

Answer 24

If the defendant omits to deal with any allegation made by the claimant, the defendant will be deemed to admit it, unless it has set out its own case in respect of that allegation, in which case it will be deemed not to admit it – i.e. to require the claimant to prove it

Question 25

How is omission of the amount claimed understood in a money debt claim?

Answer 25

It will always be understood that the amount claimed is not admitted unless the defendant specifically admits it (CPR 16.5).

Question 26

What should the defendant do in disputing the statement of value?

Answer 26

A defendant may dispute the claimant’s valuation of the claim. If so, the defendant must state why it disputes it, and what it estimates the value to be.