Unit 8 - CMC and Cost Management Order

Question 1

What’s the purpose of a Case Management Conferences?

Answer 1

PD29, para 5.1:
Review steps that the parties have taken to prepare for the case.
Give directions on the steps needed to secure the progress of the claim
Make sure that all the agreements between the parties and the conduct of the claims are recorded and made.

Para 5.3: Topics covered are
C's claims
Amendments on the claim
Disclosure of any documents
Expert evidence 
Factual evidence
Arrangements to clarify information

Question 2

Who should attend the case management conferences?

Answer 2

Legal Reps - CPR 29.3(2)

Question 3

What is cost management?

Answer 3

It’s a cost budget - Precedent H.

Sets out the costs and should be verified with the statement of truth.

Question 4

What is the consequence for failing to file a cost management ?

Answer 4

CPR 3.13 - Must file a cost budget no later than 21 days before the first CMC.
CPR 3.14 - Cost budget will be treated as a filing budget consisting of court fees only.

Question 5

What happens if there’s a dispute in a cost budget?

Answer 5

File a Precedent R

Complete a Budget Discussion Report

Question 6

What can the legal reps do about any consequences for failing to file a cost budget?

Answer 6

1. Seek relief from sanctions under s3.8 and 3.9

2. Apply Denton v TH White

Question 7

What are the 3 stages of the Denton v White test?

Answer 7

Applies on reliefs from sanctions

1. Test the seriousness of the case
2. Why the fault occured
3. The value of the relief - costs and looks at the circumstance of the case.

Question 8

What can a party do if there’s a dispute at the cost budget?

Answer 8

CPR3.13 - budgets would need to be exchanged between the parties.
Both parties would need to provide a Budget Discussion Report under CPR 3.13. Courts can make a Cost Management Order - CPR 3.18 –> assess the costs and can’t change their minds unless there is a good reason to do so.

Question 9

What should the parties do if there’s a change on the budget once it has been filed?

Answer 9

If the assumptions has changed - look at Precedent H, disclosure, WS, Export s and any further applications that has been made.

Difficult to persuade the court to revise a budget.

Question 10

If a C is evasive or there’s a likelihood that C may not be able to pay for their costs if D successfully defended themselves on the claim and order was made against C, what can D do?

Answer 10

Apply for a security of costs - CPR 25.13(1).

Question 11

What is disclosure all about?

Answer 11

Process of giving all the documentation to the other side that they are in posses with.

Question 12

What’s the definition of disclosure

Answer 12

CPR 31.2 - Party discloses a document by saying that it existed or has existed.

Question 13

When is a disclosure report should be used to file and serve?

Answer 13

If there’s a multi-track claim
31.5(3).
It has to be served after 14 days before the CMC.

Question 14

What’s the CPR for a standard disclosure?

Answer 14

CPR31.6

party needs to disclose the documents they rely on that affects their own, other party’s or someone else’s case.

Question 15

What’s CPR 31.8 about?

Answer 15

Documents that are limited to inspection are those that are in the party’s physsical posession, have or had a right to possess the docs or had a right or have to inspect or take copies of it.

Question 16

What is CPR 31.4 about?

Answer 16

Electronic documents are included in the standard disclosure

Question 17

What is CPR 31.7 about?

Answer 17

It’s about the duty to search but this would need to be reasonable and proportionate.

Question 18

What are the factors that makes the duty of search to be reasonable and proportionate?

Answer 18

Number of docs involved
Nature and complexity of the proceedings
Location of the documents
The significance of the documents.

Question 19

What is 31.11 about?

Answer 19

Ongoing obligation occurs throughout the whole proceeding till the end.

Question 20

What is CPR 31.10(5) and (6) all about?

Answer 20

Party who is disclosing the documents should be signing the statement and not the solicitor.

Question 21

What is CPR 31.6 about?

Answer 21

If documents are destroyed, outline it in standard disclosure part 3 and state why.

Question 22

What is the CPR for the right of inspection?

Answer 22

CPR 31.3(1) - right to inspect disclosed document unless the document is no longer in control, right to withhold inspection or it’s disproportionate to the issues in the case.

Question 23

What are the reasons why documents might be withheld from inspection and are privileged?

Answer 23

Protected by legal professional privilege
Incriminate/ blame the party producing it
Advised privileged
Grounds of public policy

Question 24

What CPR states how disclosed documents can be used?

Answer 24

CPR 31.22 - docs can be used by both parties unless it has been referred to a public hearing or court’s permission has been granted.

Question 25

What’s the formalities for a case summary?

Answer 25

Para 5.7(11), PD29:
understand the agreed terms of the parties
Brief chronology of the claim, evidence and the dispute
should not be more than 500 words
should be prepared by C

Question 26

What’s the purpose of the case summary?

Answer 26

to help the courts to identify the disputes between the parties.

Question 27

What’s the structure of the case summary?

Answer 27

Heading (court, parties' names,etc)
Chronology of the proceedings
Agreed issues of the facts
Issues in the disputes
Evidence Required to the disputed issues
Signed.