Legal System
Civil courts and other forms of dispute resolution
Civil courts
A civil case is a dispute between individuals, where the claimant makes a
claim against the defendant. The claimant must find the defendant liable
on a balance of probabilities. If found liable, the defendant must put the
claimant back in the position they were before the case. The winner of the
case will usually be awarded compensation.
The hierarchy of the civil courts, from highest to lowest, is:
1) European Court of Justice (very rare)
2) Supreme Court
3) Court of Appeal (Civil division)
4) High Court (including family, chancery and the King’s Bench
Division)
5) County Court
The two trial courts for civil disputes is the High Court and the County
Court. Most disputes are tried in the County Court but very expensive
claims or complicated specialist areas of law may be heard by the High
Court instead.
The jurisdiction of the County Court is as follows:
- The county court therefore has the jurisdiction to hear almost all
civil cases. Though the maximum claim is usually restricted to
cases worth £100,000 or less but the county court may hear cases
worth more than this if the parties agree to a county court trial. For
personal injury claims this is lowered to £50,000 or less.
- Depending on the value of the case, the trial is either heard by a
Circuit or District judge, or part-time judges can hear the case
also. They are called Recorders. Their hierarchy from highest to
lowest is: Circuit, District, Recorders.
- The county court can hear civil cases involving contract, tort, land
disputes, wills (up to £30,000) and family cases. However cases
about divorce or defamation must be heard in the High Court.
- On rare occasions, the county court may use a jury of eight people
to decide the verdict of a case.
The jurisdiction of the High Court is as follows:
- The high court hears more expensive multi-track cases (usually
£50,000+). Appeals from the county court can also be heard here.
These cases may be heard in the High Court Ordinary or could be
allocated one of the specialist divisions.
- The Family division may hear cases relating to:
➢ Custody of a child
➢ Divorce
➢ General family proceedings
, ➢ Forced marriage/FGM
➢ Financial relief for non-English divorces
- The Chancery division may hear cases relating to:
➢ Professional negligence (Builders, solicitors, etc. Not
medical professionals)
➢ Intellectual property matters
➢ Disputes over trusts
➢ Wills
➢ Tax
➢ Disputes relating to land/business
- King’s Bench Division
➢ Any other disputes which do not fall under family or
chancery, for example:
➢ Contact or tort matters over £100,000
➢ Complex multi-track cases transferred from the county
court
➢ Defamation
➢ Medical negligence
➢ Judicial review
It is important to know how a civil claim is made:
1) Pre-action protocol.
➢ Before a claim is issued, parties are encouraged to give
information to each other to prevent the need to go to court.
Pre-action protocol is a list of things to be done, i.e.
information about health and safety regulations at work, etc. If
they do not give the required information, they be liable for
costs when they do go to court.
2) Choosing a court.
➢ If the person denies liability or refuses to use ADR, then a claim
should be filed to court. If the claim is under £100,000, it starts
at the county court. If it is above that, the claimant can choose
the county or high court to start in.
3) Claim form.
➢ The claim form (N1) must then be filled out by the claimant. It
includes a ‘particulars of claim’ and a ‘statement of truth’ that
the claimant must sign. The claimant must also pay a court
free, which will depend on the amount the claim is worth.
4) Served on the defendant.
➢ Smaller claims are posted to the defendant, while larger
claims are delivered by a court official. The defendant then has
four options:
▪ Settle – the defendant pays the full amount and the case is
over.
▪ Ignore – the claimant wins the claim by default if the
defendant does not reply within 14 days.
▪ Defend – the defendant may file a defense within 14 days.
▪ Counter-claim – the defendant may make a claim against
the claimant.
, 5) Allocation Questionnaire.
➢ Both parties are sent an allocation questionnaire to help the
court decide which track the case should be allocated to.
6) Trial.
➢ The case will be heard at either the high or county court
depending on which track the case has been allocated to. The
judge will listen to both sides and make a decision as to who is
successful.
In the civil courts, the judge will review a case before it goes to court and
will allocate it a ‘track’. These tracks include:
1) Small claims track. Trials are held in the small claims court at the
county court. They are less formal and can take place in a meeting
room. District Judge will hear the case with both parties, and
typically solicitors and barristers are not present. You also cannot
claim your legal fees back from the losing party. These claims are
typically £10,000, or £5,000 for personal injury.
2) Fast track claims. These are slightly more formal. These cases are
heard by a district judge and deal with disputes between £10,000
and £25,000. Solicitors and barristers can be present and the
losing party has to pay compensation.
3) Multi-track claims are the most formal of them all, as they handle
the most expensive claims that are £25,000 and above. Solicitors
and barristers are typically always present, and these claims can
be heard in the county or high court. Witnesses may also be called
in. These claims are also the most expensive to handle and can
take a long time to complete.
In the civil court system, you can also appeal the outcome of your case.
Typically, you only get one chance to appeal and in almost all cases you
must ask for the judge’s permission to appeal against their decision. The
judge will only allow an appeal if there is a probability of the outcome
changing. Usually an appeal will be allowed if the judge or court was
wrong in law or on the facts, or it was seriously unjust because of a
serious procedural irregularity. You usually have 21 days to appeal
against a county or court or High court decision.
County Court appeals are as follows:
- Cases heard by a District Judge (Small Claims and Fast Track) are
appealed to a Circuit Judge. Therefore they stay in the same court.
- Cases heard by a Circuit Judge are appealed to a High Court judge.
- Multi-track cases can be appealed to the Court of Appeal under
s.55 Access to Justice Act 1999.
Multi-track cases that were heard at the High Court can be appealed to
the Court of Appeal. However, if the CoA is already bound to one of its
past decisions that would favor the appellant, the defendant may ask to
do a ‘leap-frog’ appeal, which takes them straight to the Supreme Court.
Civil courts and other forms of dispute resolution
Civil courts
A civil case is a dispute between individuals, where the claimant makes a
claim against the defendant. The claimant must find the defendant liable
on a balance of probabilities. If found liable, the defendant must put the
claimant back in the position they were before the case. The winner of the
case will usually be awarded compensation.
The hierarchy of the civil courts, from highest to lowest, is:
1) European Court of Justice (very rare)
2) Supreme Court
3) Court of Appeal (Civil division)
4) High Court (including family, chancery and the King’s Bench
Division)
5) County Court
The two trial courts for civil disputes is the High Court and the County
Court. Most disputes are tried in the County Court but very expensive
claims or complicated specialist areas of law may be heard by the High
Court instead.
The jurisdiction of the County Court is as follows:
- The county court therefore has the jurisdiction to hear almost all
civil cases. Though the maximum claim is usually restricted to
cases worth £100,000 or less but the county court may hear cases
worth more than this if the parties agree to a county court trial. For
personal injury claims this is lowered to £50,000 or less.
- Depending on the value of the case, the trial is either heard by a
Circuit or District judge, or part-time judges can hear the case
also. They are called Recorders. Their hierarchy from highest to
lowest is: Circuit, District, Recorders.
- The county court can hear civil cases involving contract, tort, land
disputes, wills (up to £30,000) and family cases. However cases
about divorce or defamation must be heard in the High Court.
- On rare occasions, the county court may use a jury of eight people
to decide the verdict of a case.
The jurisdiction of the High Court is as follows:
- The high court hears more expensive multi-track cases (usually
£50,000+). Appeals from the county court can also be heard here.
These cases may be heard in the High Court Ordinary or could be
allocated one of the specialist divisions.
- The Family division may hear cases relating to:
➢ Custody of a child
➢ Divorce
➢ General family proceedings
, ➢ Forced marriage/FGM
➢ Financial relief for non-English divorces
- The Chancery division may hear cases relating to:
➢ Professional negligence (Builders, solicitors, etc. Not
medical professionals)
➢ Intellectual property matters
➢ Disputes over trusts
➢ Wills
➢ Tax
➢ Disputes relating to land/business
- King’s Bench Division
➢ Any other disputes which do not fall under family or
chancery, for example:
➢ Contact or tort matters over £100,000
➢ Complex multi-track cases transferred from the county
court
➢ Defamation
➢ Medical negligence
➢ Judicial review
It is important to know how a civil claim is made:
1) Pre-action protocol.
➢ Before a claim is issued, parties are encouraged to give
information to each other to prevent the need to go to court.
Pre-action protocol is a list of things to be done, i.e.
information about health and safety regulations at work, etc. If
they do not give the required information, they be liable for
costs when they do go to court.
2) Choosing a court.
➢ If the person denies liability or refuses to use ADR, then a claim
should be filed to court. If the claim is under £100,000, it starts
at the county court. If it is above that, the claimant can choose
the county or high court to start in.
3) Claim form.
➢ The claim form (N1) must then be filled out by the claimant. It
includes a ‘particulars of claim’ and a ‘statement of truth’ that
the claimant must sign. The claimant must also pay a court
free, which will depend on the amount the claim is worth.
4) Served on the defendant.
➢ Smaller claims are posted to the defendant, while larger
claims are delivered by a court official. The defendant then has
four options:
▪ Settle – the defendant pays the full amount and the case is
over.
▪ Ignore – the claimant wins the claim by default if the
defendant does not reply within 14 days.
▪ Defend – the defendant may file a defense within 14 days.
▪ Counter-claim – the defendant may make a claim against
the claimant.
, 5) Allocation Questionnaire.
➢ Both parties are sent an allocation questionnaire to help the
court decide which track the case should be allocated to.
6) Trial.
➢ The case will be heard at either the high or county court
depending on which track the case has been allocated to. The
judge will listen to both sides and make a decision as to who is
successful.
In the civil courts, the judge will review a case before it goes to court and
will allocate it a ‘track’. These tracks include:
1) Small claims track. Trials are held in the small claims court at the
county court. They are less formal and can take place in a meeting
room. District Judge will hear the case with both parties, and
typically solicitors and barristers are not present. You also cannot
claim your legal fees back from the losing party. These claims are
typically £10,000, or £5,000 for personal injury.
2) Fast track claims. These are slightly more formal. These cases are
heard by a district judge and deal with disputes between £10,000
and £25,000. Solicitors and barristers can be present and the
losing party has to pay compensation.
3) Multi-track claims are the most formal of them all, as they handle
the most expensive claims that are £25,000 and above. Solicitors
and barristers are typically always present, and these claims can
be heard in the county or high court. Witnesses may also be called
in. These claims are also the most expensive to handle and can
take a long time to complete.
In the civil court system, you can also appeal the outcome of your case.
Typically, you only get one chance to appeal and in almost all cases you
must ask for the judge’s permission to appeal against their decision. The
judge will only allow an appeal if there is a probability of the outcome
changing. Usually an appeal will be allowed if the judge or court was
wrong in law or on the facts, or it was seriously unjust because of a
serious procedural irregularity. You usually have 21 days to appeal
against a county or court or High court decision.
County Court appeals are as follows:
- Cases heard by a District Judge (Small Claims and Fast Track) are
appealed to a Circuit Judge. Therefore they stay in the same court.
- Cases heard by a Circuit Judge are appealed to a High Court judge.
- Multi-track cases can be appealed to the Court of Appeal under
s.55 Access to Justice Act 1999.
Multi-track cases that were heard at the High Court can be appealed to
the Court of Appeal. However, if the CoA is already bound to one of its
past decisions that would favor the appellant, the defendant may ask to
do a ‘leap-frog’ appeal, which takes them straight to the Supreme Court.
