The Civil Courts And Other Forms Of Dispute Resolution

Question 1

Civil Claims

Answer 1

Claims made in the civil courts when an individual or a business believes that their rights have
been infringed

Question 2

The main areas of civil law

Answer 2

Contract law
Law of tort
Family law
Employment law
Company law

When a dispute occurs, it is normal to try and resolve it without going to court. If a case does go to court, two courts in which civil cases are tried are the County and High court.

Question 3

The County Court tries nearly all civil cases. The main areas of jurisdiction are:

Answer 3

• contract and tort cams
• cases for recovery of land

Cases in the County Court are heard by a Circuit Judge or a District Judge.

Question 4

The Queen’s Bench Division
The Chancery Division
The Family Division

Answer 4

The Queen’s Bench Division:
- biggest division
- deals with contract and tort cases, the amount claimed is over £100,000
- QBD has speciality divisions such as the Administrative Court which hears appeals from the MC.

The Chancery Division:
- deals with disputes relating to:
Property
Copyright and patents

The Family Division:
- family matters

Question 5

Starting a court case

Answer 5

Most people who have been injured or had property damaged do not want to start a court case unless they have to.
‘Once the decision is made to go to court, the first problem is which court to use. The court being used will depend on the amount being claimed. There are different limits depending on whether the claim is for personal injuries or damage to property.

Question 6

The three tracks

Answer 6

A trackis a way of deaing with the cases.

Small Claims Track:
- damage to property up to £10,000
- personal injury claims up to £1000
- County Court

Fast Track:
- damage to property £10,000 - £25,000
- personal injury claims £1000 - £25,000
- court court

Multi Track:
- damage to property £25,000+
- personal injury claims £25,000+
- county court unless personal injury £50,000+ and property claims £100,000+. Heard in high court.

Question 7

Appeal routes in civil cases

Answer 7

Appeals from the County Court:
Route one:
Court of Appeals
^
Circuit judge in the same county court
^
Case heard by a district judge

Route two:
Court of Appeals
^
High court judge
^
Case heard by a circuit judge

Appeals from the High Court:
The Supreme Court
^
Court of Appeal
^
High Court

Question 8

Other forms of dispute resolution: Tribunals

Answer 8

Tribunals are a forum used instead of a court for deciding certain types of disputes. They’re less formal than courts.
Role - enforce rights which have been granted through social and welfare legislation includes rights such as the right to payment if made redundant of the right not to be discriminated against because of sax, age, race or disability.

First and second tiers:
First tier - deals with cases of first instances
Second tier - deals with appeals from the first tier

Advantage:
- cheapness
- dealt with quickly
- more informal
- dealt with by experts in the area

Disadvantage:
- lack of funding
- more formal than ADR
- delay

Question 9

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR)

Answer 9

ADR - a method of resolving disputes without going to court.
Negotiating - parties negotiate directly with each other to try to resolve disputes that way.
Mediation - when a third party helps to reach compromise.

Negotiation:
- cheapness
- quickest
- private
- solicitors can get involved

Mediation:
- only suitable if parties cooperate
- decision can be based off common sense
- avoids adversarial conflict of the courtroom

advantages of using ADR over court-based resolution
- going to court can be traumatic, costly and may not lead to satisfactory outcome
- ADR is cheaper than going to court
- parties are in control