Civil courts and other forms of dispute resolution - The three track system

Question 1

Example Question:
Explain the process of taking a civil action to court (pre action protocols/pre trial procedure). (8 marks)
Explain the civil court structure (Tracks - outline of courts)

Question 2

The county court and high court are the two first instance civil courts, meaning what

Answer 2

Which means that civil cases are started in once of these courts

Question 3

Who proposed the implementation of reforms to the civil court, and what did this result in

Answer 3

Since the implementation of reforms proposed by Lord Woolf, civil cases fall into three categories, called tracks.

Question 4

What are these three tracks called

Answer 4

Small claims track
Fast track
Multi track

Question 5

What is the purpose of these tracks

Answer 5

The allocation of a case to a particular track determines where it will be tried and the process under which it is dealt with.

Question 6

Small Claims Track:
How much does small claims track hear cases up to

Answer 6

Cases up to 10,000

Question 7

How much up to for personal injury

Answer 7

1,000

Question 8

In what court is the small claims track cases tried in

Answer 8

Small claims court

Question 9

What type of judge hears cases from the small claims track

Answer 9

A district judge

Question 10

Describe a hearing for a Small Claims Track action

Answer 10

• The hearing takes place not in a courtroom, but an informal room like a **committee room **
• Without a **Court Clerk **present
• Parties are encouraged to **represent themselves*
• The claimant and the defendant will be given the opportunity to state their case, present witnesses and question the other party and witnesses.
• The District judge will **summarise **the evidence heard and then give judgement.

Question 11

Fast track:
What amount do fast track cases go between

Answer 11

Cases between 10,00 and 25,000 (no more than 25,000) where there is an expectation that the trial will only last one day and involve no more than two expert witnesses

Question 12

In what court is a fast track case tried

Answer 12

Tried in County court

Question 13

What type of judge will hear a fast track case

Answer 13

Either a District or Circuit judge

Question 14

What will happen before the hearing

Answer 14

• Before the hearing, the parties will be required to comply with a timetable laid down by the judge concerning the exchange of documents (discovery), and the number of witnesses to be called.

Question 15

How long will the trail date be after the claim being formally made to the court

Answer 15

The trial date will be within 30 weeks of the claim being formally made to court.

Question 16

Multi Track:
What type of track is this

Answer 16

This is the default track for all claims that do not fit into the other tracks.
It is the most complex track

Question 17

In what courts is a multi track case tried in

Answer 17

Tried either in the county court or in the high court

Question 18

Multi- track:
Claims between how much are heard for multi track cases

Answer 18

Claims between 25,000 - 100,000

Question 19

Up to how much for personal injury and complex cases for multi-track

Answer 19

Cases over 50,000

Question 20

Up to how much for non-personal injury claims for multi track cases

Answer 20

non-personal injury claims more than 100,000

Question 21

For multi-track cases, what types of cases are likely to stay at the county court.

Answer 21

Cases between 25,000 and 100,000 are likely to stay at the county court

Question 22

What types of multi track cases go to the high court

Answer 22

Cases over 50,000 for PI, complex cases and those over 100,000 generally will go to the High Court

Question 23

What type of judge hears multi track cases and why

Answer 23

Since it involves the most money it will likely be heard by a more senior judge - either a Circuit judge or a High Court Judge. t is therefore clearly the most formal of the tracks and its procedure insists that the judge has a ‘hands-on’ approach to its case management.

Question 24

The location of the trial within multi track depends on what two things

Answer 24

The location depends on the value of the claim or its legal complexity

Question 25

What will happen before the trial

Answer 25

There will be a case management conference before the judge to lay down a timetable for discovery of documents and to discuss the likely length of the trial before the case is heard.

Question 26

idk

Answer 26

Trial dates are set and strictly enforced with generally a 72-week maximum from allocation to trial permitted.