CIVIL PROCEDURE BACK TO BASICS 63: WHEN WILL THE COURT REDUCE THE NUMBER OF WITNESSES ALLOWED?
Here we are looking at CPR 32.2 (3) which gives the court express powers to identify or limit the number of witnesses a party may call. That power has now been considered several times by the courts. Firstly by Mr…
ONE PLUG: COURT FEES – AVOIDING THE PITFALLS: WEBINAR 25th SEPTEMBER 2019
Just one plug this time. For the webinar on Court Fees on the 25th September. COURT FEES: AVOIDING THE PITFALLS On the 25th September at 1.pm, I am giving a webinar “Court fees: Avoiding the pitfalls – fees, fee remission, abuse…
CIVIL PROCEDURE BACK TO BASICS 62: ASKING LEADING QUESTIONS WHEN INTERVIEWING WITNESSES – CAN (OR WILL) LEAD TO PROBLEMS
Examination in chief is rare in civil cases, many (perhaps most) practitioners will never have seen it done in court. There is a rule against asking leading questions when taking a witness through their evidence. There is a good reason…
CIVIL PROCEDURE BACK TO BASICS 61: SIMILAR FACT EVIDENCE IN CIVIL PROCEEDINGS
This post is caused by a search term that led to this blog “similar fact evidence in civil litigation”. This would be an apposite time to review the principles relating to similar fact evidence and the relevant case law. …
WITNESS STATEMENTS: THE FORENSIC AND PROFESSIONAL DANGERS OF FAILING TO CONSIDER, AND GIVE EVIDENCE OF, THE SOURCE AND INFORMATION AND BELIEF
The previous post on the judgment in Baynton-Williams v Baynton-Williams [2019] EWHC 2179 (Ch) gives me a chance to return to a hobby horse – the need to give the source of information and belief when signing a witness statement. Here…
WHEN A JUDGE MAKES A WRONG DECISION BECAUSE RELEVANT PAPERS (WHICH HAVE BEEN SENT TO COURT IN GOOD TIME) HAVE NOT REACHED THEM
The decision in Singh v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2019] EWCA Civ 1504 related to a case where a decision was made when the judge was not given relevant papers that had arrived at court. “In…
SETTING ASIDE JUDGMENT IN DEFAULT: DEFENDANT’S SOLICITOR FAILED TO NOTICE THAT PARTICULARS OF CLAIM HAD BEEN SERVED WITH THE CLAIM FORM
The judgment of HH Judge Hodge QC (sitting as a HIgh Court Judge) in Praetura Asset Finance Ltd v Hood [2019] EWHC 2231 (Comm) shows how important it is to check what has been served. The one, overwhelming, lesson for…
CIVIL CONTEMPT: THE KANGAROO COURTS OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM: THE DANGERS OF NOT FOLLOWING THE CORRECT PROCEDURE
In January this year I wrote “I am starting to lose count of the number of times the Court of Appeal has overturned decisions committing people to prison because of very basic and fundamental failures of procedure. It is as…
TRIAL JUDGE SHOULD HAVE WAITED FOR PARTIES TO ARRIVE AT COURT: APPEAL AGAINST ORDER UNDER CPR 39.3 ALLOWED
In Akita & Anor v Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland [2019] EWHC 1712 (QB) Mr Justice Martin Spencer held that a trial judge, knowing that parties were on the way to court, should have waited longer before…
AVOIDING NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS IN LITIGATION 11: PROCEDURE: AN EIGHT POINT SURVIVAL GUIDE
Here we have a short eight point guide on some of the key problem areas in relation to procedure once proceedings have been issued. Rule 1: Have everything ready pre-issue and have a plan. Effectively this means that you have,…
WHEN THE COURT LOSES IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS: ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEMS IN THE COURTS: “CIVIL JUSTICE: 2019 STYLE”
I am grateful to solicitor Aaron Pearson for giving me permission to post some comments he put on LinkedIn earlier today. It is small issue, but is an example of the administrative errors that occur daily within the court system,…
THE COURT CAN ORDER PARTIES TO TAKE PART IN AN EARLY NEUTRAL EVALUATION: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION
I am grateful to barrister Christopher Buckingham for pointing out that the Court of Appeal decision in Lomax v Lomax [2019] EWCA Civ 1467 is now on BAILLI. The Court of Appeal held that the consent of both parties was…
CIVIL PROCEDURE BACK TO BASICS 58: HOW TO CALCULATE TIME IN THE CIVIL PROCEDURE RULES
The previous post on the errors made in relation to calculation of time highlight the need for practitioners to be aware of the precise rules in relation to calculation of time. In this respect this may be the easiest post…
PART 8 PROCEDURE USED FOR CLAIM FOR £2.6 MILLION: THE CLAIMANT COMES TO GRIEF – IS ANYONE SURPRISED?
A common practice has occurred of issuing Part 8 proceedings under the MOJ Protocol and “parking” cases there for an extended period. This is an extremely dangerous practice. It is even more dangerous if the case that has been parked…
WHAT IS THE APPROPRIATE TEST IF SOMEONE APPLIES IN ADVANCE TO EXTEND TIME TO COMPLY WITH A PEREMPTORY ORDER? HIGH COURT DECISION
In Everwarm Ltd v BN Rendering Ltd [2019] EWHC 2078 (TCC) Mr Alexander Nissen QC (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge) considered the appropriate test to be applied when the court made a peremptory order and an application was…
RELIEF FROM SANCTIONS GRANTED WHEN WITNESS AND EXPERT EVIDENCE SERVED LATE : EXPLAIN DELAY EVEN IF THERE IS NO GOOD REASON FOR IT
In Castle Trustees Ltd -v-Bombay Palace Restaurant Ltd [2017] EWHC 3893 (TCC) Mrs Justice Jefford allowed the defendant’s application for relief from sanctions when the defendant served witness and expert evidence late. This case is interesting for a number of…
AVOIDING NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS IN LITIGATION 6: MAKE SURE YOUR CLIENT IS NOT BANKRUPT (& KNOW WHAT TO DO IF THEY ARE)
Many litigants don’t tell their lawyers that they are bankrupt. Some firms ask as a matter of course, many do not. Some litigators do not appreciate the impact of personal bankruptcy on a litigant. A CASE TO POINT: A TRIAL,…
RIGHTS OF AUDIENCE AND HEARINGS IN “CHAMBERS”: BAR COUNCIL GUIDANCE
I am grateful to Charles Bagot QC for referring me to the Bar Council publication “Acting as a Solicitor’s Agent”. This has a different view to those set out in earlier posts. It would be prudent for those involved in…
COURT ENTERS JUDGMENT IN DEFAULT OF DEFENCE – SIDESTEPPING THE LATE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF SERVICE ARGUMENT: DENTON PRINCIPLES APPLIES
In Hanson & Ors v Carlino & Anor [2019] EWHC 1940 (Ch) Mrs Justice Falk neatly sidestepped the vexed question of when a claimant can enter judgment in default of acknowledgement of service by entering judgment in default of defence. …
WHEN YOU ARE CHALLENGING A PROVISIONAL ASSESSMENT “BE PREPARED”: MASTER FINDS THAT COURT COSTS OFFICERS DO HAVE JURISDICTION TO CONDUCT PROVISIONAL ASSESSMENTS: THE LIMITED SCOPE OF AN APPEAL FROM A PROVISIONAL ASSESSMENT
I am grateful to my colleague Robin Dunne for sending me a copy of the decision of Master Leonard in PME -v- The Scout Association (30/07/2019). 1. JUDGMENT PME (003). This deals with two issues (i) the jurisdiction of…