Disputes: Court Procedure

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We can assist you with almost any type of legal dispute be it a large commercial claim or a small private dispute. Consulting your solicitor early is as essential as consulting your doctor and it will enhance your chances of resolving the matter to your satisfaction.

We will advise you about the merits of your case, the chances of winning, the economics of running the case and the possibility of settling it prior to incurring large costs by using negotiation options such as without prejudice offers, round table meetings or formal arbitrations.

We will also give you a realistic estimate about the time scale, the legal costs and about ways of easing your financial burden in funding litigation. Contact our specialist solicitors Paul Prikryl (tel: 01494 864 650) or Rob Cartmell (tel: 01296 620 443) to obtain advice on any type of legal dispute.

General Procedure

The Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) regulate all litigation procedure in the majority of courts in the UK. You can find these rules on the Civil Procedure Rules website.

In addition to giving you legal advice we are able to explain these rules to you and to advise you about any matters of litigation procedure and costs. We can also advise you about procedural matters before the European Court of Justice (EU) and the Court of Human Rights. If you want to find out more about a particular court in the UK, visit Her Majesty's Courts Service. On this website you can find a schedule of all court fees, daily listings of cases, directions to the court, and the majority of the court forms. We can advise you which form to fill in and how, to which court you should submit your claim and how much you need to pay in court fees.

There are 3 categories of claims in county courts, divided according to their value and complexity. These are:

1. Small Claims
These are claims of financial value of up to £5,000 (or up to £1,000 general damages in personal injury cases; or up to £1,000 in landlord and tenant repair disputes provided the financial value of any other claim for damages in such a dispute is also not more than £1,000).

These matters are dealt with in a small claims court. This is meant to be a less formal and more 'client friendly' forum where many CPR rules do not apply and where the court can adopt any form of proceedings that it considers to be fair. Whilst many parties are not represented, it will enhance your chances of success if you obtain legal advice prior to proceeding with any such a claim.

The most important thing in Small Claims is that the successful party is usually not able to recover their legal costs from the losing party apart from the court fees and small fixed costs. These are determined by the CPR. Typical legal costs in a small claim matter can be between £800-£3,000 + VAT depending on complexity. This means that it may be uneconomic to pursue a claim for a low value with continuing solicitor's assistance. In order to assist our clients where the value of their claims is smaller than the 'would be' legal fees (and most of such fees could not be recovered from the losing party), we attempt to limit our input in those small claim cases by doing only the most essential parts of the case, for example by advising clients initially, by issuing the claim and/or attending at the final hearing. This saves our clients' costs and ensures that claims do not become uneconomic. It allows our clients to effectively budget the conduct of their small claim litigation whilst still being able to instruct a solicitor, which substantially enhances their chances of winning.

2. Fast Track
These are claims of value between £5,000 and £15,000. The CPR rules apply and parties are able to recover legal costs. These matters will normally be dealt with by the court within 30-40 weeks. It is always essential to obtain legal advice in these cases and you should remember that you could be liable to pay the other party's costs if you are unsuccessful.

3. Multi-Track
These are the more complicated cases of value higher than £15,000, heard in the county court or the High Court. Essentially the same CPR rules and cost rules apply as in the Fast Track.

Contact Paul Prikryl or Rob Cartmell or complete our contact form.