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Summary A* Criminal law paper 1 Summarised
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Law Paper 1 – RevisionCivil courts
⇒ County Courts
There are about 200 county courts, although the current government is planning to close about 50 of
these. County courts can try all civil cases, but fundamental areas are:
- All contract and tort claims
- All cases for the recovery of land
Cases in the county courts, heard by a circuit judge or a district judge. Rare occasion it is possible for
the judge to sit with a jury of 8.
⇒ High Courts
Based in London, but also has judges sitting in towns and cities around England and Wales. It has the
power to hear any civil cases and has 3 divisions.
The Queen's Bench
biggest of the 3 branches
✤ Contract and tort cases where the amount claimed is over £100,000, though it can hear smaller
claims where there is a point of law.
✤ Cases are normally tried by a single judge, but there is a right to jury for trial of fraud or false
imprisonment … a jury is rarely used and if used = 12 members.
✤ There is also an administrative court in the queen's bench division that supervises lawfulness of the
conduct of national and local government
Chancery division
Main business of this division involving disputes concerned with:
- Enforcement of mortgages
- Copyright and patents
There is also a special companies court in the division deals mainly with winding up companies
Cases are heard by a single judge and juries never used in chancery division
Family division
Hears family cases where there is a dispute about which country’s law should apply and all
international cases concerning family matters under the Hague Convention also hear cases dealt by
family court.
Cases are normally heard by a single judge
✤ The crime and courts act 2013 created a separate family court meaning family matters that were
dealt within the family division now heard in the family court.
⇒ Pre-trial procedures
Most people making a claim do not want to start a court case unless they must. Using a method other
than going to a court case is also known as ADR.
,⇒ Pre-action protocols
Before a claim is issued, especially in personal injury cases, a pre-action protocol must be followed. A
list of things parties sho13.
uld do and if the procedure is not followed and give the required information to the other party they
may be liable for certain costs if they then make a court claim.
⇒ Which Court to Use .
If the other person denied liability or refuses to use ADR, then only way to get compensation for the
injuries would be to start a court case. The court to be used depends on the amount that is being
claimed.
- 100k or less = starts in county court
- < 10k = small claim and dealt in small claim track
- exception personal injuries 50k or less = start in county court
- < 1k = small claim
- If claim > above amounts e.g., over 100k for other claims, claimant can choose where to start
county or high court
⇒ Issuing a claim
If using county court can choose to issue claim in any of the 200 county courts. If using high courts
can go to any of the 20 districts registries or main court in London.
Need a claim for called N1. Alternatively, people can make money claim online. Claim needs to be
filled at court office and fee will be charged for issuing claim. Fee varied according to how much the
claim is for.
- At beginning of 2017 fee for a claim of £300 was £35
⇒ Defending a claim
The defendant may admit the claim and pay full amount = claimant has achieved what they wanted
Defendant may dispute the case and if defendant wished to defend the claim, they must send either an
acknowledgement of service [form N9] or defence to court within 14 days of receiving the claim.
If defendant does none of those things claimant can ask the court to make an order that the defendant
pays money and cost claimed.
But once claim is defended court will allocate the case to most suitable track.
⇒ The Three Tracks
Decision on what track to be used is made by district judge in county court or master in high court. To
help judge consider parties sent allocation questionnaire.
1) Small Claims
Disputes under £10k, except for personal injury when limit at time of writing 1k but there are
proposals to increase limit to 5k
- Usually heard in private but can be heard in an ordinary court
- The procedure allows district judge flexible in way hear the case
- Parties encouraged to represent themselves and cannot claim cost of using lawyer from other
side if they win
, 2) Fast track claims
Straightforward disputes of 10k to 25k
- Courts set down strict timetable for the pre-trial matters = prevent one side or both sides from
wasting time and running unnecessary costs
- With aim of having cases heard within 30 weeks but in practice wait is likely to be near 50
weeks
- Trial heard by circuit judge and take place in open court with a more formal procedure than
for small claims
- With number of witnesses restricted and usually only one expert being allowed
3) Multi-track cases
Cases over 25k or for complex cases under this amount
- Heard by a judge who will also be expected to manage the case from the moment it is
allocated to the multi-track route may include:
○ fixing timetables by which the different stage of the case as low as possible and making sure heard
reasonably quick
- Case management is aimed at keeping costs of case as low as possible and making sure heard
reasonably quick
Once a decision has been made in the high or county court there is always a possibility of appealing
against that decision
⇒ Appeals from the county court
For all claims appeal route depends on the level of judge hearing the case. If it was heard by a circuit
judge, then appeal is to a high court judge.
◇ Second appeals
- Possibility of a second or further appeals always be to court of appeal. However, further
appeals only allowed in exceptional cases set out in s55 of Access to Justice Act 1999 which
states that unless court of appeal considers that – there is some other compelling reason for
the court of appeal to hear it.
⇒ Appeals from the high court
Appeals usually goes to court of appeals. In rare cases there may be a ‘leapfrog’ appeal direct to
supreme court. Since 2015 such an appeal must involve an issue which is of national importance in
addition the supreme court has to give permission to appeal.
Tribunals and ADR
Tribunals
Tribunals operate alongside the court system and have become an important part of the legal system.
Created in the second half of the 20th century, with the development of the welfare state. Unlike ADR
where parties decide not to use the courts the parties in tribunal cases cannot go to court to resolve
their disputes as the tribunal must be used instead of court proceedings.
, ⇒ Role of Tribunals
Enforce rights which have been granted through social and welfare legislation many rights such as:
- Right not to be discriminated against because of one’s sex, race, age, or disability
- The right of immigrants to have a claim for political asylum heard
⇒ Organisation of tribunals
Set up as the welfare state developed. Led to more than 70 types of tribunals with each separate
tribunal using different procedures = complicated and confusing system. But the whole system
reformed by the Tribunals, courts and Enforcement Act 2007. Creating a unified structure for
tribunals.
⇒ First-tier tribunals
Deals with about 600k cases a year has nearly 200 judges and 3,600 lay members and operates in
seven chambers
- Social entitlement chamber = covers wide range of matters like child support
- Health, education and social care chamber = deals with special educational needs issues etc
- War pensions and armed forces compensation chamber
- General regulatory chamber
- Taxation chamber
- Land, property and housing chamber
- Asylum and immigration chamber
⇒ Upper Tribunal
Divided into four chambers
- Administrative appeals chamber which hears health education and social care chamber etc
- Tax and chancery chamber
- Lands chamber
- Asylum and immigration chamber
From the upper tribunal further possible appeal route to the court of appeal and from here a final
appeal to the supreme court
⇒ Composition of tribunals
Cases in first tier tribunal are heard by tribunal judge for some types of cases two non-lawyers will sit
with the judge to make the decision. These people will have expertise in the particular field of the
tribunal.
In employment tribunals one person will usually be from an employers'’ organisation and the other
from an employees’ organisation gives a very clear of understanding of employment issues.
⇒ Procedure in tribunals
Both sides must be given an opportunity to put their case. In some especially employment and asylum
tribunals, this will be done in a formal way with witnesses giving evidence on oath and being cross-
examined. Other tribunals will operate in a less formal way.
Funding for representation is only available in a few tribunals, so most applicants will not have a
lawyer, but will present their own case, exception is in employment tribunals where employees often
have representation provided by their trade unions
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