This essay can be helpful for your CIE A levels, AS level, exams or even first year degree. All my essays have been marked by my lecturer and given good grades! This civil courts essay has been awarded top in the class marks (English legal system)
Samantha has had a bad day. The Caring Credit Card Company charged her £25 for late payment
of her account which she is sure that she paid on time. Whilst reading her statement, she hears a
crash and looks outside to see that a digger driven by an employee of E & F Builders has
accidentally demolished the extension to her home, built only a month ago at a cost of £100.000
Convinced that legal action is her only remedy, Samantha now seeks advice. Explain to her the
legal procedure she must follow for her claims and the options open to her if she does not meet
with success
(On) 26 April 1999 current Civil Procedure Rules and accompanying Practice Directions came
into force. The first rule of the current Civil Procedure Rules lays down an overriding objective to
deal with cases justly. According to R.1.1(2), dealing with a case justly includes ensuring that
the parties are on an equal footing while saving expenses. The case should also be
proportionate to the amount of money involved, the importance and complexity of a case and
financial position of each party involved. The case should also be dealt with expeditiously and
fairly.
Before proceedings are commenced, claimants should send a letter warning them that they are
considering legal proceedings. Proceedings should be brought within the limitation period from
when the claimant suffered the harm, this is laid down in the Limitation Act 1980. All
proceedings will start with a claim form which informs the defendant that an action is being
taken against them, Part 7 of the civil procedure rules specifies in how court proceedings should
be started. They may be sent by the use of fax or emails. Service will normally be carried out by
the court through first-class post and the defendants must then acknowledge the service and
respond within 14 days by filling an acknowledgement of service within the court.
The claimant can then enter judgement in default against the defendants (r.12.3). If the
defendants file a defence, the court will serve an allocation questionnaire on each part
(r.24.4(1)) to allocate each claim to a track. Either party may seek more details from each other
through a ‘request for information’. The parties can then enter into ‘without prejudice’
negotiations at any stage to try to settle the case out of court which means all negotiations
aimed at settlements are inadmissible as evidence in trial. This is so that parties can make a
compromise without fear of statements being held against them later.
A Part 36 offer is a written offer by the defendant to settle made at any time before legal
proceedings have commenced. An accepted offer must be paid within 14 days. The offer can be
withdrawn after 21 days. If the offer is refused but the claimant fails to receive an award for
more than the offer, they will not receive any legal costs from the date the offer was made. The
different formal documents in the proceedings are described as the statement of case. All
statements of the case must be verified by a statement of truth. If a statement of case was
found to be falsified, the party who made it will be guilty of contempt of court (r.28.14). Either
party can apply for a summary judgement on the ground that the opposing party has no real
prospect of success.
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