Once a Defence has been filed at Court and served on the Claimant, the next step is a waiting game.
Allocation and Directions
The Court will consider the Claim Form and Defence (and Counterclaim if there is one) and decide what ‘track’ the case ‘might’ be allocated to.
There are 4 tracks:
- Small Claim
- Fast Track
- Intermediate Track
- Multi-Track
The track depends on various factors. It is not just the value of the claim. The factors include:
- the value of the claim
- the nature of the remedy sought
- the likely complexity of the facts, law or evidence
- the number of parties
- the value of any counterclaim and the complexity of that counterclaim
- the amount of oral evidence that might be required
- the importance of the claim to the persons who are not parties
- the views expressed by the parties
- the circumstances of the parties.
When deciding what ‘track’ the case ‘might’ be allocated to, the Court will tell the parties to complete a Directions Questionnaire (‘DQ’). This is a relatively simple form which enables the parties to tell the Court their views on track. The form is relatively simple because it is mostly tick box (although the form does allow for explanation in some respects). The type of DQ will vary depending on the track that the Court thinks it ‘might’ get allocated to. In some cases, you might need to attach additional documents to the DQ. This will be communicated to you in the Order or in the form itself. In non-Small Claims cases, you may also be required to attach a list of ‘Proposed Directions’ (See below regarding ‘Directions’).
The Court will set a deadline date for the DQ to be returned to the Court. If the deadline is missed, then the party in default could have their case struck out as a penalty.
At the same time as the DQ, the Claimant may (and can) also send a Reply to the Defence (and if there is a counterclaim, they should also send a Defence to the Counterclaim).
Once the DQ of all parties is returned to the Court, the case is then transferred to a local court and that local Court may decide to hold a hearing (called a Case Management Hearing) to discuss the case and allocate it to a track or may, on paper, allocate the matter to a Track without a hearing. In any event, once a case is allocated, the Court will set out steps (‘Directions’) which each party needs to follow to prepare the case for the final hearing (known as ‘Trial’). Directions in all cases will involve the parties sharing documents with each other and preparing and sending witness statements in advance of the Trial. Further, all directions will include a requirement for one of the parties (normally the Claimant) to pay a Trial Fee. In non-Small Claims, the directions may include other things like permission to rely on experts, preparing schedules, preparing pre-trial checklists, attendance at a Pre-Trial Review, preparation of bundles (there may be more).
If Directions are not followed, the ultimate penalty is that the case is struck out. Other sanctions may apply.
The Track will also determine how much (if any) costs you are entitled to receive if you win or lose. If the case is in the Small Claims, Fast Track or Intermediate Track, the amount of costs that a party can recover is fixed by the rules. In most cases, the fixed recoverable costs are less than the amount you will have paid your lawyer. The fixed costs rules can be found in Part 45 and Practice Direction 45 of the Civil Procedure Rules. There are no fixed costs in Multi-Track cases.
If you have any questions or need support with the above please email us at: philip@whitecollarlegalandadmin.com or phone 0151 230 8931.