‘Passive’ civil courts urged to improve handling of vulnerable parties – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Rules should be updated, judicial training improved and court rooms rejigged to cater for parties with mental health conditions and other vulnerabilities in civil proceedings.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 5th September 2019

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Failure to attend trial “means more than turning up late” – Litigation Futures

Posted September 5th, 2019 in appeals, civil procedure rules, debts, delay, loans, news, striking out, trials by tracey

‘The High Court has set aside an order made by a recorder striking out a claim because the claimants were two hours late for a trial in Cornwall.’

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Litigation Futures, 5th September 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Consultation paper launched – Vulnerable witnesses and parties – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted September 5th, 2019 in case management, civil procedure rules, consultations, victims, witnesses by tracey

‘Consultation paper launched – Vulnerable witnesses and parties.’

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Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 3rd September 2019

Source: www.judiciary.uk

The 1COR Quarterly Medical Law Review – Summer 2019 – Issue 2 – 1COR

‘Welcome to the second issue of the Quarterly Medical Law Review, brought to you by barristers at 1 Crown Office Row. This quarterly publication aims to provide summaries and comment on recent cases in medical law, including clinical negligence, regulatory, and inquests.’

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1COR, 7th August 2019

Source: www.1cor.com

Budgeting “not inevitable” in catastrophic injury cases – Litigation Futures

‘Costs budgeting is not “inevitable” in high-value injury cases and lawyers should consider whether the best approach may be to dispense with it altogether, a leading practitioner has suggested.’

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Litigation Futures, 29th August 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Applications for time extensions not the same as relief from sanctions – Litigation Futures

Posted August 29th, 2019 in civil procedure rules, news, sanctions, time limits by tracey

‘Applications for time extensions to take a particular step in litigation are not applications for relief from sanctions provided they are made within the permitted period, the High Court has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 29th August 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Offer to settle for no damages was valid under part 36 – Litigation Futures

‘An offer to settle a case for no damages but an admission of liability was a valid part 36 offer and it was not unjust to apply the usual consequences of beating an offer when the claimant won at trial, the High Court has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 28th August 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Costs budgeting is not inevitable – Charlie Cory-Wright QC – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted August 27th, 2019 in budgets, civil procedure rules, costs, news, personal injuries by sally

‘Generally speaking, we lawyers dislike procedural change. While we may well understand that a particular change is necessary and we will certainly recognise that we need to adapt to it when it comes, such changes nonetheless tend to make us feel ignorant and highly uncomfortable. We have to treat any new procedural regime as a known unknown, which presents pitfalls for the unwary, at least until we become familiar with it. And in the meantime, a culture of half-knowledge develops, an uncertain and dangerous combination of a little learning, anecdote, and false assumptions. This very often leads to negative over-simplification.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, August 2019

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Other side’s costs bigger? Not relevant, says judge – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 22nd, 2019 in civil procedure rules, costs, injunctions, news by sally

‘The High Court has told a litigant they cannot argue against their opponent’s costs simply on the basis that the figure is higher than their own.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 20th August 2019

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Court of Appeal highlights value of early neutral evaluation – Litigation Futures

‘Requiring parties to submit to early neutral evaluation (ENE) against their will is “not an obstruction to or constraint on” their access to the court, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 21st August 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court proceedings pack change “renders portal offer void” – Litigation Futures

Posted August 19th, 2019 in appeals, civil procedure rules, damages, documents, insurance, news, personal injuries by tracey

‘A circuit judge has ruled that a failure in a portal case to include the same damages figure in the stage 3 court proceedings pack (CPP) as in the stage 2 settlement pack form renders the offer void.’

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Litigation Futures, 19th August 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court “does not need consent of all parties” to order ENE – Litigation Futures

Posted August 12th, 2019 in civil procedure rules, consent, dispute resolution, news by tracey

‘A court has the power to order early neutral evaluation (ENE) even though one party has not consented to it, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 9th August 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Case Comment: Cape Intermediate Holdings Ltd v Dring (for and on behalf of Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum UK) [2019] UKSC 38 – UKSC Blog

Posted August 8th, 2019 in civil procedure rules, documents, news, Supreme Court, third parties by tracey

‘In a decision described as a “victory for open justice”, the Supreme Court has held that non-parties to litigation are entitled to access certain documents from a trial to which it was not a party.’

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UKSC Blog, 5th August 2019

Source: ukscblog.com

Judge issues warning to solicitors providing secondary evidence – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 8th, 2019 in civil procedure rules, evidence, news, solicitors, witnesses by tracey

‘A High Court judge has stressed that witness statements from litigants’ solicitors will be disregarded if they appear to be irrelevant or badly sourced.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 7th August 2019

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

High Court to consider scope of provisional assessment appeal – Litigation Futures

Posted August 6th, 2019 in appeals, civil procedure rules, costs, jurisdiction, news by tracey

‘The High Court is set to rule on whether a party’s right to appeal from an oral hearing that follows a provisional assessment is limited to decisions made at the hearing.’

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Litigation Futures, 6th August 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Supreme Court backs third party access to court documents – OUT-LAW.com

Posted August 2nd, 2019 in civil procedure rules, courts, documents, news, Supreme Court, third parties by tracey

‘Campaigners, the media and others who are not parties to court proceedings should be permitted to access court documents as “the default position”, the UK’s highest court has ruled.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 1st August 2019

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Expert Evidence on Share Valuations: When to use hot tubbing in unfair prejudice petitions – 4 New Square

‘A critical part of any unfair prejudice petition is the valuation of the minority shareholding. Paul Mitchell QC and Nigel Burroughs of 4 New Square were counsel on different sides in Swain v Swains Plc, a case in which the expert share valuation evidence was taken concurrently. They look at the pros and cons of hot tubbing, and offer practical advice on how to approach the way experts should give their evidence.’

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4 New Square, 22nd July 2019

Source: www.4newsquare.com

Costs Orders and Experts – Family Law Week

‘Nisha Bambhra, barrister at Garden Court Chambers, considers the implications for expert witnesses who fail to comply with court orders.’

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Family Law Week, 11th July 2019

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Whiplash Portal – “Vulnerable” Parties to be Exempt (At Least to Begin With) – Zenith PI Blog

‘The new whiplash portal is due to launch in the spring of 2020. It is likely to cover injuries arising from accidents occurring after 6th April.’

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Zenith PI Blog, 9th July 2019

Source: zenithpi.wordpress.com

Injunctions against persons unknown – Falcon Chambers

Posted July 5th, 2019 in civil procedure rules, injunctions, news, trespass by sally

‘People have entered onto your client’s land – or are threatening to do so. Your client wants them to leave – or not to arrive. Your advice is sought. In practice, self-help is out of the question. Section 6 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 prohibits the use or threat of violence against person or property for the purpose of securing entry to any premises without lawful excuse. A right to possession or occupation of the premises is no excuse, unless your client is a “displaced residential occupier” or “protected intending occupier”. But in any event, you cannot encourage the use of self-help, because of the risk of disorder that it may entail. A legal remedy is required.’

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Falcon Chambers, June 2019

Source: www.falcon-chambers.com