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Court
Procedure 
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Some
people are very nervous about
appearing in court, but there
is no need as court staff
are always helpfull. As long
as you dress well to show
respect and prepare your
case well there should be
no problems. To set your
mind at ease read the web
site pages to learn about
court process, and about
which forms are neccesary
or simply allow us to take
the burden from you. We will
ensure that your court case
is presented as it should
be.
Small Claims are usually heard
in a private room with the public
excluded and just the two disputing
parties and any witnesses's present.
On some occasions the hearing
may by in a court - usually if
the court is very busy and there
are pressures on the availability
of space. The procedure tends
to be informal but Claimants
should be mindful of how it all
works.
There are four main stages associated
with a court appearance:
- Preparation
- Arrival
- The
hearing
- Judgment
There is no substitute for good
preparation. Assemble all of
the documents which you intend
to use in court and make sure
that both the court and the other
side have copies. Include with
the documents your witness statement,
and make sure a Statement
of Truth backs them up.
Make sure that you are completely
familiar with each of you documents
and that they are assembled in
a logical order - chronological
is the usual format. It is best
to assemble the documents into
a "bundle" with an index or contents
sheet at the front.
If you are including witness
statements from in dependant
witnesses the same rules apply
in respect of the statement of
truth. Ensure that their statements
are relevant to the claim and
names and addresses are clearly
indicated.
If a witness or witnesses are
appearing at the hearing you
will need to inform the court.
This you can do on the Allocation
Questionnaire which the court
will forward to you for completion.
Make sure that your witness or
witnesses are aware of the court
procedures, hearing date, time
etc.
Read and understand all of the
documents and be sure of the
order in which they are to be
presented. Rehearse your presentation
but be aware that the judge may
take control of the presentation
order so be prepared to be flexible.
On arrival make sure that you
make yourself known to the usher.
The usher will check your name
on the court listing and confirm
that you are listed for that
day. There are no guaranteed
times for hearings and there
may be a long wait - the usher
will advise you of the approximate
waiting time but the conduct
of some claims can become extended
so be prepared to hang around
for a while. So take a seat in
the waiting area and relax!
When you arrive, check with the
usher to see if the other side
are there. You can decide at
this point if you want to attempt
a settlement with the other side
prior to the hearing. If so,
ask the other side if a discussion
would be useful and if so ask
the usher if you both can use
a private room. Such rooms are
usually available and the usher
will indicate the location and
ensure your privacy.
If you and the other side do
reach a settlement tell the usher
immediately. The usher will inform
the judge prior to the hearing
and this will expedite the proceedings,
with the judge writing up the
judgment in accordance with your
agreed settlement.
If you need to leave the waiting
area for any reason let the usher
know. And also tell the usher
on your return. As soon as the
judge is free the usher will
call you and the other side and
you can then enter the court
room or the judge's room.
When you enter the judge's room
or court either the judge or
the usher will indicate where
you should sit. Some hearings
take place around a table, some
in front of the judge's desk
and occasionally a hearing may
be conducted in open court.
When addressing the judge the
correct term is "Sir" or "Madam".
On entering the judges room a
polite "Good Morning, Sir/Madam" is
appropriate. The judge will want
to establish who you are the
purpose of anyone with you -
either as a witness or as a "Litigation
Friend". If you are relying on
someone else to present the claim
details for you or they should
request the permission of the
judge.
The judge will request the Claimant's
evidence first - this being a
statement of claim and a brief
description of the circumstances.
The Defendant will then have
an opportunity to respond. During
the hearing there are a number
of basic rules to follow:
- Do
not interrupt the judge
- Do
not interrupt the other
side when they are responding
- Do
not use bad language or
raise your voice
- Do
not laugh or snigger at
statements made by the
other side
- Do
not call the other side "liars" or
use any other uncomplimentary
names
- Always
tell the truth
At each stage the judge will
give you an opportunity to respond
to the other side and you should
ensure that you respond to statements
in the same order as they are
made. Jot down notes as the other
side speak and make your responses
clearly a relevantly. If you
wish to add something else to
your response ask the judge first: "may
I add further information, Sir/Madam".
Do not produce documents which
have not been evidenced to the
court or the other side without
the judge's permission. The judge
may want to know why such document
were not evidenced in advance
and depending on the reason may
refuse permission.
It is essential that you and
anyone with you behaves in a
polite and respectful way. Bad
behaviour will result in removal
from the court.
Importantly, always tell the
truth - if you get caught out
with an untruth - either in written
evidence or by word - you are
likely to lose your claim!
The judge will usually present
the judgment immediately. Where
there are complicated documents
or convoluted processes the judge
may defer or reserve judgment
while documents and evidence
are studied.
When judgment is delivered do
not argue with the judge or enter
into further discussion. Just
thank the judge, say "Good Morning" and
leave. Do not gloat or make any
gesture towards the other side.
and ignore the other side if
they attempt to accost you either
in the judge's room or outside.
In theory the decision of the
judge at the hearing is final
but if the outcome went against
you and you feel that something
important and relevant to the
outcome of the claim was not
made aware to the judge, you
can apply to the court for set
aside.
A written copy of the judgment
usually follows within a week
or so and this will give a time
limit for action. If the judgment
is in your favour and the other
side fail to comply within the
specified time you can then consider
the option to enforce the
judgment.
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