A General Guide for Bringing or Defending a ‘Small Claim’

This article provides a brief guide to assist you with understanding the court process’ for bringing a small claim at Court. The dispute resolution team at Chadwick Lawrence deals expertly with a vast range of both private and personal disputes. We aim to provide a friendly, cost effective and professional service and can help guide you through the legal procedures.

What is a small claim?

A small claim is a case that has been allocated by the Court to the small claims track in the County Court. There are three ‘tracks’: small, fast and multi-track which are allocated accordingly depending on the value and complexity of the case. Cases on any of these tracks are known as ‘civil claims’ and will not involve cases concerning criminal, family or insolvency law. A civil claim will usually be dealt with by the civil courts, the county court or the High court.

Small claims are lower value civil cases, rather than disputes of complexity or high value. When the court is deciding if a case is suitable for the small claims track, two things will be considered;

1. The financial value of the case

If the value of the claim is £10,000 of less, it will generally be allocated to the small claims track. However, there are two exceptions:

1 (a) Personal injury claims will be allocated to the small claims track if the value of the claim is not more than £1,000

1(b) Landlord and tenant disputes will be allocated to the small claims track if the tenant is claiming for repair works not more than £1,000.

2. The complexity of the case

If the case is of low value but could be regarded as complex, a Judge may direct that the case needs to be dealt with on another track for a full hearing. Usually a directions questionnaire will be submitted to the Court whereby the issues of complexity are highlighted.

The Civil Procedure Rules (‘CPR’)

In order to make a claim there are specific court rules that must be adhered to, these are known as the Civil Procedure Rules and provide ruling as to how claims must be dealt with. If you do not follow these rules accordingly cost sanctions can be applied and/or your case could be ‘struck out.’ This means that the Court has dismissed your claim entirely and will no longer deal with your claim.

Costs

It is generally quicker and more cost effective to bring a claim on the small claims track, as there is no need for substantial pre-hearing preparation and the formalities of a traditional trial. However, there are usually three types of expenses involved in bringing court proceedings;

1. Court fees will apply and are dependant upon the value of the case. The HM Court Tribunals Service details the fees applicable to various claims. In most cases, if you are successful and win a small claim, the Court can direct that the opposing party reimburse your court fee.

2. Legal costs for instructing lawyers to deal with your case for you. If a case is allocated to the small claims track, usually each party will have to bear their own legal costs and it is very unlikely the Court will order these to be recovered from the losing party. The court can order that if the losing party has acted unreasonable in the proceedings that they should be liable for the legal costs incurred by the successful party.

3. Some disbursements may apply if applicable to your case. If the court allows then experts fees may be incurred if your case relies upon an expert witness and therefore you will need to incur these costs. If you win a small claim, the other party will generally be ordered to reimburse these for you.

Are there other options available as an alternative to Court?

Before issuing a claim with the Court it is useful to weigh up the options available to you and court proceedings should be viewed as a last resort. The CPR rules provide further rulings in the Pre – Action Conduct and Protocols which direct that reasonable attempts must be made by the Claimant before a claim is issued.

Some other options to consider may be:

1. Doing nothing – it is useful to consider whether or not a cause of action is necessary. Even if you are successful at Court and obtain a Judgment against your opposition there is no certainty that you will secure the amount awarded. Always consider whether the other party is worth suing in an attempt to save you unrecoverable time and expenses.

2. Corresponding with the opposition – usually by written form known as a ‘letter before action’ to try resolve the issue.

3. Mediation – this process is known as ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution’ whereby an independent third party will be instructed to assist you in discussing your dispute with the opposition.

What next?

Our specialist lawyers in the Dispute Resolution department at Chadwick Lawrence would be delighted to discuss matters with you to allow them to gain a complete understanding of how we can assist with your business.

If you would like to register your interest and/or receive some further information please call 0113 225 8811 or e-mail zoeallen@chadlaw.co.uk