The Small Claims Track
If the claim is allocated by the Court to the Small Claims
Track, it is likely to be a relatively straightforward claim,
often for debt. Because costs are generally not recoverable
people often decide to deal with the matter themselves
rather than to instruct legal representatives.
In either event, the procedure involved remains the same.
The Court will send out a notice which will allocate the matter
to the Small Claims Track. This normally also sets out a timetable
of 'directions' indicating what else needs to be done in the claim
by the parties and this would usually comprise of having to file
with the Court and serve on the other parties copies of any
relevant documentation, including expert reports and witness
statements. A final hearing will also usually be listed at this time.
At the hearing itself, the procedure is fairly informal. The Judge
will listen while the parties set out their cases and go through
the evidence. At the end of the hearing the Judge will make an
Order stating what the losing party will have to do (this may be
payment of a sum of money by a certain date or the carrying out
of a certain action, for example). The Judge will also provide a
brief explanation, called the Judgment, of why he made his decision.