This Saturday Slot post is the fourth part of my weekly series of posts on Court Hearings (in the UK). You can see the others >> here.
Not all court hearings are trials
There are two main types of court hearing. The first is the main hearing or trial which decides the case. I will be looking at those next week.
However today I am going to be looking at all the other, smaller, hearings that happen at court. These are generally to do with preparing for the trial, or are dealing with how the decision should be implemented.
Hearings leading up to the trial are often known (to lawyers) as interlocutory hearings. In large complex cases, these can be long and complex, and the decisions made can be very significant (for example see this report of a hearing in the Foxtons litigation).
Types of hearing
However in the type of case we are looking at, they will generally be fairly simple. Sometimes they will be as a result of an application by one of the parties. For example :
- if one of the parties wants to amend their claim, or
- add another defendant, or
- apply for more time to comply with a court order, or
- seek an adjournment of a hearing.
Other hearings may come about because they are ordered by the Judge. For example if he considers it necessary to have a directions hearing, rather than just making an order for the directions he thinks necessary.
Then after judgement has been given, it may be necessary to have further hearings – for example
- if a tenant who is being evicted applies to the court for more time in the property before the bailiffs can evict (known as an application for a stay of execution), or
- a hearing connected to enforcement proceedings such as an attachment of earnings order or third party debt order, or
- if the defendant applies to have judgement set aside, perhaps because he never received the paperwork
Where solicitors are acting, these sorts of hearings are often agreed in advance, and the parties will write to the court asking for the agreed order to be made in their absence. This saves everyone’s time.
However if you do not have an agreed order, and assuming you have views as to the sort of decision you want the Judge to make, it is important to attend these hearings.
In the Judge’s room
Hearings will generally take place in the Judge’s room (known as hearings ‘in chambers’) and are not open to the public. The room will generally have a table where the parties sit facing each other, and the Judge sits at a table going across the top like a T.
The Judges who take these hearings are usually District Judges, which is the lowest rung of the judiciary. If the Judge is a man you call him ‘Sir’ (not Your Honour) and if it is a woman, you call her ‘Ma’am’ (see here for further guidance on addressing Judges).
If it is your application, the Judge will normally ask you to speak first, and explain the application. Sometimes though, if the reason for the application is very clear from the paperwork, and everyone knows what it is all about, he may just ask you questions about it.
However the Judges runs the hearing though, make sure you explain everything carefully and say everything necessary in support of your application. Don’t expect the Judge to be all knowing or a mind reader – if he has not had time to read the papers he will need you to explain things to him.
Once you have finished, if the application is defended (although sometimes you may find that you are the only person at the hearing, which should make things easier for you), your opponent (or this might be you if you are the one opposing) will explain why he thinks the application should not succeed.
If, while the other party is speaking, you want to object to anything, or think of something you want to add, don’t interrupt. You will only annoy the Judge. Write down the point so you don’t forget it, and wait for him to finish.
Generally the Judge will want everyone to have an opportunity to say their piece. However, sometimes you may find that the Judge cuts you off, and allows your opponent to speak at length. If this happens, don’t get annoyed, it generally means that you have won, and the Judge is allowing the other side to say what they want so they cannot complain later that the Judge didn’t listen to them!
Mind you, I have heard clients say otherwise and complain that the Judge would not let them speak and found against them, so best to make sure you say all that you think is necessary in support of your case.
Possession hearings
Possession hearings are a special sort of hearing. You will generally (if you are the landlord) expect to get a possession order at the initial hearing, and in most cases this is what will happen. However your hearing will be in a long list with a lot of others and generally allotted about 5-10 minutes.
So if there is any dispute which is going to take some time to resolve, the Judge will adjourn the hearing to another day, and make directions. This should be avoided if at all possible, as generally the court will not be able to list the case for hearing for several months (whatever the Judge tells you in the hearing), and the case will probably become a lot more complex and time consuming (and expensive to run).
This is why you should only issue proceedings (again if you are a landlord) in circumstances where the order is virtually certain to be made at the initial hearing (using my do it yourself kits will help here).
What has been your experience of the types of hearing discussed here? Have you found Judges helpful or otherwise? Note – please do not post comments here about final hearings or trials as I will be looking at those next week.
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