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Court staff are invariably courteous and helpful, by
telephone and in person. If you need help completing a form, they will
assist you in person.
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| Court Name |
Court Address |
Tel |
FAX |
| Aylesbury Crown Court | 38 Market Square
Aylesbury
Buckinghamshire
HP20 1XD
England
DX 97400 Aylesbury 2 | 01296 434401 | 01296 435665 |
| More Details | | Birmingham Crown Court | Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts
1 Newton Street
Birmingham
West Midlands
B4 7NA
England
DX 702033 Birmingham 8 | 0121 681 3300 | 0121 681 3370 |
| More Details | | Blackfriars Crown Court | 1-15 Pocock Street
London
SE1 0BJ
England
DX 400800 Lambeth 3 | 020 7922 5800 | 020 7922 5815 |
| More Details | | Bournemouth Crown Court | Courts Of Justice
Deansleigh Road
Bournemouth
Dorset
BH7 7DS
England
DX 98420 Bournemouth 4 | 01202 502800 | 01202 502801 |
| More Details | | Bristol Crown Court | The Law Courts
Small Street
Bristol
BS1 1DA
England
DX 78128 Bristol | 0117 976 3030 | 0117 976 3026 |
| More Details | | Caernarfon Crown Court | The Castle Ditch
Caernarfon
Gwynedd
LL55 2AY
Wales | 01286 675753 | 01286 678201 |
| More Details | | Cambridge Crown Court | The Court House
83 East Road
Cambridge
Cambridgeshire
CB1 1BT
England
DX 97365 Cambridge 2 | 01223 488321 | 01223 488333 |
| More Details | | Cardiff Crown Court | The Law Courts
Cathays Park
Cardiff
South Wales
CF10 3PG
Wales
DX 99450 Cardiff 5 | 02920 414400 | 02920 414441 |
| More Details | | Carmarthen Crown Court | The Shire Hall (Hearing venue only)
Guildhall Square
Carmarthen
Carmarthenshire
SA31 1BJ
Wales
DX 99540 Swansea 4 | 01792 637000 | 01792 637049 |
| More Details | | Chelmsford Crown Court | PO Box 9
New Street
Chelmsford
Essex
CM1 1EL
England
DX 97375 Chelmsford 3 | 01245 603000 | 01245 603011 |
| More Details | | Chester Crown Court | The Castle
Chester
Cheshire
CH1 2AN
England
DX 702527 Chester 5 | 01244 317606 | 01244 350773 |
| More Details | | Croydon Crown Court | The Law Courts
Altyre Road
Croydon
Surrey
CR9 5AB
England
DX 97470 Croydon 6 | 0208 410 4700 | N/A |
| More Details | | Dolgellau Crown Court | The County Hall
Dolgellau
Gwynedd
Wales | 01341 423081 | 01341 423081 |
| More Details | | Doncaster Crown Court | College Road
Doncaster
South Yorkshire
DN1 3HS
England
DX 703001 Doncaster 5 | 01302 322211 | 01302 329471 |
| More Details | | Dorchester Crown Court | County Hall
Dorchester
Dorset
England | 01305 752510 | 01305 788293 |
| More Details | | Durham Crown Court | The Law Courts
Old Elvet
Durham
Co. Durham
DH1 3HW
England
DX 65112 Durham 4 | 0191 386 6714 | 0191 383 0605 |
| More Details | | Gloucester Crown Court | Gloucestershire Courts
Crown Court Section
PO Box 9051
Gloucester
Gloucestershire
GL1 2XG
England
DX 98665 Gloucester 5 | 01452 420100 | 01452 833599 |
| More Details | | Guildford Crown Court | Bedford Road
Guildford
Surrey
GU1 4ST
England
DX 97862 Guildford 5 | 01483 468500 | 01483 579545 |
| More Details | | Harrow Crown Court | Hailsham Drive
off Headstone Drive
Harrow
London
HA1 4TU
England
DX 97335 Harrow 5 | 020 8424 2294 | 020 8424 2209 |
| More Details | | Hereford Crown Court | Shirehall
St Peter's Square
Hereford
Herefordshire
HR1 2HY
England
DX 01432 276118 | 01432 276118 | 01432 274350 |
| More Details | | Hove Trial Centre | Hove Trial Centre
The Court House
Lansdowne Road
Hove
East Sussex
BN3 3BN
England
DX 99402 Hove 3 | 01273 229200 | 01273 229229 |
| More Details | | Inner London Crown Court | Sessions House
Newington Causeway
London
SE1 6AZ
England
DX 97345 Southwark 3 | 020 7234 3100 | 020 7234 3203 |
| More Details | | Ipswich Crown Court | The Courthouse
1 Russell Road
Ipswich
Suffolk
IP1 2AG
England
DX 729480 Ipswich 19 | 01473 228 585 | 01473 228 560 |
| More Details | | Isleworth Crown Court | 36 Ridgeway Road
Isleworth
London
TW7 5LP
England
DX 97420 Isleworth 1 | 020 8380 4500 | 020 8568 5368 |
| More Details | | Kings Lynn Crown Court | The Court House
College Lane
King's Lynn
Norfolk
PE30 1PQ
England | 01553 760847 | 01553 772873 |
| More Details | | Knutsford Crown Court | Sessions House
Toft Road
Knutsford
Cheshire
WA16 0PB
England | 01565 624020 | 01565 624029 |
| More Details | | Lancaster Crown Court | Lancaster
Lancashire
England | 01772 844700 | 01772 832476 |
| More Details | | Leicester Crown Court | 90 Wellington Street
Leicester
Leicestershire
LE1 6HG
England
DX 10880 Leicester 3 | 0116 222 5800 | 0116 222 5888 |
| More Details | | Lincoln Crown Court | The Castle
Castle Hill
Lincoln
Lincolnshire
LN1 3GA
England
DX 722500 Lincoln 11 | 01522 525222 | 01522 543962 |
| More Details | | Liverpool Crown Court | The Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts
Derby Square
Liverpool
Merseyside
L2 1XA
England
DX 740880 Liverpool 22 | 0151 473 7373 | 0151 258 1587 |
| More Details | | Luton Crown Court | 7 George Street
Luton
Bedfordshire
LU1 2AA
England
DX 120500 Luton 6 | 01582 522000 | 01582 522001 |
| More Details | | Manchester Crown Court (Crown Square) | Courts of Justice
Crown Square
Manchester
Greater Manchester
M3 3FL
England
DX 702538 Manchester 11 | 0161 954 1800 | 0161 954 1705 |
| More Details | | Manchester Crown Court (Minshull St) | The Court House
Minshull Street
Manchester
Greater Manchester
M1 3FS
England
DX 724860 Manchester 43 | 0161 954 7500 | 0161 954 7600 |
| More Details | | Middlesex Guildhall Crown Court | Little George Street
London
SW1P 3BB
England
DX 122920 Parliament Square | 020 7202 0370 | 020 7202 0392 |
| More Details | | Mold Crown Court | The Law Courts
Civic Centre
Mold
Flintshire
CH7 1AE
Wales | 01352 707340 | 01352 753874 |
| More Details | | Newport (Isle Of Wight) Crown Court | The Law Courts
1 Quay Street
Newport
Isle of Wight
PO30 5YT
England
DX 98460 Newport IW 2 | 01983 535100 | 01983 821039 |
| More Details | | Newport (South Wales) Crown Court | Faulkner Road
Newport
Gwent
NP20 4PR
Wales
DX 99460 Newport 1/2 | 01633 266211 | 01633 216824 |
| More Details | | Nottingham Crown Court | 60 Canal Street
Nottingham
Nottinghamshire
NG1 7EL
England
DX 702383 Nottingham 7 | 0115 910 3551 | 0115 910 3599 |
| More Details | | Reading Crown Court | Old Shire Hall
The Forbury
Reading
Berkshire
RG1 3EH
England
DX 97440 Reading 5 | 0118 967 4400 | 0118 967 4444 |
| More Details | | Shrewsbury Crown Court | The Shirehall
Abbey Foregate
Shrewsbury
Shropshire
SY2 6LU
England
DX 702022 Shrewsbury 2 | 01743 260820 | 01743 244236 |
| More Details | | Snaresbrook Crown Court | 75 Hollybush Hill
Snaresbrook
London
E11 1QW
England
DX 98240 Wanstead 2 | 020 8530 0000 | 020 8530 0072 |
| More Details | | Southend Crown Court | The Court House
Victoria Avenue
Southend-on-Sea
Essex
SS2 6EG
England | 01268 458000 | 01268 458100 |
| More Details | | St. Albans Crown Court | The Court Building
Bricket Road
St. Albans
Hertfordshire
AL1 3JW
England
DX 99700 St Albans 3 | 01727 753220 | 01727 753221 |
| More Details | | Swansea Crown Court | The Law Courts
St Helens Road
Swansea
South Wales
SA1 4PF
Wales
DX 99540 Swansea 4 | 01792 637000 | 01792 637049 |
| More Details | | Taunton Crown Court | The Shire Hall
Shuttern
Taunton
Somerset
TA1 4EU
England
DX 98410 Taunton 2 | 01823 281100 | 01823 322116 |
| More Details | | Truro Crown Court | Courts of Justice
Edward Street
Truro
Cornwall
TR1 2PB
England
DX 135396 Truro 2 | 01872 222328 | 01872 261550 |
| More Details | | Welshpool Crown Court | Town Hall
Welshpool
Powys
SY2 7TQ
Wales | 01938 553144 | 01938 553144 |
| More Details | | Wood Green Crown Court | Woodall House
Lordship Lane
Wood Green
London
N22 5LF
England
DX 130346 Wood Green 3 | 020 8826 4100 | |
| More Details | | Woolwich Crown Court | 2 Belmarsh Road
London
SE28 0EY
England
DX 117650 Woolwich 7 | 020 8312 7000 | 020 8312 7078 |
| More Details | | York Crown Court | The Castle
York
North Yorkshire
YO1 9WZ
England
DX 65162 York 3 | 01904 645121 | 01904 611689 |
| More Details |
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Preliminary considerations
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If your claim is against an individual, or a small
business where you can communicate with a real decision maker, then
do communicate and compromise as far as you can. It is cheaper and
quicker to settle your dispute amicably if at all possible.
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The larger the organisation with whom you are in
dispute, the more likely it is that you will have to issue a claim.
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There are two main reasons why large organisations
do not settle your claim. The first is bureaucracy and inertia. The
second is policy.
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Many government organisations are prone to inertia.
The bottom line is that your claim is far less important to them than
it is to you. If you suspect your dispute may be stalled on account
of inertia, it is always worth a last telephone call and attempt to
get through to someone high enough in the organisation to be able
to make a meaningful decision.
Golden rule - get a first name and last name, job title, and commitment
to pay a fixed sum (or the action you seek) by a particular date.
If all of those are not in place, then issue your claim.
Policy - a very large number of organisations take the wholly immoral
view that you are afraid to go to court. It follows logically from this
that they will first ignore your complaint. If you are very persistent
they will prevaricate and delay in correspondence in order to wear you
down. If you are still there after six months, they may make some derisory
offer. Culprits here include many larger holiday tour operators and
services suppliers. However, other companies are equally unscrupulous.
If you fail to recognise this, you will not succeed in your claim.
How the system works
There is no such thing as a small claims court. In April 1999, new Civil Procedure Rules rearranged the administration of justice, particularly with regard to the county court system. So far as small claims are concerned the situation is simple: If your claim is for less than £5,000, it will automatically be allocated to arbitration before a district judge, rather than to a hearing in open court, usually before a (more senior) circuit judge. There are virtually no procedural rules in arbitration, either in matters before you get to court, or during the arbitration hearing. Anyone can manage their claim through an arbitration hearing. You really do not need any legal experience at all.
Arbitration in the county court is not the same as arbitration under the arbitration acts. Arbitration is often set out in an agreement as a first stop proposal for settling a dispute arising out of the agreement. That sort of arbitration is also less formal than the usual court procedure, but it involves the parties paying an arbitrator, who is usually an expert in a particular field. In court, you pay a modest court fee; in arbitration, you pay for expensive professional time. The Judge is a legal expert, who is employed by the State in a judicial capacity. That makes him very greatly more experienced at sorting the justice in a dispute than an arbitrator who may handle one claim every 10 years. Because the arbitrator is qualified by his professional expertise, he may be quite unskilled at managing your arbitration. Avoid! So, . . . back to your small claim.
There is a new pilot scheme in operation whereby you can claim on line. That save a great deal of time obtaining forms and editing your changes. The scheme is limited to money claims. We highly recommend it. There is a link at the bottom of this page.
Forms and administration
How it works - You start a claim by completing a form N1. You either include or attach to it a statement of your case. It is usually easier and more efficient to attach this as a separate document entitled "Particulars of Claim". You then send these papers to court with the appropriate fee. The court "issues" your claim by registering it in their books, and at the same time they send a copy of it to your defendant. The defendant can either admit your claim or oppose you. If he opposes, he has 21 days within which to acknowledge receipt of the papers to the court, and another 14 days within which to put in a defence. Copies of these documents will automatically be sent to you by the court. By the way, you should address all court correspondence to: The Court Manager, Duncumly County Court, etc. Remember that the staff will pass all important letters to a judge for a decision, so keep it polite, but avoid grovel!
At this time your case has not been allocated to either the "fast track" or the "small claims track". When the defence has been filed, the court will send an "allocation questionnaire" to both sides. The purpose of this is to enable to judge to whom the management of your case will be allocated, to assess how it can be taken forward efficiently. If the value of the claim (or counterclaim) is less than £5,000 it will be allocated to the small claims track. That means it will be taken forward to arbitration without the formal provisions about disclosure and questions which usually follow in a "fast track" case.
After a further week or two, the court will give you a date for your arbitration hearing - probably three to four months ahead. Instead of just waiting for this time, it is a good idea to make quite sure you have absolutely all the information you need to take your case forward. You cannot expect the Judge to be sympathetic if you do not present all of the facts. One of the purposes of the procedure in the small claims track is to keep everything simple and uncluttered. However, it may be important to your case that the other side produces as evidence some document you know he has, or perhaps answers a critical question of fact. If you are quick, you do now have an opportunity to ask the defendant for this document or information. Set out clearly why it is important for your case and specify that you require it within seven days. If you do not receive it, then you should write to the court immediately, requesting a formal order that the defendant should produce the information for you. Tell the court it is important that you have the information / document well before the hearing. If the District Judge considers your application to be frivolous, or of small importance, he will simply say that the defendant will answer your questions at the time of the hearing. If however your questions, or the information you seek, are of importance, then the Judge will make the order in your favour.
Court imposed appointments and "do by" dates are very important. Only a crisis in your affairs is sufficient reason to justify a change of date. If you do return a paper late or miss a date, telephone the court immediately you become aware of the problem and seek their confirmation that you will not be prejudiced if you comply immediately. You may have to write to the court to ask for an "extension of time" or to take some action "out of time". If you are delayed by traffic in arriving at court for your hearing, you may well find your case has been decided in your absence. So allow plenty of time. Take a magazine or do some shopping close by.
Your day in court
When the time comes for the hearing itself, you should arrive at court in good time and find the notice posted on the wall of the reception area which lists the cases for the day. If you can't find it, then ask the staff. The arbitration hearing will usually take place in the District Judge's private office, which is large and spacious enough to accommodate a number of people. The Judge will either invite you to present your case, or more likely, will simply dive into the papers and ask questions of one party or the other. Some judges adopt an inquisitorial role, whilst others are prepared to allow both parties to present their entire life's story. Remember that you are entitled to be heard. There is no fixed procedure as to who says what. On the one hand you should avoid interrupting the other side whilst they are in full flight, but on no account should you be cowed by the Judge to the extent that you are unable either to explain the circumstances of your case, or to oppose statements made by the other side. If you find you have an inquisitorial judge, then:
- interrupt very tactfully;
- do not repeat yourself;
- be very firm on the point that you would like to say more;
- if the Judge accedes to your request with bad grace, do not be bullied into foreshortening your "speech";
- Remember the Judge is only human. If you want him to take account of what you are saying, then you should keep your content relevant and pithy;
- Do not use legal expressions unless you are absolutely positive what they mean. Barrack room lawyers are not popular in the Judge's rooms.
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May justice prevail!
This information is provided free of charge for your interest. It does not constitute legal advice.
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