Glossary

The person charged. The person who has allegedly committed the offence

When the particulars of a claim form (outlining details of the claim) are served on (delivered to) a defendant, they receive a response pack including a form which they must use to acknowledge they have received the claim. The defendant must file (return) the acknowledgment form within 14 days of receiving the particulars of the claim. The particulars can be served with, or separately from the claim form.

Discharge of defendant following verdict or direction of not guilty

Law, as an act of parliament

Temporary suspension of the hearing of a case by order of the Court (maybe for a short period, e.g. to next day or sine die).

The postponing of the hearing of a case until a later date.

A judgment or decision of a court, tribunal or adjudicator in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) cases where disputes are resolved outside of the court

An order by a County Court directing a debtor to pay a specified monthly installment into Court in respect of outstanding debts. The Court retains the payments made and at intervals distributes it between the creditors on a pro-rata basis

The Administrative Court is part of the High Court. It deals with applications for judicial review.

Part of the High Court. An admiralty claim is a claim for the arrest of a ship at sea to satisfy a debt.

A party involved in a claim may admit the truth of all or part of the other party’s case, at any stage during proceedings. For example, a defendant may agree that he or she owes some money, but less than the amount being claimed. If the defendant makes an admission, the claimant may apply for judgment, on the admission.

An act by which the rights and duties of the natural parents of a child are extinguished and equivalent rights and duties become vested in the adopter or adopters, to whom the child then stands in all respects as if born to them in marriage

Voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and another person who is not the spouse, while the marriage is still valid. This is a common fact relied on for divorce

Arrangements designed to bring out the truth of a matter, through adversarial (conflict based) techniques such as cross-examination.

A barrister or solicitor representing a party in a hearing before a Court

A written statement of evidence confirmed on oath or by affirmation to be true and taken before someone who has authority to administer it

Declaration by a witness who has no religious belief, or has religious beliefs that prevent him/her taking the oath. They declare by affirmation that the evidence he/she is giving is the truth

The process by which a judge assigns a defended civil case, to one of three case management tracks, the small claims track, the fast track or the multi-track

A case (claim) is allocated to a case management track, when an allocation questionnaire has been returned completed by the people involved (parties) in the case. Reponses to the questionnaire provide a judge with information on case value and other matters, to assist him or her to allocate the case to the correct track

These are schemes such as arbitration and mediation which are designed to allow parties to find a resolution to their problem, without legal action. A party’s refusal to consider ADR could lead to sanctions (penalties) against that party, by a judge, even if the party wins the case

The process by which corrections to court documents, such as statements of case, can be made. A statement of case can be amended at any time, before it is served or with permission of all other parties or the court, (once served). The court may reject the amendment, even if the party concerned has permission of other parties to the case

An amount of money offered by a defendant to pay a debt or to settle another type of claim, for example in a personal injury case

Additional claims (e.g. in respect of maintenance) attached to the petition for divorce/judicial separation/nullity

To declare no longer valid

Application to a higher court or other body for review of a decision taken by a lower court or tribunal. The higher court may overturn or uphold (i.e. reject) the lower court’s decision. Often, permission (leave) is required, to for an appeal to occur.

A person appealing to a higher court or body against a decision made in a lower court or body

Person making the request or demand, e.g. person who issues an application

The act of applying to a civil court to ask it to do something, for example to start proceedings

To place or assign

Valuation of goods seized under warrant of execution prior to sale

A process in which both sides agree to use an independent arbitrator (an impartial person) who gives a binding decision in the matter. The person making the claim (claimant) has to choose between going to arbitration and court – it is not usually possible to take a claim to court after it has been through arbitration

A party to legal proceedings who is receiving legal aid

A tenancy defined by the Housing Act 1996 where the tenant enjoys security of tenure

An order that instructs an employer to deduct a regular amount, fixed by the court, from a debtor's earnings and to pay that money into court. The court pays the money to the person or people to whom it is owed

Providing that a number of criteria are met, proceedings must be transferred automatically to the court nearest to the defendant’s home.

Result of an arbitration hearing or the amount of damages assessed by a Court