REUTERS | David W Cerny
December 20, 2017

Season’s greetings from the Dispute Resolution blog

As another year draws to a close, the Practical Law Dispute Resolution blog must pause for a short Christmas recess. We will be back on Wednesday 27 December 2017.

If, however, you are looking for a new holiday tradition to accompany your turkey dinner, Queen’s Speech and wassailing, why not indulge in our annual top ten tips? It has been compiled by our expert team to bring you some of the most interesting nuggets of wisdom arising from key cases over the past 12 months.

Only two things remain before we wrap up and tie a ribbon around 2017. Firstly, thank you to all of our contributors for their excellent posts this year. Finally, on behalf of Practical Law Dispute Resolution, we wish our readers and contributors a very Merry Christmas and a happy, successful 2018.

Practical Law Dispute Resolution Jack Meek
REUTERS | Paulo Whitaker
December 19, 2017

Sailing through the CCMCC Part 2: further hints and tips for users of the County Court Money Claims Centre

Regular readers of the Practical Law Dispute Resolution blog may recall my previous posts about the County Court Money Claims Centre (CCMCC) in Salford. The CCMCC processes hundreds of thousands of Part 7 money claims (plus related applications) each year. In addition, over the past 12 months, it has processed tens of thousands of charging order and attachment of earnings applications, following the centralisation of these enforcement methods in 2016.

I was fortunate to have the chance to return to the CCMCC this summer, to learn more about practice and procedure at Salford – especially in relation to charging orders, attachment of earnings and Help with Fees. Following on from last year’s Sailing through the CCMCC, this blog contains a further and updated collection of practical hints and tips for those who use the CCMCC on a regular or occasional basis. Continue reading →

REUTERS | Umit Bektas
December 18, 2017

Interview with HHJ Klein: part 2 of 2: Business & Property courts, HMCTS modernisation and the future of English civil justice

Regional courts have been put centre stage, with the introduction of the Business and Property Courts (B&PCs) in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff Leeds, and Manchester – and Liverpool and Newcastle to follow soon.

With thanks to Sue Harris, Immediate Past President of the Leeds Law Society, Beverley Barton, one of the editors in the Practical Law Dispute Resolution team, was delighted to have the opportunity to submit questions to His Honour Judge Klein, a Specialist Chancery and Circuit Commercial Judge, principally based on the North Eastern Circuit (who is the lead Circuit Commercial Judge for the North Eastern Circuit) and to get his thoughts on recent developments and what they mean for the regions.

In part one, HHJ Klein discussed Briggs LJ’s Civil Courts Structure Review, the B&PCs, the Shorter and Flexible Trials Schemes and proportionality. In part two, he considers what practitioners should do regarding the B&PCs and the impact of the HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) modernisation programme on the regions. He also offers advice for the future and reflects on the future of English civil justice. Continue reading →