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Small claims court threshold to double

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Small claims threshold to double

The Government is expected to announce today that the threshold for a civil (money) claim in the County Court for a case to be classified as a small claim will rise from £5,000.00 to £10,000.00.

The small claims court is not a separate court as such, the system works by a claimant issuing a  claim in any county court of their choice. The court then sends a response pack to the defendant. If a defence is filed the court then decides, with representations from the parties in a questionnaire known as a an allocation questionnaire, whether the claim should be a small claim or otherwise. the vast majority of claims within the financial limits detailed above will be allocated as small claims, but if a counterclaim is filed by the defendant which may exceed the value of the claim or if the case is very technical, it is possible the court will decide that the case is not suitable for the small claims court.

As with all things, there are advantages and disadvantages of the small claims system. On the one hand, the system fundamentally helps access to justice in that there is a  general no costs rule in the small claims court for legal fees, regardless of which side wins or loses the case. This enables more claimants or defendants to fight a case without fear of being financially bullied by the risk of paying a rich opponent’s expensive legal fees. On the other hand, this doesn’t mean a big company defendant won’t use a lawyer in the small claims court. The potential drawback is that the court must still apply the law and many personal or business users of the county courts still need legal advice on the law or court procedures. So, a claimant with a very strong claim which feels he, she or it needs a lawyer will end up having to pay legal fees out of any monies recovered from using the court.

Do you have a view on the small claims court, the doubling of the financial threshold or perhaps you have experiences, good or bad, of using the small claims court. If so, please provide your comments.

What is it about Manchester and law ?

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Manchester at the vanguard of progressive law firms

Many outside the legal profession and in fact many within it have failed to recognise that Manchester is at the forefront , and has been for some years, of the legal scene outside of the Magic Circle firms. This fact was also recently made in an interesting recent article in the FT.

It’s not clear why Manchester in particular seems to have more of the progressive firms, or who starrtd the trend, but it may have something to do with :-

  1. Pannone is based in Manchester and has for many years been one of the more dynamic and creative law firms
  2. Many of the most successful personal injury practices are in Manchester and the North West

As regards personal injury, it is interesting that the public and many lawyers seem to think either that those in this field are nor proper lawyers in the sense of what they do (a little like conveyancers are seen as paper shufflers only, which again is incorrect) or simply generally cock a snoop at them. In fact, personal injury lawyers tend to be far more commercial than most other lawyers in other areas of practice in small or medium sized firms. They have recognised, long before many other solicitors (many of whom still don’t get it) that law has become more of a business and a competitive one at that. They invest in marketing and understand the nature of the dialogue with their customers and that customer service is important.

Perhaps pure coincidence (or perhaps not)  but also interesting that the Co-Op, based in Manchester, are one of the non-lawyer providers who have shown most interest in entering the legal service market now that it is opening up.

Whatever it is about Manchester, it’s proving to be premier league for legal services as well as for football and we salute the Manchester law firms.

Any views on the above ?

Bullying at work – the law

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Bullying/Harassment in the Workplace

Bullying and/or harassment in the workplace are issues that employers and employees need to ensure do not take place.

There are a number of different types of treatment that could be considered bullying in the workplace or harassment and there are many different types of behaviour that can satisfy the definitions of bullying and harassment.

Bullying can best be characterised as offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting behaviour, an abuse or misuse of power through means that undermine, humiliate, denigrate or injure the recipient

Harassment, is unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic, which has the purpose or effect of violating an individual’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that individual.

Employers should have policies in place to ensure that such conduct does not take place amongst their workforce. When incidents do arise they should ensure that they adopt appropriate procedures to manage the situation. Not only can it lead to poor moral amongst the workforce, but also potential Employment Tribunal claims.

There has, since the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, been legislation in place to specifically prevent harassment. The act covers actions in the workplace but also in all walks of life.

It may be that a person is not able to present a case for race discrimination or sex discrimination, however if the actions against them satisfy the description above they may be able to present a case to the Tribunal for constructive dismissal or a claim under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. These are two separate cases, the claim for constructive dismissal would need to presented to the Employment Tribunal, and within 3 months of the resignation/dismissal. The claim under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 would be available for a period of 6 years, and would also not require employment status.

Employers also need to bear in mind that employees who suffer bullying or harassment may also be able to present a claim for personal injury if they suffer from significant psychological problems as a result.

Employers must ensure that staff in managerial positions are properly trained to deal with these issues. Not only will it enable a company to stamp out such behaviour before it starts, but it will also ensure that the business is protected should claims be brought against it with an employer being able to show that they took all reasonable steps to prevent such treatment. This can include an anti-harassment/bullying policy and/or appropriate training for staff. All policies should be circulated to staff, it is not sufficient to have such policies in place if the relevant employees are not aware of them.

In addition employers should have an appropriate grievance procedure. This will allow employees to air their concerns at an early stage. It will allow employers to deal with such complaints and manage situations which could otherwise lead to employment claims.

There should be no doubt from both sides that bullying or harassment is not acceptable in the workplace. If employers are unclear as to their obligations they should seek advice and ensure that appropriate procedures are introduced.