Before filing a civil claim, the court expects that parties comply with pre-action protocols to act reasonably in exchanging relevant information and documents and in trying to avoid litigation. Generally, the following steps should be taken by parties, with the advice of or through their attorneys:
• The party with a potential dispute should write a letter of claim to the other side;
• The other party should acknowledge receipt of the letter (usually within seven days) and indicate when he/she will provide a written response (one month is considered to be a reasonable amount of time);
• The other party should provide a detailed response, including any counter-claims once he/she has gathered all the relevant information and documents;
• The parties should then conduct genuine and reasonable negotiations with a view to settling the claim economically, speedily and without resort to court proceedings;
• After discussions and negotiations, if the parties do not come to an agreement, both parties should work together to reduce/narrow the issues in dispute for possible court proceedings.
The letter of claim should comprise the following:
• Sufficient details for the other side to understand and investigate the claim without requiring further information. This includes what remedies the party is seeking and copies of essential documents being relied on (eg. receipts and medical records).
• A request for a prompt acknowledgment of the letter; a full written response within a reasonable time period; and whether court proceedings will be issued if the full response is not received within that time.
• A request for copies of any essential documents, not in the party’s possession, which he wishes to see.
• Whether the party wishes to enter into a form of alternative dispute resolution (eg. mediation).
• Draw attention to the court’s powers to impose sanctions for failure to comply with the pre-action rules and enclose a copy of the practice direction.
The recipient/ other side should include in his/her full written response:
• Whether he/she accepts the claim in whole or in part and make proposals for settlement; or
• State that the claim is not accepted and give detailed reasons why not, identifying which parts of the claim are in dispute with copies of any essential documents relied on.
• Enclose copies of documents asked for in the letter of claim or explain why they are not enclosed.
• Identify and ask for copies of any further essential documents not in his/her possession, which he/she wishes to see. The party making the claim should provide these within a reasonable time or explain in writing why he is not doing so.
• State whether they are prepared to enter into an alternative method of dispute resolution.
The pre-action protocols are intended to provide people with a fair opportunity to resolve issues early through the exchange of information or to lay the groundwork for the efficient conduct of court proceedings. Parties are encouraged to attempt to settle matters using alternative methods of dispute resolution and should view court proceedings as a last resort.
This column is not legal advice. If you have a legal problem, you should consult a legal adviser.
Co-ordinator: Roshan Ramcharitar