IN THE HIGH COURT OF NORTHERN IRELAND
CHANCERY DIVISION
CHANCERY OFFICE
2003 No 8
PRACTICE DIRECTION
SETTING DOWN AND FIXING DATES FOR TRIAL OF ACTIONS BEGUN BY
WRIT
1. This direction replaces and revokes Practice Direction 1994 No 1.
2. (a) Order 34 specifies the requirements for setting down for trial by a Judge of an action begun by writ. To set the action down for trial 2 bundles or books of pleadings are required to be lodged in the Chancery Office.
The index of a typical book is as follows: - Page
(1) Request for trial (Form 34 Appendix A) 1
(2) Writ of Summons (Form 1 or 2 Appendix A) 2-4
(3) Notice of issue of Legal Aid Certificate to 5
Plaintiff
(4) Memorandum of Appearance (Form 12 appendix A) 6
(5) Statement of Claim 7-10
(6) Defendant’s Notice for Particulars 11
(7) Plaintiff’s Reply to Defendant’s Notice for Particulars 12
(8) Defence 13-14
(9) Plaintiff’s Reply to Defendant’s Notice for Particulars 15
(10) Defendant’s Reply to Plaintiff’s Notice for Particulars 16
(11) (Any interlocutory orders) 17
(12) Reply to Defence 18
It is important to ensure that “the requisite legal aid documents, if any” are included in the book. (O34 r4(1)(d)).
Affidavits, unless they have been ordered to stand as pleadings, and notices to produce, need not be included in the books. The setting down fee should be paid at the Supreme Court Fee Collection Office where one of the forms of Request for Trial (Form 34) will be receipted accordingly.
The books must be legible. If, for example, the pleading served by the opposite party is difficult to read, it is not sufficient for the party setting down to make photocopies of such a pleading for the books. Clear copies of such a pleading should be made.
The important point about books of pleadings is that they should be clear, bound up neatly and indexed in proper chronological order (subject to O34 r4(2)).
(b) When the party setting down the action for trial lodges the 2 books of pleadings (R 4), the Office will send to each party a notice giving the date and time at which the Judge will sit to fix the date of trial.
(c) The party setting down must, within 24 hours after doing so, give notice in Form 35 of the Appendix A to the other parties that he has done so (O34 r7).
(d) Ideally, the solicitor and counsel for each party should attend the hearing for the purposes of fixing a date for trial. If this is not practicable then either the solicitor or counsel engaged for each party ought to attend. At the hearing counsel or solicitors should be in a position to report on any special features and to give estimates of: -
(a) the time which will be required for any interlocutory proceedings before the
Master; and
(b) the anticipated length of the trial.
(e) Priority in obtaining a date for trial normally depends upon the date and time of setting down. If the date that is fixed is not during the current term, the action will be included in the call-over of actions at the beginning of the following term when any revised estimate of the time required for interlocutory proceedings or the length of the trial must be given.
(f) The parties may obtain a trial in advance of the waiting period if they are all willing to take their place on the same day but immediately after an action already listed. They must be prepared to take a chance either that the action first listed will not proceed, i.e. that it will either settle or be taken out of the list, or that an additional Judge may become available.
(g) Actions sometimes do not proceed to trial on the date fixed because, for example, of the failure of one or more parties to make discovery of documents (O24). Should it become apparent that the time allowed for completion of any interlocutory proceedings is insufficient and it is unlikely that the action will be ready for trial on the date fixed, the parties must inform the Principal Clerk immediately so that the action may be listed again before the Judge so that a new date for trial can be fixed if this is considered necessary.
(h) The smooth running of the lists depends upon the co-operation of counsel and solicitors in directing and obtaining proofs and making necessary interlocutory applications before the Master as soon as practicable and in keeping the Office informed promptly about pending applications to have a case taken out of the list, settlements and proposed settlements (O34 R7(2)).
(i) Supplemental books of pleadings.
“The party who has set an action down for trial must deliver to the (Chancery) Office two copies of any documents of the kind specified in paragraph (1) which have come into existence between the date of setting down and the day preceding the trial of the action.” (O34 R4(6)).
(j) Third party proceedings.
Where a third party notice has been issued the party issuing it must as soon as practicable after receiving notice that the action has been set down for trial deliver to the Office 2 books prepared in accordance with paragraph (a) each consisting of one copy of the third party notice and all documents in the third party proceedings corresponding to those specified in paragraph (a) (O34 r4(3)).
If one defendant wishes to make a claim (such as an indemnity) against another defendant already on record it is not appropriate to use the third party procedure (O16 r8).
(k) Failure to comply with the Rules of Court and these directions may mean that the books of pleadings have to be returned to the party concerned with consequent delay in fixing a date for hearing.
Notices for Particulars and the Replies to them are frequently as important as the pleadings to which they related and must be included in the book (O34r4(1)(b)).
A common error is failure to include the requisite legal aid documents in the book (O34r 4(1)(d) and (5)).
By direction of the Honourable Mr Justice Girvan.
Master (Chancery)
2003