Civil Courts: Civil Appeals

The Civil justice system is used to settle disputes between private individuals or organisations. The person bringing the action is called the claimant and the person defending the action is called the defendant. The case has to be proved on the balance of probabilities (the standard of proof [50% or better chance of winning the case]) and the burden to prove the case is on the claimant. The claimant is normally seeking some form of remedy which could be the payment of compensation or an injunction

The remedy could be:

• Damages - General including physical injuries and Special involving the replacement of belongings
• Injunctions - an order of court that prevents/stops someone from doing something (e.g a restraining order in the context of criminal law)

Criminal	Civil
Guilty	Liable
Beyond Reasonable Doubt	On Balance of Probability
Victim	Claimant
Defendant	Defendant
Punishment	Damages
Magistrates Court/Crown Court	County/Magistrates/Tribunals

The Hierarchy of the Civil Courts

Civil Court Appeals:

Appeal from County Court or High Court to Court of Appeal

These appeals require leave (permission) from the lower court or the Court of Appeal

Permission to appeal will only be given where:

• The court considers that the appeal would have a real prospect of success (50% or better)
• There is some other compelling reason why the appeal should be heard (fairness or legal point)

The Court of Appeal will allow an appeal where the decision of the lower court was:

• Wrong, or per incuriam
• Unjust because of a serious procedural or other irregularity in the proceedings of the lower court - e.g a procedural mistake in CPR interpretation

The Court of Appeal will have the powers of the lower court in relation to an appeal - e.g if an appeal is made from the Divisional Court to the Court of Appeal, the Court of Appeal can award a remedy that the Divisional Court would have made

Appealing from different courts:

Appeal from the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court:

• This appeal is only allowed where the Court of Appeal or Supreme Court grants leave to appeal.

Appeal from the High Court to the Supreme Court:

This is a 'leapfrog' appeal direct from the High Court, provided:

• All parties consent, and 
• A point of law of general public importance is involved relating to the construction of legislation or on a point on which the trial judge was bound by precedent
• A certificate of the trial judge and leave from the Supreme Court is required

Appeal from Small Claims Court (Tribunals etc) to the County Court:

This appeal can be made if there's a serious irregularity in the proceedings, or the District Judge at the Small Claims Court made a mistake of law

High Court Structure:

	Head of Division	Types of cases heard	When is a jury used?
Queen's Bench Division	President	Criminal, Judicial Review	Libel/defamation
Chancery Division	Chancellor of the High Court	Property, trust, business	Very rarely
Family Division	President	Divorce, financial, wordship	Never

The jury decides the liability and quantum (are they guilty and how much do they have to pay)