The Civil Procedure Rules 1998

Service of documents on children and patients

6.6—(1) The following table shows the person on whom a document must be served if it is a document which would otherwise be served on a child or a patient—

Type of document	Nature of party	Person to be served
Claim form	Child who is not also a patient	• One of the child’s parents or guardians; or
		• if there is no parent or guardian, the person with whom the child resides or in whose care the child is.
Claim form	Patient	• The person authorised under Part VII of the Mental Health Act 1983(1) to conduct the proceedings in the name of the patient or on his behalf; or
		• if there is no person so authorised, the person with whom the patient resides or in whose care the patient is.
Application for an order appointing a litigation friend, where a child or patient has no litigation friend	Child or patient	See rule 21.8.
Any other document	Child or patient	The litigation friend who is conducting proceedings on behalf of the child or patient.

(2) The court may make an order permitting a document to be served on the child or patient, or on some person other than the person specified in the table in this rule.

(3) An application for an order under paragraph (2) may be made without notice.

(4) The court may order that, although a document has been served on someone other than the person specified in the table, the document is to be treated as if it had been properly served.

(5) This rule does not apply where the court has made an order under rule 21.2(3) allowing a child to conduct proceedings without a litigation friend.

(Part 21 contains rules about the appointment of a litigation friend)

(1)

1983 c. 20.