http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/uksi/2024/106

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2024/106/rule/10/made

The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2024

King's Printer of Acts of Parliament

2024-02-01

SENIOR COURTS OF ENGLAND AND WALES

COUNTY COURT, ENGLAND AND WALES

These Rules amend the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (S.I. 1998/3132) by—amending Part 8 (alternative procedure for claims) to change a cross-reference in consequence of changes previously made to Part 14 (admissions);amending Part 15 (defence and reply) to change a cross-reference to Part 24 (summary judgment);amending Part 19 to update a cross-reference to rule 19.5 (which is now rule 19.6);amending Part 26 (case management – preliminary stage)—to clarify that the court shall allocate a claim to track after the parties have filed their directions questionnaires, not at the point at which the directions questionnaires are filed;to provide that in the circumstances in which a claim for clinical negligence may be allocated to the intermediate track rather than the multi-track, the defendant’s admission of liability in full must be provided in accordance with the appropriate pre-action protocol letter of response, and to define the meaning of “admission of liability in full”; andto provide that a claim against a public authority for trespass to the person must be allocated to the multi-track, unless, having regard to rule 26.13(1), the court considers that it would not be in the interests of justice to do so;amending Part 28 (the fast track and the intermediate track)—to provide that the court shall give directions when it allocates a claim to the fast track, unless it fixes a case management conference, and may give directions or fix a case management conference when it allocates a claim to the intermediate track;to provide that, in the intermediate track, the holding of a case management conference is at the court’s discretion, rather than mandatory; andto clarify the documents which should be included, and those which should be excluded, when applying the twenty page limit on expert reports in claims allocated to the intermediate track;amending Part 31 (disclosure and inspection of documents) to provide that rule 31.5 applies to claims allocated to the intermediate track as well as the multi-track;amending Part 45 (fixed costs)—to provide that any changes to the fixed recoverable costs in Tables 12, 14 or 15 in Practice Direction 45 which come into force on 6th April 2024 will apply to orders for costs made on or after that date in claims issued before that dateto clarify that in claims to which Sections IV, VI, VII or VIII of that Part apply, the parties may expressly agree that Part 45 shall not apply;to provide that Part 45 does not apply to costs incurred in respect of, or in connection with, inquest proceedings;to address the situation under rule 45.5(8) where one or more claimants, jointly entitled to one set of costs under rule 45.5, might be entitled to both additional costs under Part 36 and increased costs under rule 45.13(2), rather than only additional costs or increased costs;to provide that the costs incurred in respect of restoration proceedings are recoverable in claims to which Sections VI, VII and VIII of Part 45 apply, and not, as was previously the case, Section VIII only, in respect of which some consequential amendments are made to Sections VIII and IX of Part 45; andto change two cross-references to Part 36 (offers to settle);amending Part 54 (judicial review and statutory review) to flag the specific time limit provided for in the Public Service Obligations in Transport Regulations 2023; to make provision for claimants in judicial review proceedings to be able to file a reply to an acknowledgment of service; and to make minor updating changes;amending Part 81 (applications and proceedings in relation to contempt of court) to clarify the nature of a penal notice in the light of Taray Brokering [2022] EWHC 2958 (Ch).

Amendment of Part 5410

1

In rule 54.8(1), for “relevant practice” substitute “approved”.

2

In rule 54.5—

a

in paragraph (4), for “(5) and (6)” substitute “(5), (6) and (7)”; and

b

after paragraph (6) insert—

7
Where the application for judicial review is in respect of a failure by a competent authority to comply with the Public Service Obligations in Transport Regulations 20234 in deciding to enter into a public services contract or make a general rule, the claim form must be filed within the applicable time period specified in regulation 24(1) of those Regulations.

3

In rule 54.8(4)(a), paragraphs (i), (ia) and (ii) are renumbered respectively as (i), (ii) and (iii).

4

After rule 54.8 insert—

Reply to acknowledgment of service54.8A
1
A claimant who has been served with any acknowledgment of service in accordance with rule 54.8(2)(b)(i) may file a reply.
2
Any reply must be—
a
filed not more than 7 days after service of the acknowledgment of service; and
b
served on—
i
the defendant; and
ii
any person served with the claim form,
as soon as practicable and in any event not later than 7 days after it is filed.
3
The time limits under this rule may not be extended by agreement between the parties.
4
Practice Direction 54A makes provision as to the content and length of any reply.