Independent, practical help for litigants in person in England & Wales.
Written by John Barwell
Two applications can end a civil case before it ever reaches trial. This guide explains the difference between strike out under CPR rule 3.4 — including the new SLAPP ground — and summary judgment under Part 24, the notice and evidence deadlines both sides must meet, and how a litigant in person can resist an application or use the same procedure against a hopeless claim or defence.
Written by John Barwell
A Part 36 offer is not an ordinary settlement letter — it is a formal costs instrument with a clock attached. Reject one and fail to beat it at trial, and the court must, unless it would be unjust, make you pay the other side’s costs from the day the offer period expired, even though you won. This guide explains the formalities, the 21-day relevant period, and how to evaluate, answer or match a Part 36 offer.
Written by John Barwell
The court will not collect your judgment for you. This guide walks through the four main enforcement routes for litigants in person — goods, wages, savings and property — with the current court fees and the thresholds that decide which route is realistic for your debtor.
Written by John Barwell
Three digital systems now sit between a claimant and the County Court, each with its own rulebook. Online Civil Money Claims is live and mainstream; the damages claims service is a pilot closed to litigants in person; Money Claim Online endures as the legacy layer. This inventory, built from the practice directions and official sources, maps which portal your claim belongs in.
Written by John Barwell
Civil courts in England & Wales can now order parties into non-court dispute resolution, and the Civil Procedure Rules were amended in October 2024 to match. This guide explains the difference between the automatic small claims mediation scheme and the general Churchill power, the costs risk of refusing to engage, and how to prepare for a mediation appointment without legal representation.
Written by John Barwell
Missed a directions deadline? The sanction takes effect automatically, and the way back is an application for relief from sanctions under CPR 3.9. This guide follows one worked breach – a late witness statement – through the three Denton stages, the application notice and the witness statement in support, and explains why it is a different remedy from setting aside a default judgment.
Written by John Barwell
A default judgment is not the end of a case. Part 13 of the Civil Procedure Rules builds in two routes back — one mandatory, one discretionary — and the route you take decides what you must prove. This guide sets out both routes, the promptness requirement the rule itself names, and the evidence an application has to carry.
Written by John Barwell
Since October 2023 the County Court has had four case management tracks, and the newest — the intermediate track — now covers the defended claims worth between £25,000 and £100,000 that are too big or too complex for the fast track. Track allocation decides procedure and, through fixed recoverable costs, almost exactly what the winner recovers. Here is what to check before you return the directions questionnaire.
Written by John Barwell
A County Court judgment can move from court procedure into financial life. This Legal Lens article explains why a CCJ is not one simple thing, and why judgment, registration, credit consequences, payment, satisfaction, cancellation, set aside, variation and stay are different legal routes with different effects.
Written by John Barwell
Sending is communication. Service is a legal act. This Legal Lens article explains why emailing a civil claim form can fail if the rules on service, solicitor authority, email consent, nominated addresses, sealed documents and timing are not followed.
