Civil Courts

Introduction

The civil court system in England and Wales deals with disputes between individuals, organisations, or between individuals and the state (other than criminal prosecutions). Civil cases cover an enormous range of matters, including contract disputes, tort claims (such as negligence and defamation), family law, property disputes, and judicial review of government decisions. Understanding the hierarchy of civil courts, the track system, and the appeals process is essential for AQA A-Level Law.

Key Differences Between Civil and Criminal Cases

Before examining the civil court structure, it is important to understand the fundamental differences between civil and criminal proceedings.

Feature	Criminal Case	Civil Case
Parties	R (Rex/Regina — the Crown) v Defendant	Claimant v Defendant
Purpose	To punish offenders and protect society	To resolve disputes and provide remedies
Standard of proof	Beyond reasonable doubt	Balance of probabilities (more likely than not)
Burden of proof	On the prosecution	Usually on the claimant
Outcome	Guilty / Not guilty	Liable / Not liable
Remedies	Punishment (imprisonment, fine, community order)	Damages (compensation), injunctions, specific performance
Case citation	R v Smith [2020]	Smith v Jones [2020]

The County Court

The County Court is the main civil court of first instance for most civil claims. Following reforms in 2014, there is now a single County Court for England and Wales (previously there were many local County Courts), although it still sits at multiple locations.

The Track System

One of the most important features of the civil court system is the track system, introduced by the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR) following Lord Woolf's reforms (the "Woolf Reforms"). Cases are allocated to one of three tracks based primarily on their financial value and complexity.

Track	Financial Value	Features	Judge
Small Claims Track	Usually up to £10,000	Informal hearing; limited costs recovery; no need for lawyers; designed for litigants in person	District Judge
Fast Track	£10,000 to £25,000	Trial within 30 weeks; strict timetable; trial usually one day; costs limited	Circuit Judge or District Judge
Multi-Track	Over £25,000 or complex cases	Flexible case management; trial can last several days or weeks; full costs recovery	Circuit Judge or High Court Judge

Allocation factors (CPR Part 26): when deciding which track a case should be allocated to, the court considers:

• The financial value of the claim.
• The nature and complexity of the issues.
• The number of parties.
• The likely length of the trial.
• The views of the parties.

Note on personal injury claims: Claims for personal injury are allocated to the small claims track only if the claim value is £1,000 or less for the personal injury element (the overall claim can be up to £10,000). For personal injury claims worth more than £1,000 but less than £25,000, the fast track is used.

Lord Woolf's Reforms

The Civil Procedure Rules 1998 were introduced following Lord Woolf's reports Access to Justice (Interim Report 1995, Final Report 1996). The key objectives were to:

• Reduce the cost of civil litigation.
• Reduce delays in the system.
• Make the system fairer and more accessible.
• Encourage settlement and use of ADR.

The overriding objective of the CPR is to deal with cases justly and at proportionate cost (CPR r.1.1).

Key features of the Woolf reforms:

• The track system (described above).
• Active case management by judges — judges set timetables and manage cases proactively rather than leaving everything to the parties.
• Pre-action protocols — parties must exchange information and attempt to settle before issuing proceedings.
• A new terminology — e.g., "claimant" replaced "plaintiff," "Part 36 offers" replaced "payments into court."

The High Court

The High Court is the higher court of first instance for more serious, complex, or high-value civil cases. It also has important appellate jurisdiction.

Divisions of the High Court

The High Court is divided into three divisions, each with its own specialist jurisdiction:

Division	Head	Jurisdiction
Queen's Bench Division (QBD)	Lord Chief Justice (nominally); President of the QBD (in practice)	Contract, tort (especially negligence and defamation), judicial review, personal injury claims over £50,000
Chancery Division	Chancellor of the High Court	Trusts, wills, probate, land law, company law, intellectual property, insolvency, tax
Family Division	President of the Family Division	Divorce, children (wardship, adoption), domestic violence, declarations of legitimacy

The QBD also contains important specialist courts:

• Administrative Court — hears judicial review applications.
• Technology and Construction Court — building and engineering disputes.
• Commercial Court — large-scale commercial disputes.

Jurisdiction

The High Court hears:

• Civil claims that are too complex or high-value for the County Court.
• Multi-track cases with a value exceeding £100,000 (or £50,000 for personal injury).
• Judicial review applications (in the Administrative Court).
• Appeals from the County Court and from tribunals.
• Case stated appeals from the Magistrates' Court on criminal matters (QBD — Divisional Court).

graph TD
    A["Civil Court Structure"] --> B["County Court"]
    A --> C["High Court"]
    B --> D["Small Claims Track: up to £10,000"]
    B --> E["Fast Track: £10,000-£25,000"]
    B --> F["Multi-Track: over £25,000"]
    C --> G["Queen's Bench Division"]
    C --> H["Chancery Division"]
    C --> I["Family Division"]
    style A fill:#8e44ad,color:#fff
    style B fill:#2980b9,color:#fff
    style C fill:#c0392b,color:#fff

The Court of Appeal (Civil Division)

The Court of Appeal (Civil Division) is headed by the Master of the Rolls and hears appeals from the County Court and the High Court.

Key Features