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Think small

8th July 1993, Page 46
8th July 1993
Page 46
Page 46, 8th July 1993 — Think small
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

If you've not been paid for a load—and the debt is no more than £1,000—you can fight for your cash through the "solicitor-free" Small Claims Procedure.

If you have a claim against someone for less than £1,000 you can use the cheap, fast and "solicitor-free" Small Claims Procedure of the County Court.

But before you rush headlong into a court case you should consider if the person or company you want to sue (the defendant) actually has the money to pay you (the plaintiff). If you think he has, then you must first write to him detailing what is owed and why it is owed. warning that you will go to court if the debt remains unpaid after a specified, but reasonable, period of time. The mere threat of legal action might be all that is needed.

Small Claims Procedure rarely involve solicitors. You simply go to the court and ask for the necessary forms. The Court staff will tell you what you need to do.

CEILING

You will have to pay a fee of £10 plus 10% of the claim up to a ceiling of £60. This fee can be added to the costs of your claim, but must be paid before the summons can be issued. If you decide to use a solicitor, bear in mind that you are unlikely to get costs back from the defendant, even if you win.

If the court decides that it cannot deal with complex issues, the case could be transferred to a formal open court at another County Court. In this case solicitors will probably be needed and you might have to pay the defendant's legal bill if you lose. If they call witnesses you might also have to pay their expenses.

You can sue the defendant at any County Court. When it comes to filling in the summons (form Ni), your local Citizens Advice Bureau will help you. You must complete at least three copies of the summons: one for you, one for the court and one for each person you are suing.

When the forms have been filled out and you've paid your fee to the Court you will be given a form (N205A) and the reference details of your case, known as a "notice of issue". A copy of the summons will then be posted to the defendant together with a reply form (N9A&B) and on receipt they have 14 days to answer. You will be sent a "notice of service" (form N222) to tell you when he received the summons.

If for some reason the defendant does not receive the summons it will be returned to the court which will let you know via a "notice of non-service" (form N216). If you want to pursue the case it will be up to you to find the correct details and the defendant must be in possession of the summons within four months of the day you first registered your case. The Court can give you more time, but only in exceptional circumstance& When the defendant receives the summons he will have four options. He can ignore the summons; he can agree that he owes you money and send you the form N9A; he can return form N9B saying he admits only part of the debt or none of it at all: or he can pay you what you are claiming.

If the defendant received the summons but does not answer within 14 days you can ask the Court to order them to pay what you are owed; a "judgement by default". To do this, you must fill in and return form N205A (the bottom part of the "notice of issue") and decide how much you want them to pay, and when. This will be used by the Court to complete the "judgement form" (form N30). If they still fail to pay you can go back to the Court for help.

The Court will give you a booklet Enforcing Money Judgement s in the County Court and will require another fee which can also be added to the cost of your claim when you've decided which of the options you want the Court to use.

The next step is to check with Registry Trust at173-175 Cleveland Street, London. W1P 5PE, phone 071-380 0133. This organisation stores records of unpaid judgement s over £10 for six years from the date of judgement and can tell you if the debtor has any other judgements against him. If he has you may find that enforcement is a waste of time.

If the defendant wants to pay when he receives the initial summons or following judgement he should complete form N9A detailing his income and what he proposes to pay, and send it to you for approval. If you agree, fill in form N205A and send it back to the Court. This will then be used to produce the "judgement order" (form N30(1)) which details how much the defendant should pay, when it should be paid, and where.

JUDGEMENT

If you accept a smaller payment you are more likely to get your money without any need to enforce the judgement, and enforcement is expensive. If you disagree with the defendant's offer you must tell the Court why you object and what is acceptable using form N205A. Return it with the defendant's completed N9A to the Court, but don't reject any offer out of hand; if you do the Court will make up its own mind and let you know the result on a "judgement by determination" (form N30(2)) and this may not be as favourable as the first offer.

L by Adam Bernstein

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Locations: London

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