I want to appeal The High Court or a county court

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1 I want to appeal The High Court or a county court What this leaflet covers EX340 This leaflet explains what you have to do if you wish to appeal in or to a county court or the High Court. The High Court includes district registries attached to county courts and offices within the Royal Courts of Justice. It does not deal with: appeals to the Court of Appeal separate information about appeals to the Court of Appeal is available from the Civil Appeals Office, Room E307, Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London WC2A 2LL; or appeals in family cases Leaflets mentioned and the forms referred to, are available free from any county court office or from the Clerk of the Lists General Office/Appeals Office, Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London WC2A 2LL. Things to consider before appealing In most cases you will have to ask a judge s permission to appeal permission to appeal will only be given if your appeal has a real prospect of succeeding. If your appeal is against a case management decision, such as: one dealing with the timetable to trial or final hearing; or about the exchange of evidence of witnesses or experts; or about adding another party; the judge will also consider if the point is important enough to justify the costs of an appeal; if the procedural consequences, for example, any impact on the timetable to trial, or the loss trial date itself, are more important; and if it would be more convenient for the matter to be dealt with at, or after, the trial. If you decide you want to appeal you must act quickly the time within which you must issue your appeal is limited. You must have proper grounds (reasons) for appeal a belief that you are right and that the judge got it wrong is not on its own a sufficient reason for an appeal. Your grounds must show that the decision of the lower court was wrong or unjust because of a serious procedural or other irregularity in the court whose decision you are appealing. If you are in any doubt about whether you have proper grounds for appeal, you should seek advice from a solicitor, a law centre or an advice agency immediately. Page 1

2 You will usually have to pay a fee when you appeal there are circumstances in which you may not have to pay a fee, or part of it, for example, if you are receiving certain State benefits. A leaflet called County Court Fees will tell you what the fees are. The leaflet will also explain more about the circumstances when no fee need be paid. If you lose your appeal, you may be told to pay the other party s costs, including the costs of their solicitor, if they have one. You will not normally be able to appeal a second time. Only exceptionally will second appeals be allowed, and only then if the Court of Appeal gives permission. You may have to pay further, substantial, fees. When do I need permission to appeal? You do not need permission if you wish to appeal against: a committal order; a refusal to grant habeas corpus; or a secure accommodation order made under section 25 of the Children Act In all other cases, you will need permission to appeal if: you did not ask for permission at the hearing which resulted in the decision you wish to appeal; or you did ask for permission at that hearing, but your request was refused. If you are renewing your application for permission because it was previously refused, you must renew your application to an appeal court (see below for which appeal court will apply in your case). If your appeal is against a decision made in a claim dealt with in the small claims track, and that decision was made in your absence either because: all parties agreed that the court deal with the claim without a hearing; or you gave notice requesting the court deal with the claim in your absence, your application for permission to appeal must be made to the appeal court. If you wish to appeal against the decision of a tribunal, you should check with that tribunal as to whether you need permission to appeal and, if so, whether you must ask for permission from the tribunal or the appeal court. Remember that you will only be given permission if the court considers your appeal has a real prospect of success. Page 2

3 How do I make an application for permission to appeal? You make your application for permission using the same form that you need to complete for an appeal. The form is called an Appellant s Notice (Form N161). There are detailed guidance notes accompanying this form to help you fill it in. You should read the notes carefully. They will explain that as well as completing the section of the form dealing with permission, you must also give details of your appeal and the reasons for it. The notes will also tell you what other documents you must provide with your Appellant s Notice. The Appellant s Notice and the notes for guidance can be obtained free from any county court, or from the Clerk of the Lists General Office/Appeals Office, Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London WC2A 2LL. If you do not need to ask the court s permission to appeal, or you already have permission, you must still use the Appellant s Notice (Form N161) to make your appeal. In these circumstances, the guidance notes will explain that you will not have to complete the section of the form dealing with permission. As the person making the appeal you will be referred to as the appellant ; any other party to the appeal is called a respondent. Remember when completing the appellant s notice and putting together your supporting documents, you cannot introduce new evidence without the appeal court s permission. New evidence is evidence not used at the hearing which resulted in the order or decision you are appealing, or which has become available since that hearing. When giving permission, a judge may, exceptionally, direct that your appeal be referred to the Court of Appeal. It will only do this where it considers your appeal raises an important point of principle or practice, or there is some other important reason for the Court of Appeal to hear it. If the court makes a direction for referral to the Court of Appeal this will be shown on Form N460 Reasons for allowing or refusing permission to appeal (including referral to the Court of Appeal) a copy of which will be sent to you. If the direction is given by the judge whose order you are appealing, you should still issue your appellant s notice in the appropriate county court or district registry of the High Court. Once issued and served, staff at that court or district registry will arrange for your appeal to be transferred to the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal will contact you once they have received your appeal. Page 3

4 In which court do I issue my appeal notice and where will my appeal be heard? The court or tribunal whose order you are appealing is called the lower court ; the court you are appealing to is called the appeal court. An appeal court may be a county court, the High Court or the Court of Appeal. The court in which you must issue (called filing ) your appeal will depend on the level of judge making the decision and the nature of the order you wish to appeal. Filing means sending or taking your completed Appellant s Notice, with the relevant fee, to the appeal court. You must provide sufficient copies of the Notice and the supporting documents as set out in the notes for guidance. If you are: appealing against a decision made by a District Judge in a county court claim or case, your appeal will be dealt with by a Circuit Judge. Any hearing will normally take place in a county court. You should file your appeal in the office of the court where the claim or case is being handled; appealing against a decision made by a Master or District Judge in a High Court claim or case, your appeal will be dealt with by a High Court Judge. (Masters deal with High Court work in the Queen s Bench and Chancery Divisions in the Royal Courts of Justice.) The hearing of the appeal will take place at an appeal or hearing centre. A list of these centres can be found at the end of this leaflet. But, you can only file an appeal to the High Court at an appeal centre. You should file your Notice at an appeal centre on the Circuit in which the lower court is situated; appealing against a decision made by a Circuit Judge, Master or District Judge that is a final decision in a claim allocated to the multi-track, your appeal will be dealt with by Lord Justices of Appeal. Any hearing will take place in the Royal Courts of Justice. You should file your appeal in the Civil Appeals Office, Room E307, Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London WC2A 2LL. appealing against a decision made by a Circuit Judge in a county court matter, other than a final decision in a multi-track claim, your appeal will be dealt with by a High Court Judge. The hearing of the appeal will take place at an appeal or hearing centre. But, you can only file your appeal in an appeal centre. You must file your Notice at an appeal centre on the Circuit in which the lower court is situated. All appeals filed at appeal centres across the South Eastern Circuit will be managed and heard at the Royal Courts of Justice unless the appeal centre orders otherwise. appealing against a decision made by the High Court Judge, your appeal will be dealt with by Lord Justices of Appeal. Any hearing will take place in the Royal Courts of Justice. You should file your appeal in the Civil Appeals Office, Room E307, Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London WC2A 2LL. You will not normally be able to appeal a second time. Only exceptionally will second appeals be allowed, and only then if the Court of Appeal gives permission. You may have to pay further, substantial, fees. Page 4

5 When must I file my Appellant s Notice with the appeal court? If you have asked for permission to appeal to the lower court, that court will normally tell you the date by which your Appellant s Notice must be filed. You will usually find this date on the copy of the order giving you permission to appeal. Where the lower court did not set a time limit, you must file your Appellant s Notice within 14 days of the date the decision you wish to appeal against was made. You must file your Appellant s Notice within the time allowed. You should do this even if you cannot obtain all the information or documents you need to complete and support the Appellant s Notice fully. Complete the Notice as best you can. The notes for guidance will tell you how you need to complete the form to ask for more time and explain what is causing the delay. Remember that if you do not have all the information you need at the outset you may need to alter your Appellant s Notice after it has been filed. You will need to apply to the appeal court for permission to do this. What will happen after I have filed my appeal? Letting the respondent know The court will issue your appeal and send (serve) copies of the documents you have filed on any respondent by first class post. If you wish to serve copies on the respondent yourself, you must tell the court. Court staff will hand you back copies stamped with the court seal. You must serve the papers on the respondent within 7 days of the date you filed your Appellant s Notice. Dealing with any application for permission If your Appellant s Notice contains an application for permission, the papers will be passed to a judge. The judge will consider your application and may do this without you having to attend a hearing. You will be sent an order setting out the judge s decision. You should note that a judge may sometimes only give permission to appeal on some issues. You will be told what these are. You cannot raise any issue at the appeal hearing for which permission was expressly refused, without the appeal court s permission. If you wish to ask for the appeal court s permission, you must do so as soon as possible after notification of its decision to give only limited permission. You must at the same time let the respondent know what you intend to do. Your application will normally be dealt with at the outset of the appeal hearing unless the court tells you otherwise. Page 5

6 Permission refused If the judge refuses to grant you permission to appeal without a hearing, you can ask for that decision to be reconsidered at an oral hearing. The hearing may be before the same judge. Your request for an oral hearing must be made to the appeal court within 7 days after the date on which you receive notice of the refusal. You must, at the same time, send a copy of your request to any respondents. If you do not request an oral hearing, the order refusing permission will become a final order after the time limit for asking for an oral hearing has expired. If you do request an oral hearing, the court will send you notice of the date of the hearing. If, at that hearing, permission is again refused, you cannot take the matter any further. There is no appeal against the decision of an appeal court, made at an oral hearing, which refuses permission to appeal. Permission granted or not required If you have permission, or permission is not needed, the court will send you notice: of the date for the hearing of your appeal or the time period (the listing window ) during which the appeal is likely to be heard, and a note of any things it wants you to do to prepare for the appeal hearing (called directions ). Where the appeal hearing is to be heard by a High Court Judge, it may not always take place at the appeal centre. If a High Court Judge is available at a hearing centre (see pages at the end of leaflet) your appeal may be transferred there. Dealing with any other applications you have made If you made other applications with your Appellant s Notice, for example, for more time to collect the documents you need, or for an order preventing the other party enforcing the order of the lower court, the court can either deal with these at any hearing which deals with your application for permission, or at another, separate, hearing before the hearing of your appeal. You will be told the time, date and place of any such hearings. Page 6

7 What can the respondent do? A respondent who wishes to ask the appeal court to vary the order of the lower court in any way must appeal, and will require permission to appeal in the same way as an appellant. The respondent does this by filing a Respondent s Notice (Form N162). A Respondent s Notice is also required where a respondent wishes the appeal court to uphold (confirm) the decision of the lower court, but for reasons which are different, or additional to, those given by the lower court. The Respondent s Notice is almost identical in content to the Appellant s Notice; similar sorts of documents are required to support the Notice. If a Respondent s Notice is filed, you will be served with a copy of it and any supporting documents. They must be served on you within 7 days of their being filed. The court will normally deal with the respondent s appeal and any other applications at the same time as it considers any you have made. If you have made an application for additional time to provide all the information you need for appeal, the respondent will have the right to attend the hearing of your application. Page 7

8 For High Court Cases Circuit Appeal Centres Hearing only Centres Midland Circuit Birmingham Nottingham Lincoln Leicester Northampton Stafford North Eastern Circuit Leeds Teesside Newcastle Sheffield Northern Circuit Liverpool Carlisle Manchester Preston Wales and Chester Circuit Cardiff Chester Swansea Western Circuit Bristol Plymouth Exeter Truro Winchester South Eastern Circuit Royal Courts of Justice Chelmsford Lewes Luton Maidstone Norwich Oxford Reading St Albans Page 8 EX340 I want to appeal - The High Court or a county court (04.05) HMCS