The Civil Procedure Rules came into force in April 1999 and govern the way in which civil litigation is carried out in this country. The rules have been amended and developed over the years and there are now approximately fifty amendments. In April 2006, an amendment was made to the effect that litigation always had to be regarded as a weapon of last resort. This means that both parties should make serious efforts to try to settle the dispute before lodging proceedings.
What if I Just go Ahead and Lodge Proceedings?
Failure to be able to demonstrate efforts to avoid litigation can have catastrophic consequences financially. This is why there are ‘pre-action protocols’ that are in place for various types of litigation such as judicial review, professional negligence and housing repair claims against landlords. Even if your type of claim is not governed by one of the pre-action protocols, you are expected to follow a similar procedure in any event.
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The pre-action protocols are designed to encourage the early exchange of information about the claim, so that both sides have an opportunity to avoid litigation through settlement. If litigation then becomes unavoidable, you and the other side have exchanged information so that the claim can be managed efficiently once it reaches court.
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How to Comply with the Pre-Action Protocols
You should try to negotiate first, and if that fails, sending a pre-action letter. The pre-action letter sets out what is in dispute, what you want done, and the timescale within which you want it completed. You should then give the other side a reasonable period within which to respond (usually fourteen days.) If the response you receive is unsatisfactory, or you receive no response at all, then you can lodge proceedings.
Failing to Try to Settle the Claim Before Litigation
If the other side ask you to mediate with them, or make what the court later deems to be a reasonable settlement, and you decline you can be penalized on costs. The general rule in civil claims is that costs follow the event – i.e. the loser pays the other side’s costs. If, however, you have acted unreasonably in not agreeing to go to mediation or arbitration, the court will more often than not penalize you when it comes to costs. Of course, you don’t have to enter into alternative dispute resolution unless you want to – you can’t be forced into it – but to fail to consider it as an option could have devastating consequences later on.
If your breach of contract claim has got to a stage at which you have tried to resolve it using other methods and have either reached stalemate, or the other side is acting unreasonably, then you are probably at the point at which you can lodge proceedings. A general rule to remember, if you are acting as a litigant in person, is never to fill out a claim form and send it to the court in a fit of rage. You may regret it later on!
I was headhunted for a job with a large multinational business. My previous employer made an incredibly generous counter offer.The new employers made a number of comments and promised that the new job would offer loads of opportunities for career progression, and that in their view, even with the generous counter proposal I would be better off with them in the long run.
After just 6 months in the new role it is clear that they have significantly misrepresented not only the opportunities but also understated the true extent of financial difficulty the company is in. On challenging my boss I was told that " if I'd told you the whole truth you might never have joined"
Would I be able to make a claim for losses incurred (ie the value of the counter offer made by my previous employer)
Today (24th Nov) I receive an email from Travel Republic to say they made a pricing error on the hotel and the actual hotel price has gone up to about £2800 from £500. They gave me the option of paying the difference or cancelling and receiving a refund. As there is no way I could afford to pay this sort of money for a holiday I rang them to cancel and get a refund, but to my horror I was told that they would only refund the hotel and not the flgihts or transfers as it was not a package, they just said "pricing errors are all in our terms and conditions" The flights and transfer come to over £1300 which they still expect me to pay, but there are no hotels in my price range now for that destination.
Now I fully understand everyone makes mistakes and don't expect them to honour the price they charged as there is such a difference, however, i am horrified that they will not refund the flights and transfer. If the hotel price had been correct when i looked at booking there would have been no way I would have booked the flights as it would have been well out of my price range, i am now being penalised for their mistakes and i felt they mislead me into booking the flights, and will not take any responsibility. I have not paid the balance for the flights yet, but they are due to take a payment of about £1200 from my account on 17/12/17. I have used Travel Republic on several occassions over the last few years and have been a loyal customer.
Will this come under the misrepresentation act, as if they had not made a mistake with price of hotel, i would have never booked the flights and transfers
Thank you
Yours Sincerely,
Charles Bolt
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