Claim received, AOS sent today, now stressing

ParkingStressie

OK.

Submitted. MCOL seem to have paid attention to the URGENT bit, backlog or no backlog and it's already updated, and questionnaires sent out (just spoke to them).

IamEmanresu I added a tiny bit to that sentence to include where there is no commercial purpose.

THANK YOU FOR HELP SO FAR.

ParkingStressie

So, had a court date for next week. Since December both my kids have been in and out of hospital, where I've stayed with them because they're still quite young. Youngest still off school and not properly mobile so I'm asking for a postponement. No idea if I'll get it but I'm sending scans of letters etc that detail their various admissions. Also no idea what happens if they say no. I have no other childcare options that day: Dad has non-negotiable work in another city that day, only friends close enough to help are also at work and the kind that you can't just take leave from eg teaching, family all 100s of miles away, babysitters only work evenings etc etc plus she needs help with personal care so can't just get any old agency childminder in. Originally thought she'd be back at school which is why I didn't ask for a postponement before.

In addition my mental health has taken a proper hit, I've not done any work on defence because I've been dealing with all of this while still trying to do some work remotely and now trying to home ed my daughter so she doesn't fall too far behind her classmates. At my wits end and ready to pay whatever because I've probably missed more deadlines. Don't have the money but what price my sanity.

About to send the email to court requesting postponement so any advice re: what language to use would be hugely appreciated. Don't know whether to eg just state the childcare problem or to detail the whole two months of problems as well, which has led to me being unprepared.

Update: so yes just gone back to the Newbies thread and have realised that I must have missed deadlines. So don't know what to do now. I haven't really been able to deal with anything outside my kids' health for months and I just blanked everything else out because I had no mental or emotional capacity for it.

nosferatu1001

Get a short witness statement together today and send it in
Explain the issues you have had, in brief
Explain the events on the day and the outline of what did and didnt happen
Include any evudence you have to hand.

The courts are staffed by humans, and so you MAY be lucky, however you can ask for ti to be heard "on the papers" IF YOU TELL THE COURT AND CLAIMANT TODAY - that means you do not need to turn up
Ask that as an alternative to the postponement
APOLOGISE that you are asking for this so late. I doubt you will get a postponement but it does not hurt to try,

Mar

ParkingStressie

But that's the trouble - I'm caring/teaching my kid, I'm writing this on my phone while we're waiting for outpatients. I can't get things together quickly. I don't have any time until about 9.30pm. And it's the same every day. There's no way I can do this quickly, it'll take me a day, and if I ask for it to be done in my absence it's pointless isn't it. I may as well just pay as I'll lose if I'm not there to counter their arguments.

I've never done this before and watching a lot of court procedurals is no substitute. I don't believe i can get the words right if I try to do it quickly.

ParkingStressie

And haven't I effectively forfeited or something as I missed the 14 day deadline to submit statements etc anyway?

Snakes_Belly

There is a short witness statement in the newbies I think written by Bargepole.

nosferatu1001

YOu can indeed get this done quickly
You jsut get SOMETHING in

Look, this is hard but prevaricating and saying you cant is the surest way to ensure you DONT get it done.
You CAN do this
You CAN rescue this

If you do nothing, you lose for sure
IF you do something, anything, you MAY sort this out favourably - but if not, you at least gave it a shot!

ParkingStressie

Thank you, I just don't get any headspace during a normal period and this is now so far away from normal I have no idea what I'm doing. Can't think straight, can't remember anything, can't take in what I'm reading. When you have sick kids it just takes over everything.

I'll look for the witness statement mentioned above, but I can't get anything together until late tonight.

If I did just want to throw the towel in, I don't even know how to do that. Send VCS a cheque?

Le_Kirk

Not checked your whole thread so apologies if it has been suggested but have you tried phoning the court and asking?

ParkingStressie

Thanks, yes I did last week, but have been trying to get paperwork together from the hospital to prove what I'm saying.