Telephone Hearings re parking firm claims - can we all discuss strategy and outcomes here

nosferatu1001

Yes, but you could just quote the small part that is relevant. Obvious really. 
Its worth stating thsi, as you didnt actually do so. A better response would have been to state that the court at LOCATION ahs stated they can only accept PDF documents...

Umkomaas

I think different courts will make their own decisions on this. To my knowledge, yours is the first Word.doc draft order to be refused. 

BWScammer

nosferatu1001 - sorry, I wasn’t aware you could do that. Can I add which court without dropping myself in it? 

Umkomass - thank you. I hadn’t read anybody having that problem (within my hours/days of reading threads), hence why I put it on. 

nosferatu1001

Of course you can do so  

bargepole

There is absolutely no consistency between different Courts as to how they handle remote hearings.

Some are doing them by telephone using BT Meet Me, some by Skype, and others by Cloud Video Platform or Microsoft Teams.

Some courts will give you a telephone number and pin code for you to dial in at the start of the hearing, while others will ask you for your contact number, and they will call you when the Judge is ready.

Some want a consolidated bundle containing all of the Claimant's and Defendant's documents, others do not. Some have Judges working from home, while others have Judges sitting alone in the courtroom.

Coupon-mad

And some ask you to give your phone number to the PPC's solicitor...

easytry16

Coupon-mad said:

Looks like we need a covering email that goes with a witness statement/evidence/costs assessment right now, in anticipation of a likely Telephone Hearing but trying (again) to get a strike out instead?! 

Something like this perhaps (not for ParkingEye cases):


Dear District Judge xxxxxxx, 

Re: Claim number xxxxxxxx - hearing date set for xx/xx/2020
Important Preliminary matter and Witness statement and evidence from the Defendant
(served by email due to COVID_19 measures)

I am the Defendant.  The appended witness statement and evidence bundle, as well as this covering email, has also been sent to the Claimant's litigation team.  In the event of directions for a future hearing in person at this court, hard copies will be provided when I have access to a printer.

Preliminary matter
I am aware that there is more than sufficient information available in this case to activate the court's duty, as set out in s71 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 ('the CRA').  

The CRA imposes a duty upon courts in all consumer contract cases, to apply the test of fairness in s71 of the CRA and I draw specific attention to more than one breach of CRA Schedule 2, as explained in my witness statement.   Due to this, and to remove an unnecessary burden on the court, I invite the Judge who may at this stage be considering an Order for a Telephone Hearing or adjournment, to instead exercise the court's case management powers pursuant to CPR 3.4, to strike this claim out without a hearing in any format.   

This has already occurred in multiple parking claims in recent months, with duplicate reasons used by Judges sitting at courts as widely spread as Southampton, Warwick, IOW, Caernarfon, Luton and Skipton.  Failed applications with hearings attended by two barristers acting on behalf of parking firms have taken place at Skipton (February 2020, before District Judge Faye Wright) as well as at Southampton, before District Judge Grand.  I refer to my exhibit transcript of the Approved Judgment in Britannia Parking Ltd v Crosby and Anor (11/11/2019) which pays regard to the Supreme Court binding case law and the duty on the courts to invoke s71 of the CRA.

This parking charge claim has been deliberately exaggerated to reach a global sum of £160 despite the Claimant and their legal advisers being well aware by now, that such a sum is unrecoverable in parking charge cases because it is an attempt to go behind case law and statute law, and taints the entire claim.  As such, the Defendant draws attention to the Claimant's continued 'forum shopping' and their clear intention of finding victims who will pay in full without defending, or a less than competent court to allow them to claim a sum far higher than they can lawfully recover. 

Further, there has been no serious attempt to comply with the CPRs and the Claimant's incoherent, stylised particulars do not constitute compliance.  These cases unnecessarily delay and clutter court listings and represent a contemptuous and significant abuse of process.

To assist with the efficient disposal of the case, I attach an editable (Word Document) Draft Order.

For the avoidance of doubt, should the court decide against striking the claim out, I am not in agreement with the case being heard 'on the papers' because:

(a)  this claim is following the usual oppressive parking robo-claim path, with a very sparse statement of case, later followed by a case made by way of ambush, with a tendency to produce prolix witness statements, right at the death.  This places Defendants at a huge disadvantage, given the first time they see any 'evidence' is at completion of the bundle, and their only chance to point out that large parts of the evidence are completely irrelevant, is at trial.  
(b) the case of JD Wetherspoon Plc v Harris and others [2013] EWHC 1088 (Ch.) is an example of the Court using its power to limit the evidence by striking out large parts of a witness statement for abuse, because it was written by a person with no personal knowledge who recited facts based on the documents he had read.  Similarly, parking charge witness statements contain template legal argument, misleading reliance upon ParkingEye v Beavis and even more irrelevant case law, and are more designed to stand in terrorem of defendants  than to assist the Court in determining the substantive issues.  
(c) Such third party 'witness statements' lack probative value and are very often created by freelance legal writers and 'signed' (or facsimile 'signed') by a third party who is not a witness in the true sense, and who relies upon misleading and irrelevant extracts of case law and undated, old or 'stock' images of signs, some of which are often not even present at the location in question.  
(d) In my case, I strongly believe that I must be afforded a fair opportunity to rebut the inaccuracies in the 'evidence' re the car park location/event and highlight the  failure to demonstrate a prominent/legible contract, or liability, or legitimate interest.  I am the only local witness, in the true sense, and I believe that, if the claim is to be heard, a decision cannot be fairly made without a hearing in my presence.  If the claim is not struck out, I would prefer a hearing in person once the pandemic lockdown is lifted.  However, I understand that to formally ask for an adjournment would be at a disproportionate cost which is not an option for me, so I await the court's Order and Directions.

{Add here if you are currently affected by the pandemic and it would prevent you from accessing justice via a telephone hearing - e.g. if you are ill, vulnerable/alone, were relying on using a lay representative who isn't part of your household, or if you suffer severely from anxiety, have a known issue with telephone reception at home, or are front line NHS, Police, etc.    So, if you are someone who cannot spend any more time on this by liaising with the claimant about a 'shared bundle'  or would be highly unlikely to be able to access a telephone hearing - say so here now and attach a copy of your NHS ID or a letter about your medical condition as compelling proof.}

yours sincerely, 

Your name

Documents appended herewith:
- Draft Order (must be a word document!). Copy this one, change the court/claim no./dates, head it DRAFT ORDER:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6082895/court-claim-received-britannia-bw-legal/p2

A single PDF file containing:
- Trial bundle contents page (with page and exhibit numbering clearly set out)
- your defence (in case the Judge does not have access to the case file)
- signed/dated witness statement (and supplementary WS if setting out the abuse of process issue separately)
- Britannia v Crosby & Anor - Approved Judgment
- Consumer Rights Act 2015 Schedule 2 (with paras 6, 10, 14 and 18 highighted)
- Supreme Court Beavis case paras 98, 193 and 198 (copied onto a page in full, and give this link too):
https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/docs/uksc-2013-0280-judgment.pdf
- ParkingEye Ltd v Somerfield Stores Ltd [2012] EWCA Civ 1338 - (quote para 419 re adding £60 & give bailii link):
https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2011/4023.html#para419
- the POFA Schedule 4 with 4(5) highlighted plus the link:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2012/9/schedule/4/enacted
- photos of the signage showing how unclear it is in the light conditions (use GoogleStreetView if needed)
- the Beavis case (yellow & black sign) shown on a single sheet next to this Claimant's smaller and illegible sign
- other evidence, e.g. your lease or tenancy agreement or proof you were permitted to park (PDT machine ticket)
- other evidence from the applicable version of the BPA or IPC CoP, e.g. the paras on Grace Periods if applicable
- if defending on 'no keeper liability' a copy of Henry Greenslade's words from the POPLA Annual Report 2015
- if defending on 'no keeper liability' transcripts (such as from @adambuzz14 and Excel v Smith from the Parking Prankster - make it clear in your WS that Excel v Smith was an Appeal)
- other case law like Jopson v Home Guard (residential car parks - make it clear in your WS that Jopson was an Appeal).
- see the NEWBIES thread for tips about witness statement and evidence stage...!
- a second witness statement (if someone else corroborates your story/confirms you were authorised, etc). 


NB: To help confused newbies to achieve this, you can copy others.
Some examples of WS and evidence are here:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/76900527#Comment_76900527

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/77048513#Comment_77048513

- Draft Order (must be a word document!). Copy this one, change the court/claim no./dates, head it DRAFT ORDER:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6082895/court-claim-received-britannia-bw-legal/p2

Coupon-mad, thanks for this, you mentioned to copy the draft order in word format and append it, what do I need to do here exactly?

Umkomaas

Coupon-mad, thanks for this, you mentioned to copy the draft order in word format and append it, what do I need to do here exactly?

You use Word so that it's ready written for the Judge who can easily add his/her fill in the blanks after making their decision. If you submit it in pdf format, filling in the blanks isn't possible (well, not without a lot of faff). 

easytry16

Thanks for the clarification Umkomaas.

nosferatu1001

It's possible the court will reject a Word doc - they can harbour viruses (which PDF also can, yay Adobe...) - in which case resubmit.