Please help me with my defence

Coupon-mad

Not really.  A PPC can pursue old PCNs if they were authorised by the landowner at the time.

monkeychompy

Coupon-mad said:

Why not read other witness statement threads about the same solicitor?  People have pulled that template WS apart for months if not years!

I spent another hour or so searching using the search term 'QDR' but still haven't managed to find anything where their template WS is pulled apart. I'd really appreciate someone pointing me in the right direction.

Le_Kirk

You might have to find posters who are up against QDR and read the witness statements they have posted, it is unlikely to be in the thread itself but they could be or should be links like a dropbox or similar.

monkeychompy

My case comes to court next Tuesday. Any last minutes advice? I wasn't planning to wear a suit, just smart casual. Not sure this makes any difference or not. 
I've read not to discuss the case with the claimant solicitor prior to the case.
I will make a list of the various points I need to make so I don't forget them. Assuming I get the chance to make them.

KeithP

I've not read back, but has this been mentioned?...


Have you seen this video?...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=n93eoaxhzpU

Just three or four people sitting round a table having a discussion.

Le_Kirk

monkeychompy said:

My case comes to court next Tuesday. Any last minutes advice? I wasn't planning to wear a suit, just smart casual. Not sure this makes any difference or not. 
I've read not to discuss the case with the claimant solicitor prior to the case.
I will make a list of the various points I need to make so I don't forget them. Assuming I get the chance to make them.

Smart of body makes for smart of mind!  Turn up early for security checks.  You are right not to talk to anybody (apart from officials, of course) and do not let anybody hand you anything.  Take extra copies of your paperwork as it has been known for claimants to claim that they "have not received the defendant's witness statement"

monkeychompy

Letter received today from claimants solicitors showing a statement of costs. The summary is:

Claim fee £35
Fixed legal costs on issue - £50
Hearing fee £27
LPC Law Agent fee £200
Total £312.

The original amount claimed is £182. So that makes a grand total of £494. Which just seems completely ridiculous. I really really don't want to go through this again.

B789

You will need to query on what basis the solicitors believe that they can claim the "LPC Law Agent fee £200" when they have already included the only legal fees allowed in the small claims court of £50. That's the whole point of the small claims track.

To give them some buggery factor, demand that they provide a breakdown of the £200 they are saying you owe, including any VAT element of it. It won't make much difference for now but they will have to show those costs in detail if they want to claim them.

The only real circumstance they would be able to claim those extra costs would be if you had acted unreasonably, which we are fairly sure you have not, not unlike the claimant who is doing so by adding them in the first place.

CPR 27.14 applies:

https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part27

You should Google "CPR 27", "CPR "45" and "CPR 46" to read and understand your position and if you can get your head around it, you will be in a much better position to highlight the breach of CPR to the judge.

Coupon-mad

Yes but you don't need to query that or do anything.

They are winding you up. They can't have that extra fee unless you act unreasonably (like not turn up).

monkeychompy

ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST 

(are we still doing that?)

Judge asked the claimant solicitor for evidence of landowner authority. Claimant solicitor floundered and couldn't produce anything to the judges satisfaction. Case dismissed. We never got around to my carefully prepared bits about signage or the double yellow line situation or how the costs had ramped up. Or how the claimant WS had been submitted 2 weeks after the deadline. I almost felt like telling them all this stuff anyway.

Also, a bit earlier, both the judge and claimant solicitor said they hadn't received my WS. In fact solicitor said this was why they were asking for the £200 extra costs (see above). Luckily I had a copy with me (thanks for the tip Le_Kirk). Eventually they found the one I'd emailed in.

Awarded 1/2 the £95 costs I asked for because I'd taken 1/2 day off work not a full day. Claimant solicitor tried to argue that I hadn't lost earnings because I'd taken it as annual leave!