Principles Of Civil Litigation

Contents: 1 The civil justice system; 2 Commencing proceedings: Jurisdiction and parties; 3 Commencing proceedings: The practicalities; 4 How courts manage cases and make procedural decisions; 5 Defining the issues; 6 Pre-trial termination of proceedings; 7 Protecting positions until trial; 8 Gathering information; 9 Court-annexed alternative dispute resolution; 10 Offers to settle and offers to compromise; 11 Costs; 12 Appeals; 13 Enforcement and execution

This edition has been updated to include significant developments the previous edition along with completely new chapters on trials. It serves a growing interest in the workings of the civil justice system by providing a better understanding of how civil litigation works today. It helps better understand the functions of procedural tools and it suggests possible directions for the future.

PRINCIPLES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE provides an accessible overview of how cases are presented and resolved before the courts under the District and High Court Rules. The book easily fulfils its aim of identifying the principles, themes, and practice requirements that underpin the system of civil procedure as a whole. It provides excellent insights into the diverse and significant procedural questions that come before New Zealand's courts. First published in 1992, the first edition focused on the High Court Rules. The current edition was published in 2002. It was extensively rewritten to cover major changes in the following decade, including active case management, written briefs of evidence, and harmonisation of the District Courts Rules. Primarily aimed at tertiary students who are studying law, Principles of Civil Procedure is also a handy resource for anyone who wants a concise and authoritative overview of procedure in New Zealand's courts.

A systematic and analytical treatment of the modern law of civil procedure in England and Wales. It sets out the leading principles behind civil procedure, with contents following the sequence of litigation, from writ to trial and execution. The general aims of civil justice, such as promotion of access to justice, and prevention of undue delay during litigation, and the management of complex matters, are stressed. The book also discusses law reform, questions of delay, expense, complexity and conservatism in the litigation system.

Since the start of the new millennium, many contemporary legal jurisdictions have been revisiting the fundamental principles of their civil procedures. Even the core areas of the civil process are not left untouched, including the way in which evidence is introduced, collected, and presented in court. In the field of evidence taking, one generator of the reforms has been slow and inefficient litigation. Both in Europe and globally, reaching a balance between the demands of factual accuracy and the need to adjudicate disputes in a swift, cost-effective, and efficient way is still one of the key challenges. Another reason why many countries are reforming their law of evidence is related to cultural and technological changes in modern societies. Traditional human rights (such as the right to privacy and due process) is shifting. The modern need for security, efficiency, and quick access to justice, along with the perception of what is admissible or not in the context of evidence taking, is changing as well. In the same sense, the fast pace of modern life commands different practices of fact-finding, accompanied by new methods of selection of evidence that are appropriate for this purpose. Last but not least, the overwhelming penetration of new technologies into all spheres of public and private life has the capacity to dramatically change the methods of the collection and presentation of evidence. Exploring these issues, contributors to this book reflect on how these trends affect the situation in their countries and present their views on further developments, both nationally and in comparison with the developments in other countries and regions. A further goal is to inquire whether, in spite of national differences that are still dominant, the approaches to civil evidence are converging, and whether reforms affecting fact-finding have a chance of leading to some forms of harmonization. (Series: Ius Commuen Europaeum - Vol. 139) Subject: Legal Procedure, Civil Law, Comparative Law]