Vexatious Litigants and Civil Restraint Orders: A Practitioner's Handbook

Vexatious Litigants and Civil Restraint Orders is a detailed and practical work on this growing area of procedure and law. Aimed at lawyers, judges and civil court litigants generally, it provides a ‘one-stop’ guide and explanation of the law relating to the court’s jurisdiction to control vexatious and/or unmeritorious court claims and applications. The book explains the historical origins of and responses to vexatious litigation, it analyses the legislation and rules designed to meet this threat in the modern era, principally under the civil restraint order provisions of the Civil Procedure Rules and section 42 of the Senior Courts Act 1981. The relevant case law explaining and developing the court’s jurisdiction and powers under the legislation and rules, case management strategies for preventing and controlling the worst excesses of obsessive litigants, how parties, facing actual or threatened restrictions on their right of access to the courts, can resist and respond to such applications and orders, and the deficiencies, weakness and limitations of the current rules regime relating to vexatious litigants and litigation are examined. The book also deals with how the tribunals system and family courts have developed their own rules and procedures to combat abuses of process perpetrated by vexatious litigants. Finally, the book traces, through cases studies, the evolution of parties from the early stages of their litigious careers into fully developed vexatious litigants. Central governments cuts to the civil court budget are likely to place even more emphasis on ensuring legitimate use of court time and limited financial resources, and courts will with greater frequency resort to making orders restricting the ability of litigants to persistently misuse the courts processes. Vexatious Litigants and Civil Restraint Orders guides the court, the practitioner and self-representing litigants around the law and rules, with particular detail given as to the type and procedure of applications that are provided for under the Senior Courts Act and in the civil restraint order regime, and appeals and judicial review against restraint orders that are made.

Table of Contents:
Foreword Table of Cases Table of Statutes Table of Statutory Instruments 1 INTRODUCTION Causes Historical origins Modern developments Civil Procedure Rules and civil restraint orders 2 SECTION 42 OF THE SENIOR COURTS ACT 1981 Civil and criminal proceedings Human rights considerations Procedure Interim injunction Burden and standard of proof Statutory preconditions What constitutes an inferior court? Vexatious and habitually and persistently Exercise of discretion Duration of order Costs Application for permission to institute, continue or make applications in civil proceedings Is an application to apply for judicial review the institution of civil proceedings? When will a defendant require leave under section 42(3) of the Senior Courts Act 1981? Relationship between judicial review proceedings and section 42(3) leave applications Policing of vexatious litigants 3 LIMITED CIVIL RESTRAINT ORDERS Summary Procedure Two or more applications ‘totally without merit’ Discretion What is the protection afforded by a limited civil restraint order? 4 EXTENDED CIVIL RESTRAINT ORDERS Summary Procedure Persistence Orders against non-parties Discretion Protection afforded by extended civil restraint orders 5 GENERAL CIVIL RESTRAINT ORDERS Summary Procedure When would a general civil restraint order be appropriate? Protection afforded by general civil restraint orders 6 CASE MANAGEMENT Totally without merit certification Filtering out of the totally without merit Opportunity to make representations Discretion to make a civil restraint order 7 AMENDING OR DISCHARGING CIVIL RESTRAINT ORDERS Orders made in absence of a party Varying or revoking an order: rule 3.1(7) of the Civil Procedure Rules Setting aside or varying the order: rules 3.3(5), 23.9, 23.11 and 39.3(3) of the Civil Procedure Rules Requirement for prior permission to amend or discharge the civil restraint order Application to amend or discharge a civil restraint order Disguised appeal Grounds for amendment or discharge Procedure for applying for permission to amend or discharge 8 RULES AND PROCEDURE FOR APPEALING CIVIL RESTRAINT ORDERS Seeking permission to appeal Permission to appeal and conditional permission to appeal Appellant’s notice and bundle Respondent’s notice and bundle Second appeals Appeal hearing Applicable principles to be applied by the appeal court Appeal court’s powers Effect of successfully appealing a civil restraint order and what happens afterwards 9 CIVIL RESTRAINT ORDERS IN OTHER COURTS AND TRIBUNALS Costs and strike out orders in the employment tribunal Costs and strike out orders in the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal and Lands Chamber Further protection for tribunals Restriction of proceedings orders: Employment Tribunals and the Employment Appeal Tribunal Orders under section 42 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 Family proceedings: Practice Direction 4B of the Family Procedure Rules 2010 Family proceedings: section 91(14) of the Children Act 1989 10 CASE STUDIES OF VEXATIOUS LITIGATORS

Review :
'Considering the potential benefits for courts and clients it is a surprise that this book appears to be something of a pioneer, there being no other identifiable text dedicated to this issue. Our pioneers, Giles and Rifat, do an excellent job as trailblazers. Their expertise and research have given this topic proper, full, effective coverage, while also being succinct. Their analysis of the subject matter cannot be faulted. In conclusion, this book is accurate, comprehensive and will remain on my bookshelf. I will turn to it whenever I have to advise on a vexatious litigant case. I would recommend it to any practitioner who has to do the same, which all will at some stage.' From review by David Pickup in Law Society Gazette.