Appeals - overviewForms of Address for the Judiciary

There are certain protocols that need to be followed when addressing members of the judiciary. These protocols apply both to communications by way of correspondence and when addressing the judiciary in court.

For more detail see Forms of address for the judiciary.

Permission to appeal

Permission of the court is required to make an appeal and the rules are set out in CPR 52 and accompanying practice direction. Refusing permission to appeal allows courts to dispose of any applications which show no real prospect of success. Generally, the substantive appeal is heard immediately after permission to appeal is given.

It is important to be aware that whilst non parties can appeal they would need permission of the appeal court. In some instances permission is not required but this is very limited.

Where an appeal is made from a county court decision or the High court which was itself made on appeal then this is known as a second appeal and permission of the Court of Appeal of appeal is required. Different types of permission may be given. These are full, limited and conditional permissions.

For more detail see Permission to appeal.

Appellant's notice

The appellant's notice sets out it's case for the appeal. It must be in a prescribed form and depends on which track the case had been assigned to. There are a number of things that an appellant must take into account when drafting and serving the notice such as the very limited time periods for appeal, whether a stay of execution should be sought pending appeal, what are the arguments which support the grounds of appeal.

For more detail see Appellant's notice.

Respondent's notice

Form N162 should be used in all appeals. It is important to put in a notice as, if the respondent does nothing, it can only rely on arguments put forward at the lower court and not any subsequent arguments, unless it gets the court's permission.

A respondent may seek to intervene in the appellant's application for permission. The court generally discourages this but may invite the respondent to do so where permission was refused and the application is being renewed in the appellant's notice.

For more detail see Respondent's notice.

Key features of Court of Appeal

It is important for practitioners to be aware of the key differences between the lowers courts, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. Each have their own rules and special procedures which it is imperative to know to ensure the smooth running of an appeal. A flow chart of the appeals procedure is a helpful device to continually refer to enabling practitioners to ensure that they are prepared for the subsequent stages of the appeal process.

For more detail see Key features of Court of Appeal proceedings.

Appeals to the Court of Appeal

Permission must be sought and in doing so the correct procedures must be followed. Practitioners should ensure that they know the requirements for all aspects of the appeal process such as fees, requirement for an appeal questionnaire, authorities and skeletons and the provisions around listing the appeal hearing.

For more detail see Appeals to the Court of Appeal.

Specialist appeals

The CPR contains guidelines on specialist appeals to different divisions of the High Court. The procedure for these appeals is slightly different in each case. The basic procedure is set out in CPR 52 with more detailed provisions being provided in the CPR practice direction 52 .

For more detail see Specialist appeals.

Appeals hearings

Being involved in an appeal hearing requires good preparation. In doing so there are important issues to bear in mind, e.g. to determine, using the applicable rules, where the appeal should be heard, to set out the timetable for service of documents and to determine what evidence is required.

For more detail see Appeals hearings.

Disposing of appeals and appeals by consent

Appeals can be withdrawn but specific procedures must be followed as set out in the CPR 52. The provisions do not apply where a party is a child or a protected person. Appeals may also be disposed of by consent. Again CPR 52 sets out the relevant procedure.

For more detail see Disposing of appeals and appeals by consent.

Appeals: reopening a final determination

The circumstances in which the High Court or the Court of Appeal can re-open a final determination of an appeal are very limited and arise in three different situations. The court has no general discretion. When determining whether it can reopen a final determination the court will apply the principles laid down by the Court of Appeal in Taylor v Lawrence. It should be noted that the principles apply equally to an appeal or permission to appeal.

For more detail see Appeals: reopening a final determination.

Supreme Court - overview of the changes from the previous House of Lords regime

A new set of rules (the Supreme Court Rules) replaces the Blue Book and the main changes between the old House of Lords regime and the new Supreme Court are include the modernisation of terminology and procedural matters generally with a commitment to embracing the opportunities that modern technology provides, introduction of an overriding objective ‘to secure that the court is accessible, fair and efficient’, changes in time limits and, of course, change in location.

For more detail see Supreme Court - overview of the changes from the previous House of Lords regime.

Supreme Court - costs, fees and copy requirements

Generally, costs follow the appeal and submissions on costs should be made immediately after conclusion of the arguments. The Supreme Court Rules and accompanying Practice Directions set out detailed rules dealing with costs. Fees are set for various aspects of the appeal, e.g. lodging statement and appendix and setting down.

Copy requirements will depend on whether you act for an appellant, respondent or intervener.

For more detail see Supreme Court - costs, fees and copy requirements.

Supreme Court - permission to appeal

Permission to appeal to the Supreme Court can be granted by the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court. In very limited circumstances the High Court can grant permission in a process known as the 'leap frog' appeal. The relevant applicable rules are set out in the Supreme Court Rules and their accompanying Practice Directions.

For more detail see Supreme Court - permission to appeal.

Supreme Court - substantive appeal hearing

Once permission to appeal has been given there are timetables for the filing of the appeal notice and for another party to object to the permission. The appeal notice must be in a specified form and lodged with a number of specific documents and the fee. Certain documents need to be produced for the appeal, such as the statement of facts and issues and an appendix of agreed documents, and it is better if these are agreed between the parties. The Supreme Court Rules and accompanying Practice Directions set out the detailed rules to ensure compliance with the Supreme Court procedures.

For more detail see Supreme Court - substantive appeal.