How long does it take to get to trial?

One of the questions we are regularly asked by clients, is how long it will take for a case to get to trial. All claims are different, and most will settle way before a trial takes place. However, there are still a significant number of claims which do go all the way to trial. 

In March 2017 the Ministry of Justice published information covering cases between October and December 2016 detailing how long it had taken for them to come to trial.

For fast track and multi track cases (in other words, any claims that were not allocated to the small claims track), it took 54 weeks on average for an issued claim to get to trial. 

The Ministry also published some other interesting civil court statistics.

The key findings were:

• 85% of all claims issued were money claims (usually claims relating to debts);
• Of these, over 350,000 were claims for specific sums of money (an increase of 29%);
• The number of claims issued had increased by 19% overall;
• There was a 33% increase in judgments, the vast majority of which were default judgments. 

At Samuels Solicitors in Barnstaple Devon, we are committed to assisting clients with resolving disputes as quickly and as cost effectively as possible. Where appropriate, we will always recommend mediation, or some other form of alternative dispute resolution to our clients. We have had great success over the years settling difficult and complex claims at mediation. 

If a matter does need to go to trial, we have the expertise necessary to assist you at what can be a very stressful time. We will do our very best to protect your position with appropriate offers, and will always advise you about the costs and risks of proceeding with your case. 

If you are involved in court proceedings now, and would like a discussion about how you can settle the claim, or about what will happen if you have to go to trial, contact us today for a no obligation chat about how we can assist you.