interpreters, language and disability access.giving the other side copies of your evidence (this is called discovery or disclosure).getting a document witnessed or certified.making affidavits and statutory declarations.serving the other party (giving them copies of the documents you have filed in court).giving your documents to the court (this is called filing your documents).read our information for people who are representing themselves in the proceeding.If the defendant doesnвЂ™t defend the proceeding, the case can go through the judgment by default process and the case ends. If they defend it, by filing a statement of defence, the court will arrange a first case management conference, where the judge will talk to both sides and decide what will happen next.

Once the court has processed the statement of claim you have to serve it on the defendant, who has a set amount of time (usually 25 working days) to defend the claim. Most cases start when a statement of claim is filed. You can also choose to represent yourself.ДЇind out more about representing yourself in the civil court If you canвЂ™t afford a lawyer you may be able to get legal aid. You can get a lawyer to represent you in court. This means they must prove to the judge that their version of events is most likely to be true.ДЇind out more about making a claim in the civil courtДЇind out more about defending a claim in the civil courtД«ack to top Deciding who will speak for you in court If a case goes to court, the plaintiff must prove their case to the вЂbalance of probabilitiesвЂ™ to be successful. A judge often helps parties come to an agreement at a settlement conference. The case is often called a proceeding.Д®ven after a civil claim has been filed in court, many civil claims are resolved before they get to a hearing in a court room because the parties reach an agreement between themselves. The person who the claim is against is called the defendant. Once a claim is filed in court, the person who made the claim is known as the plaintiff. You can make a claim after youвЂ™ve tried other ways to sort out a dispute but havenвЂ™t been successful.ДЇind out more about resolving a dispute without going to court Deciding who will speak for you in courtДЄ civil claim involves formal legal action in a court against a person or organisation.

Judicial consent plot summary