Questions and Answers
Permission to Appeal | Filing an Application/Appeal | Fees | Time Limits | Routes of appeal/tracks | Rules on Appeals | Costs | The Court of Appeal | The Civil Appeals Office | Mediation | Other Questions
In all civil and family cases, permission to appeal is required except in appeals against:
- a committal order
- an order refusing the grant of habeas corpus
- a secure accommodation order made under Section 25 of the Children Act 1989.
You will need to ask the Court of Appeal for permission to appeal:
- if you have not asked for permission from the Judge whose decision you want to appeal
- if you have previously asked that Judge for permission to appeal to be given and it was refused.
Permission to appeal is not required in family cases in appeals to High Court Judges and to Circuit Judges.
Permission to appeal will only be given to you if your appeal has a real prospect/chance of success or if there is some other compelling reason why the appeal should be heard.
You will need at least three identical copies of your Appellant's Notice. The full list of documents to be provided can be obtained in the Forms and Guidance section. You can also contact the Civil Appeals Registry Office.
You can find instructions on how to fill in your Appellant's Notice on this website in the Forms and Guidance section.
A skeleton argument contains the main points which you want to argue. It enables the court to understand your case before the hearing.
If you are represented, you should file a skeleton argument if you wish to address arguments to the Court.
You must file a Respondent's Notice if you wish to ask the appeal court to uphold the lower court order for reasons different from or additional to those given by the court whose decision you want to appeal. There is a fee of £200 applicable to the filing of a Respondent's Notice. A full schedule of fees can be found on this website under the Forms and Guidance section (Fees (Form 200)).
The Master of the Rolls' Annual Review is an annual publication which appears on this site. In the section "Statistical analysis" it includes details of the success rate for applications for permission to appeal, either considered on paper or at oral hearing. Since the Review has been published in this format since 1999, comparable information over several years is available.
You will need to pay a fee if you are applying for permission to appeal or are making a full appeal. The fee is £200 for an application for permission to appeal and £400 for a full appeal. In addition to fees, you may incur other costs such as solicitors'/barristers' fees. You will need to consider carefully whether you wish to appeal as you may have to pay the costs of the other party if you are unsuccessful.
A full schedule of fees can be found on this website under the Forms and Guidance section (Fees (Form 200)).
If you are paying by post, you should not send cash. You can pay by postal order or personal cheque made payable to "HMCS".
If you come in person to the Royal Courts of Justice, a personal cheque can be accepted if you have a current cheque guarantee card which covers the amount needed to pay the fee. All cheques should be made payable to "HMCS" and be crossed “account payee”.
You can file your Appellant's Notice and pay your fee at the Registry Office in the Royal Courts of Justice. You will find a map indicating how to access this office on this website in Access Maps.
Not everyone has to pay court fees. Some people are exempt from paying court fees. This is called "fee exemption". Others may pay a reduced fee. This is when the court decides that they would suffer financial hardship if they had to pay a fee. This is called "fee remission".
Not everyone is eligible for fee exemption or fee remission. You will need to fulfil certain requirements to apply for a fee exemption e.g. you or your partner must be in receipt of income support. You cannot be publicly funded or "legally aided". The full conditions of eligibility for fee exemption and remission are listed in a leaflet entitled Court Fees-Do you have to pay them? which is available from the Civil Appeals Registry office. You will need to apply for exemption/remission before filing your appeal.
Fee exemption/remission certificates are only valid for a certain period of time.
You must fill in a Form EX160 which can be found in a leaflet entitled Court Fees-Do you have to pay them? which is available from the Civil Appeals Registry office. You must fill in a separate form for each fee for which you would like exemption or remission.
The court will usually deal with Form EX160 within 5 working days. It must do so before it processes any of the papers in the court case. In certain circumstances, the court may deal with an application for exemption/remission urgently.
Yes, in certain circumstances. To find out if you are eligible for a refund, you need to fill in Form EX160 which can be found in a leaflet entitled Court Fees-Do you have to pay them? which is available from the Civil Appeals Registry office. The court must receive Form EX160 within 6 months, starting from the day when you paid the fee. You must send relevant documentation to support your claim.
There are different time limits for different appeals. Generally, an appellant has 14 days to file an appeal. Time limits depend upon the type of order you want to appeal. Generally, these vary between 7 days and 6 weeks from the date of decision you want to appeal. The judge whose decision you want to appeal can allow a longer period. The Court of Appeal has the power to grant an extension of time for filing an Appellant's Notice.
You can still file an Appellant's Notice (see instructions on how to fill in your Appellant's Notice on this website in the Forms and Guidance section (How to Complete an Appellant's Notice). You must complete section 10 of the Appellant's Notice to include an application for an extension of time. You will need to explain the reason for your delay in filing your notice.
Your route of appeal depends on certain factors such as:
- the type of case
- the court where the decision you wish to appeal against was made
- who made that decision and the type of decision.
See Routes of Appeal for more information
Civil cases in the High Court and the county courts are allocated to a track. The track may determine the court you should appeal to. An appeal from a county court may be made to the High Court or the Court of Appeal.
You will need to specify in section 5 of your Appellant's Notice the track to which your claim was allocated. If the matter was allocated to a track in a county court, the Civil Appeals Office will require a copy of the order which allocated your case to a track. More details can be obtained from our leaflet called Routes of Appeal which is available on this website under the Forms and Guidance section.
If you do not know to which track your claim was allocated, the office of the court where the order was made can assist you. If you are appealing from a tribunal, the tribunal will not have allocated your case to a track.
The small claims track is the track for any claims for personal injuries where the financial value of the claim is not more than £ 5000 and the financial value of the claim for damages is not more than £ 1000. It includes any claim of a tenant of residential premises which require the landlord to carry out repairs, which cost is estimated to be not more than £ 1000. It also includes any other claim which has a value of not more than £ 5000.
The fast-track is the usual track for any claim which is not allocated to the small claims track. It includes cases where:
- the financial value is not more than £ 15,000
- the court considers that the trial is not going to last for more than one day
- oral expert evidence will be limited to 2 experts.
The multi-track is the track for claims which are neither small claims nor have been allocated to the fast track.
The Rules governing appeals to the Court of Appeal can be found in Part 52 of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) and the Practice Direction which supplements CPR Part 52.
A Practice Direction provides additional guidance to supplement relevant rules of procedure.
Generally, you can appeal from a lower court decision only once. Second appeals are allowed only in very limited circumstances. For a first appeal there must be a real prospect/chance of success or there must be a compelling reason why the appeal should be heard. You will only be allowed to bring a second appeal if your appeal raises an important point of principle or practice or there is some other compelling reason why a second appeal should be heard.
Once your documentation has been duly submitted to the Civil Appeals Office, a judge of the Court of Appeal (a Lord/Lady Justice) will decide if you should be given permission to appeal.
The Staff of the Civil Appeals Office do not offer legal advice. The Citizens' Advice Bureau situated in the main hall of the Royal Courts of Justice can assist you with your case provided you fulfil certain requirements. They will not be able to help you if you receive legal aid. The Bureau can offer legal advice, help you to prepare bundles and complete forms. If you would like to receive legal help from the Bureau, it is preferable to attend the Bureau in person if you live in Greater London or put your query in writing if you live outside London.
Only in very limited circumstances. Appeals from the Court of Appeal lie to the House of Lords which is the highest Court of Appeal for civil cases in England and Wales. It only hears about 85 appeals a year. Permission to appeal must be obtained from the Court of Appeal or more usually, the House of Lords itself.
To apply to the European Court of Human Rights, you need to “exhaust domestic remedies”. This means you must have used all the procedures available to you in your own country to seek protection of your rights or to seek justice in respect of a past violation of your rights. In cases where the Court of Appeal is the last court to decide on the case, an application to the European Court of Human Rights may be made.
Once your appeal to the Court of Appeal is finished, you will be invited to collect your bundle only if you have indicated that you wish to do so. A form for completion is sent to you once your case has been issued. If you have indicated you wish to collect the bundles, the relevant case management section will contact you inviting you to attend the Registry Office to collect within 14 days of the date of the letter. Any bundles not collected will be destroyed as the storage capacity of the Civil Appeals Office does not permit them to store bundles.
Rules on costs can be found in Parts 43-48 of the Civil Procedure Rules.
The court has discretion to order that costs should be paid by one party to another. The Civil Procedure Rules state that if the court decides to make any order the general rule is that the unsuccessful party will pay the successful party costs. You should be aware that in certain limited circumstances, a successful party can be refused his costs for instance if he unreasonably refuses to consider mediation as an alternative to litigation.
An order for costs made by a lower court can be challenged on appeal.
The Court of Appeal is the main appeal court in England and Wales. In practice, it is often the court of last resort. The Civil Division of the Court of Appeal hears appeals from the County courts, the High Court and certain tribunals. The Court of Appeal currently has 42 Judges: the 5 Heads of Division and 37 judges called Lord/Lady Justices.
The hearby dates for different classes of appeal can be found on this website under Hearby Dates. Hearby dates for appeals have considerably reduced since 1999 reflecting the substantial progress made by the Court in improving the service it offers litigants. The longest hearby date is now around 10 months and most considerably less.
The Court will strive to ensure that appeals are generally heard within their listing windows, many of which have now been enlarged.
Applications for an expedited hearing are determined by a single Lord/Lady Justice or the Master in accordance with the principles set out in Unilever PLC v Chefaro Proprietaries Ltd (Practice Note) [1995] 1 WLR 243.
Applications for permission for a hearing date to be fixed beyond a hearby date is determined by a single Lord/Lady Justice or the Master, but will be granted only for the most compelling reasons.
An application for permission to appeal is usually dealt with by a single Judge (also called Lord/Lady Justice). A full appeal is heard by a court usually comprising three Lord/Lady Justices.
Many judgments are given in open court on the day of the hearing. However, in a number of cases, judgment is "reserved". This means that the Judges will not give their decision on the day of the hearing. They will need some time to reflect on the submissions made in court. This is usually the case in complicated and long appeals.
A transcript of judgment sets out the reasons why the court made its order.
If you would like to obtain a transcript of judgment, a number of judgments in which appeals are decided are published on the BAILII website. Otherwise, you can contact the official court transcribers, Merrill Legal Solutions International, on 020 7404 1400 or at 190 Fleet Street, London EC4A 2AG. A fee will be charged for this service.
All our judgments in which appeals are decided are published on the Bailii website. A summary of important judgments for the legal year can be found in the Court of Appeal Civil Division's Annual Review and in the section Leading Cases. You will also find annual reviews dating back to 1997.
One of our courts has been permanently equipped with hearing loops. If you want the Court to make special arrangements for you, you should contact the Listing Office.
Portable video link technology is now available in courtrooms. It is necessary to get the Court's permission to hear a case by video conferencing. Parties should initially approach the Listing Office. See information on Video Conferencing in the Court of Appeal Civil Division.
I want to attend a court hearing on a specific day. Where can I see the cases which will be heard on that day?
Hearings for the day can be found in the Daily Cause List, which is available in the Court's Great Hall and can be found on this website under Daily List.
Some of the forms can be found and downloaded from this website under Forms and Guidance. Alternatively, you should contact the Registry Office.
Full contact details for the Civil Appeals Office can be found on this website under Contact Us.
The staff in the Civil Appeals Office do not provide a photocopying service. Photocopying facilities are available in the Reprographics Department in Room C22, Centre Block, Royal Courts of Justice. The fee of 20p per side must be paid in the Fees Office (Room E.01, East Block) before copying can be done.
The staff of the Civil Appeals cannot give you legal advice. They cannot assist you in preparing your case, organising your bundles or representing you before the court. Legal assistance can be obtained from the Royal Courts of Justice Citizens' Advice Bureau or from other legal agencies such as the local CAB/local centres. You can find helpful guidance on your appeal and forms on this website under Forms and Guidance.
Mediation is a procedure, which enables the parties consensually to resolve their differences before an independent, neutral and impartial third party often at a lower cost and by a speedier process that would be achieved in court. More information can be found on the National Mediation Helpline and CEDR Solve websites. The Civil Mediation Council offers advice to all those who are professionally interested in mediation. If you would like to know more, contact Jonathan Dingle (CMC Secretary) on 0845 0833000, or via e-mail on wig@clara.net.
A mediator must fulfil the following conditions. He/she must be:
- an individual approved for membership of a panel of mediators by the Court
- accredited as a mediator by certain bodies such as the National Family Mediation Solicitors Family Law Association or CEDR (Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution)
- in current good standing with that accrediting body as regards membership and any requirements of that accrediting body.
He/she must also have had sufficient suitable experience of practical mediation as a mediator.
The Court of Appeal has an Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme which is handled by CEDR Solve. CEDR, also known as the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution, is responsible for nominating mediators from the mediation panel of to the Court. It also prepares a mediation agreement in each case and liaises with the parties over exchange of information and dates. The Court is responsible for the composition of the panel of mediators and the adjustment of fees.
Much depends on the willingness of the parties to compromise and the complexity of the case. However, it is generally accepted that mediation is a shorter process than litigation.
The fixed fee for each party in all, but family matters, is £ 850 plus VAT, totalling £ 998.75. Each party will bear his/her own costs of mediation unless otherwise agreed by the parties. Funding through the Legal Services Commission is available for publicly funded parties.
Mediation fees in family cases will be negotiated between the mediator and the parties. In appropriate cases, the Court will appoint a mediator who is prepared to offer services at a reduced or on a pro bono basis.
Parties can apply for a waiver of fees direct to the court or through the CEDR Solve, who will transfer the application to the Civil Appeals Office. The Court (and not CEDR Solve) will reach its decision on the individual circumstances of the case.
Generally, both parties must agree to mediation before settling out of court. However a Lord/Lady Justice, when giving permission to appeal, may strongly encourage the parties to consider mediation in cases which he/she deems it is appropriate.
The Court can penalise in costs any party which unreasonably refuses to mediate when encouraged to do so by the court.
You can find definitions of legal terms on this website in the Glossary.
A claimant is the person who issues/files the claim/starts proceedings in the lower court. He/she was previously known as the plaintiff.
A defendant is the person sued by the claimant.
An appellant is the person who makes an application/appeal to an appeal court. The appellant can be the claimant or the defendant in the lower court.
The respondent is the person on whom the Appellant's Notice is served.
Complaints
You may complain to the Court Manager of the Civil Appeals Office if you are unhappy with the service you have received from the Civil Appeals Office. Complaints should be addressed to:
The Court Manager
Civil Appeals Office
Room E307
Royal Courts of Justice
Strand,
London WC2A 2LL
In your letter you should:
• Give your name and address
• Give the name and reference number of your case
• Say what you are complaining about
• Say what you would like us to do to put things right
Your letter will be acknowledged and the Court Manager or a nominated officer will investigate the complaint. Within 10 days you will receive a full reply which will:
• Set out your complaint so that you can be sure we have understood it
• Describe the events surrounding the situation
• State whether or not staff have made a mistake, and give reasons for this decision.
The Court Manager cannot consider complaints about the conduct of Judges of the Court. Such complaints should be addressed to:
Ministry of Justice
Judicial Correspondence Unit
2nd Floor
Selborne House
54-60 Victoria Street
London SW1E 6QW
Further details of HM Courts Service complaints' procedure are available here.