36-654: The County Court of England and Wales dates back to the County Courts Act 1846 ( 9 & 10 Vict. c. 95), which received royal assent on 28 August 1846 and was brought into force on 15 March 1847. England and Wales (with the exception of the City of London , which was outside the scope of the Act) were divided into 60 circuits, with a total of 491 county courts within these circuits. The then Lord Chancellor , Lord Cottenham , wanted everyone to be within seven miles of
72-455: A Wales criminal justice system . England and Wales are treated as a single unit for some purposes, because the two form the constitutional successor to the former Kingdom of England. The continuance of Scots law was guaranteed under the 1706 Treaty of Union that led to the Acts of Union 1707 , and as a consequence English law—and after 1801 , Irish law —continued to be separate. Following
108-642: A Lloegr ) is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom . It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 . The substantive law of the jurisdiction is English law . The devolved Senedd (Welsh Parliament; Welsh : Senedd Cymru ) – previously named the National Assembly for Wales – was created in 1999 under
144-474: A county court with more than one location in its title would sit at each location named. The obligation for one court to sit in multiple locations was removed by the Civil Courts Order 1983. Instead, it was specified that a county court was to be held at each location named in the order and courts were to be named after that one location (save for a few exceptions where the name of a former court town
180-405: A court, and the final scheme came close to that aim. One county court judge was appointed to each circuit, assisted by one or more registrars with some limited judicial powers, and would travel between the courts in his area as necessary, sitting in each court at least once a month. Few permanent courts were needed initially, given the infrequency of court hearings, and temporary accommodation such as
216-656: A town hall would often be used where there was no existing courthouse for use. In some places, a building is now shared with the Crown Court (as at Maidstone Combined Court Centre, for example), the Family Court , or a magistrates' court . The judicial business of the County Court is now carried out by circuit judges (a term introduced by the Courts Act 1971 ) and district judges (as the post of registrar
252-439: Is a national civil court for England and Wales with unlimited financial jurisdiction. The County Court sits in various County Court buildings and courtrooms throughout England and Wales, and not in one single location. It is a single court in the sense of a single centrally organised and administered court system. The County Court centres the court sits in today correspond to the earlier individual county courts. The history of
288-582: The Anglo Saxon period (450-1066) the Comitatus was a court of law and not an organization for military purposes. In Anglo Saxon England , the name for court was gemot and all courts were called by this name. Later, the shire court was an early form of representative democracy. After the Norman conquest of England in 1066, there was further development of county courts and government. All of England
324-464: The Crime and Courts Act 2013 replaced the previous system of county courts for different localities with one County Court that operates throughout England and Wales, sitting in multiple locations simultaneously. In July 2015, further proposals to close nineteen County Court venues were announced. All name changes before 1 August 1983 reflect changes in the locations where the court sat. Before then,
360-765: The Government of Wales Act 1998 and provides a degree of self-government in Wales. The powers of the legislature were expanded by the Government of Wales Act 2006 , which allows it to pass its own laws , and the Act also formally separated the Welsh Government from the Senedd. There is no equivalent body for England , which is directly governed by the parliament and government of the United Kingdom . During
396-526: The High Court of Justice or to the Court of Appeal . In debt cases, the aim of a claimant taking County Court action against a defendant is to secure a County Court judgment . This is a legal order to pay the full amount of the debt. Judgments can be enforced at the request of the claimant in a number of ways, including requesting the court bailiffs to seize goods, the proceeds of any sale being used to pay
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#1732773050507432-623: The Roman occupation of Britain , the area of present-day England and Wales was administered as a single unit, except for the land to the north of Hadrian's Wall – though the Roman-occupied area varied in extent, and for a time extended to the Antonine/Severan Wall . At that time, most of the native inhabitants of Roman Britain spoke Brythonic languages , and were all regarded as Britons , divided into numerous tribes. After
468-652: The red dragon of Wales was dropped and replaced with the unicorn of Scotland with the succession of King James I who demoted Wales' status on the coat of arms and on the first adaptation of the Flag of Great Britain . Prior to 1746, it was not clear whether a reference to "England" in legislation included Wales, and so in 1746, Parliament passed the Wales and Berwick Act 1746 . This specified that in all prior and future laws, references to "England" would by default include Wales (and Berwick-upon-Tweed ). The Wales and Berwick Act
504-635: The 20th century. Examples are the Welsh Language Acts 1967 and 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998 . Measures and Acts of the Senedd apply in Wales, but not in England. Following the Government of Wales Act, effective since May 2007, the Senedd can legislate on matters devolved to it. Following a referendum on 3 March 2011 , the Senedd gained direct law-making powers, without
540-428: The County Court under the small claims track (sometimes known to the lay public as "small claims court," although it is not a separate court). Claims between £5,000 and £25,000 (£15,000 for cases started before April 2009) that are capable of being tried within one day are allocated to the "fast track" and claims over £25,000 (£15,000 for cases started before April 2009) to the "multi track." These 'tracks' are labels for
576-455: The English county court is one of the most interesting branches of the legal history of England. The first mention of what was to become a court was the concept of a Comitatus in the time of the early Germans. According to the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus 's treatise Germania (AD 98), the comitatus was a military bond between a Germanic warrior and his Lord. Later, during
612-649: The Great in his Legal Code , c. 893 . However, after the Norman invasion of Wales in the 11th century, English law came to apply in the parts of Wales conquered by the Normans (the Welsh Marches ). In 1283, the English, led by Edward I , with the biggest army brought together in England since the 11th century, conquered the remainder of Wales , then organised as the Principality of Wales . This
648-629: The claimant lives. Most matters are decided by a district judge or circuit judge sitting alone. Civil matters in England (with minor exceptions, e.g. in some actions against the police) do not have juries. Judges in the County Court are either former barristers or former solicitors, whereas in the High Court they are more likely to have formerly been a barrister . Civil claims with an amount in controversy under £10,000 (the Jackson Reforms have increased this from £5,000) are dealt with in
684-638: The conquest, the Romans administered this region as a single unit, the province of Britain . Long after the departure of the Romans, the Britons in what became Wales developed their own system of law , first codified by Hywel Dda (Hywel the Good; reigned 942–950) when he was king of most of present-day Wales (compare King of Wales ); in England Anglo-Saxon law was initially codified by Alfred
720-459: The debt, or an Attachment of Earnings Order, where the defendant's employer is ordered to make deductions from the gross wages to pay the claimant. County Court judgments are recorded in the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines and in the defendant's credit records held by credit reference agencies. This information is used in consumer credit scores , making it difficult or more expensive for
756-408: The defendant to obtain credit. In order to avoid the record being kept for years in the register, the debt must be settled within thirty days after the date the County Court judgment was served (unless the judgment was later set aside). If the debt was not fully paid within the statutory period, the entry will remain for six full years. England and Wales England and Wales ( Welsh : Cymru
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#1732773050507792-399: The full title of each court was The County Court of (county) holden at (location/locations) , using the historic county names for England and for Wales . Thereafter, each court was renamed as (location/s) County Court . For brevity, the latter form is used throughout in this table, and "County Court" is abbreviated to "CC". County Court (England and Wales) The County Court
828-515: The law applicable to that business entity. A registered office must be specified as "in Wales" if the company wishes to use a name ending cyfyngedig or cyf , rather than Limited or Ltd. or to avail itself of certain other privileges relating to the official use of the Welsh language. Outside the legal system, the position is mixed. Some organisations combine as "England and Wales", others are separate. The order of precedence in England and Wales
864-536: The legal system of the Kingdom of England. This was in part to update outdated Welsh laws, but also to control Wales alongside England; through these acts, the Welsh could be seen as equals to the English. This was reflected on both Henry VIII and Elizabeth I 's coat of arms where the dragon represented Wales and the lion represented England. As soon as the Tudor dynasty ended with the death of Elizabeth I , however,
900-484: The most part, left in place to start with, their days were numbered and section 28 of the County Courts Act 1867 ( 30 & 31 Vict. c. 142) gave the new court system exclusive jurisdiction over other inferior courts (i.e. other than the High Court) for most purposes. Further reorganisation was achieved by the Courts Act 1971 , which abolished the title of county court judge and redesignated existing holders of
936-650: The need to consult Westminster. This was the first time in almost 500 years that Wales had its own powers to legislate. Each piece of Welsh legislation is known as an Act of Senedd Cymru . For a company to be incorporated in the United Kingdom, its application for registration with Companies House must state "whether the company's registered office is to be situated in England and Wales (or in Wales), in Scotland or in Northern Ireland", which will determine
972-529: The number of locations where a county court is held. In June 2010, the Ministry of Justice announced plans to close 54 county courts and 103 magistrates' courts, in order to save £15m in annual running costs and £22m in necessary maintenance. After consultation, it was decided to keep five of these county courts open: Barnsley, Bury, Llangefni, the Mayor's and City of London Court , and Skipton. From 22 April 2014,
1008-541: The office as circuit judges . Since 2014, England and Wales have had what is officially described as "a single civil court" named the County Court, with unlimited financial jurisdiction. County Court matters can be lodged at a court in person, by post or via the Internet in some cases through the County Court Bulk Centre . Cases are normally heard at the court having jurisdiction over the area where
1044-427: The same boundaries as counties. The modern County Court in England and Wales was created by the County Courts Act 1846 ( 9 & 10 Vict. c. 95), which created a jurisdiction for small civil claims intended to be more coherent, and less cumbersome and costly, than the universal jurisdiction of the High Court or the remnants of local courts administering justice in civil matters. Whilst older local courts were, for
1080-407: The two Acts of Union, Parliament can restrict the effect of its laws to part of the realm, and generally the effect of laws, where restricted, was originally applied to one or more of the former kingdoms. Thus, most laws applicable to England also applied to Wales. However, Parliament now passes laws applicable to Wales and not to England (and vice versa), a practice which was rare before the middle of
1116-402: The use of the court system – the actual cases will be heard in the County Court or the High Court depending on their value. For personal injury , defamation , and some landlord-tenant dispute cases the thresholds for each track have different values. Appeals are to a higher judge (a circuit judge hears appeals from a district judge). From the decision of a circuit judge an appeal lies to either
List of County Court venues in England and Wales - Misplaced Pages Continue
1152-445: Was divided into administrative units called shires , with subdivisions. Shires were run by officials known as shire reeves or sheriffs. The chief business of the court was to hear civil pleas. There were numerous separate county court systems, each with jurisdiction across England and Wales for enforcement of its orders, but each with a defined "county court district" from which it took claims. County court districts did not always have
1188-470: Was renamed by section 74 of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 ). Part-time judges ( recorders , deputy district judges and some retired judges) also sit in the county court. As at 1 April 2015, there are 640 circuit judges and 441 district judges. The system of 60 circuits was abolished in 1970. Over time, whilst new courts have been opened in various locations, there has been an overall reduction in
1224-485: Was repealed by the Welsh Language Act 1967 , although the statutory definition of "England" created by that Act still applies for laws passed before 1967. In new legislation since then, what was referred to as "England" is now "England and Wales", while subsequent references to "England" and "Wales" refer to those political divisions. There have been multiple calls from both Welsh academics and politicians for
1260-563: Was retained in the court's title, such as the Aldershot and Farnham County Court). On 22 April 2014 the various county courts were merged into one single County Court for England and Wales, and since then the venues have been referred as, for example, "the County Court at Exeter" instead of "Exeter County Court" as previously. Until 1 January 1937, when the County Court Districts (Name of Court) Order 1936 came into force,
1296-528: Was then united with the English crown by the Statute of Rhuddlan of 1284. This aimed to replace Welsh criminal law with English law. Welsh law continued to be used for civil cases until the annexation of Wales to England in the 16th century by the Welsh House of Tudor . The Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 then consolidated the administration of all the Welsh territories and incorporated them fully into
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