Fast Track Court Procedure & Litigant in Person

[fingersandthumbs]

Arrgh! I have received some much appreciated advice from Mumsnetters about this matter in the past and completion of a form N181.

I am acting as a litigant in person representing my mother who is deceased in relation to a sum of money owed to her estate. Due to the amount involved it is being dealt with as a fast track matter.

I recently issued an order to amend the defendants name to include other names that she is known by. The court advised that there would be a hearing next week at the court local to me. Today I have received a notice that the court hearing is being amended to a telephone conference that the "claimants solicitors are to arrange."

I have no solicitors, I have tried ringing the court and the phone line is busy and then goes dead. What do I need to do? I had planned to attend the court, can I still do that?

And the telephone conference will also consider a request to transfer the proceedings to a court closer to the defendant. Can I object to this? All the witnesses are local to the current court, one has a medical condition that makes travel difficult (not impossible) and one has young children to consider.

Please any advice would be really gratefully received.

Thank you

F&T

Its in a County Court - do you need to know which one?

Call the court. Very unusual in my experience for a telephone hearing to be ordered with a LiP.

It's probably a mistake. Call and ask for it to be relisted for attendance.

Just realised you have called the Court. If it's close to you, go to it and tell them you want the hearing to be by attendance as you're a LiP. If the D is represented the very least the court can do is get the D's sols to arrange the telephone con.

You can oppose any move to another court assuming it moves it to somewhere that isn't where you want it to be. It sounds like the court just haven't noticed you aren't represented.