#4793 - Drafting A Particulars Of Claim - Civil Litigation

NOTE:

• There must be a duty, breach, causation, loss element to every part of the claim. This is crucially important and where most of the marks will be.

• Do it in order:

  • Duty, Breach, Causation Loss

  • Precedent (i.e. statement of truth, pre-action conduct, loss, interest claim

  • Minor corrections (i.e. dates, names, figures)

(ensure claim number correct)

IN THE CENTRAL LONDON HIGH COURT (get court right; High/County Court?)

B E T W E E N

GREEN INVESTMENTS PLC (make sure correct)

Ensure in the right order: - Claimant (or claimants)

-and-

[here, either put name of each partner or company name and (the ‘Firm’)

(1) TOM JONES

(2) SIMON JONES etc.

Ensure in the right order: - Defendant (or defendants)

_______________________

PARTICULARS OF CLAIM

(not Statement of Case)

_______________________

1. At all material times the First Defendant (or just ‘Defendant’ if suing firm) was a [Position of Defendant] in a [type of company] known as [name of company].

2. On 27 April 2011 (numbers and dates in figures not words) the Claimant (capitalised) entered into a contract with the Defendant for the supply of consultancy services.

Go on to describe events… Ensure they are correct, the figures are correct.

Be sure to establish:

• Duty

  • “It was an implied term of the Retainer that in acting for the Claimant, the First Defendant would exercise the care and skill to be expected from a reasonably competent [position of Defendant]. Further or alternatively, the First Defendant owed a like duty at Common Law”.

• Breach

  • Paragraph [x] – “In providing advice to the Claimant, the First Defendant:

Particulars of Breach

• Paragraph [x.i] – The product was [X]…

• Paragraph [x.ii] – Failed to advise…”

• Paragraph [y] – “Given the paragraphs [x.i] to [x.ii] inclusive, the Defendants are in breach of the implied terms and/or in breach of the said duty at common law that they owed to the Claimant in that they did not exercise the care and skill reasonably to be expected from [position of Defendant]”.

• Causation

  • Example 1: “Had the First Defendant correctly advised the Claimant, it would not have [did whatever it did]. Further it would not have [did the second thing it did]. Accordingly, the Claimant has suffered loss amounting to the costs of [x] from the date of [x]”.

  • Example 2: “As a result of the agreement reached with [3^rd party], the Claimant was obliged to [do whatever it did] at a cost of [x] for the purpose of [y]. The Claimant also incurred [other losses such as legal costs and expenses].

  • Mock examples: “As a result of the breach in [para X], the Claimant had to purchase replacement [Y] from an alternative supplier at the cost of [Z]. The sourcing of such alternative [Y] was the only way the Claimant could fulfil its obligations to [Client]. Despite this, the Claimant has subsequently lost the business of its client, [Client]. It has therefore suffered a substantial loss in profits”.

    • “Further, as a result of the breaches set out above, the Claimant has suffered damaged to its reputation”.

• Loss

  • As a result of said breaches, the Claimant has suffered loss and damage.

PARTICULARS OF LOSS AND DAMAGE

Item Date (may include further VAT column)

[x] [y] Amount claimed

TOTAL [x] amount underlined

The Claimant also seeks damages for damage to its reputation.

[Paragraph on Interest]

The Claimant is entitled to interest on such damages as are awarded to it...