MCOL against bank

[gat_3]

Hi,

Apologies in advance if this is the wrong forum, but I have opened a Money Claim online against my bank and was looking for some advice on how to proceed and if the bank's action is within reason.

Essentially, after going back and forth with the bank over a dispute about a payment sent to an incorrect account, I filled out a MCOL as I've had no luck with the bank nor the Ombudsman.

This is a claim for over £10k and after I submitted the claim I received a letter from the bank's solicitors telling me I'd be on the hook for their fees and that I have no case and that I should close this case and get back to the bank by the 7th. Mind you, the deadline for the bank to respond via the court to my claim was the 8th. This letter was not sent to the court just to me.

I ignored the letter and on the 8th the bank's solicitors sent me a letter with their defence, and stating why the court should throw my claim out. Again, this was not sent to the court, there was no defence uploaded to the portal, just sent to me directly. On the 9th the court said I can pursue a CCJ against the defendant as they haven't responded.

So I just wanted to ask, is this normal behaviour? For the defendant to keep contacting me directly and not the court? Also, has anyone had an experience with the MCOL service against a bank? Any advice well appreciated.

[atticus]

Yes, there is nothing unusual about this.

Are you aware that a claim for over £10,000 is likely to be allocated to the Fast Track? It will not be treated as a Small Claims case. One consequence of this is that the losing party is generally ordered to pay the winner's legal costs. The bank's solicitors are warning you of this. You should only proceed if you are very certain of the strength of your case.

You should familiarise yourself with the resources for litigants in person in this thread: https://legalbeagles.info/forums/for...ants-in-person - I will be posting another guide next week.

[atticus]

NB if the Bank's solicitors have not filed the defence with the court, well they should know better. If you obtain a default judgement expect an application to set it aside.

[gat_3]

Great, thank you for all of this. Yes, I know about the costs, but pursuing this claim made the most sense, I'll check out the link and appreciate the heads-up about the set aside motion.

[atticus]

Actually I posted the further guide yesterday.

[gat_3]

Hi, reupping this thread as I've now got an in person application hearing filed by the defendant for next week. My issue is in the letter I received from the court today, the defendant states "... is drawn to CPR 245(3), which states that if the Claimant wishes to rely on written evidence at the hearing of the application, they must file and serve that evidence at least seven days before the hearing"

That is impossible for me to do as the letter arrived today, and the hearing is for this Thursday.

I'll be ringing the court on Monday, but wanted to ask if there is a specific form I should file/ask about? Can I get the hearing moved as this is not an issue of my making? Or do I just attend the hearing, send the evidence asap and hope of the best?

Any advice much appreciated. Thanks!

[atticus]

If you want to put in evidence in reply to this application, do so. Make sure that you state very clearly in the first paragraph the date on which you received the application and that this has made it impossible for you to serve your statement within the stipulated time.

Phoning the court office rarely produces a sensible reply.

[gat_3]

Thanks for the advice, I'll send everything over by Monday then and hope for the best. Last question, realistically due to the post issue, would the judge dismiss the case in its entirety due to late evidence submission or will the hearing go ahead without that being a problem?

[atticus]

Dismiss? No.

Go ahead? Possibly. Or the judge may adjourn.

[Frank1]

Cpr 24.4 (5) The court should have given you at least 14 days notice of the date set for the summary judgement hearing.
Cpr 24.4 (4) the defendant need need not file a defence before the hearing.

It is usual for a respondent who wants to oppose an application to file and serve a witness statement and evidence. Your witness statement should start with the date you received notice of the hearing and the date set which meant you were given less than 14 days to respond

If you are unable to prepare your statement you should email the court marking it URGENT in the subject line and state you have been provided insufficient time

[gat_3]

Thank you both, especially with the bank holiday I definitely don't have enough time, I'll send the court that email right away. Thanks again!

[atticus]

NB CPR 39.8 provides that any communications with the court should be copied to the other party: https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/pr...les/part39#com

[gat_3]

Will copy them in, though unsurprisingly the bank haven't done the same and only pick and choose when to send me something. I've always notified them of any changes, so I'll definitely keep doing so and will call the court as well after they've received my email just to stay on top of it. Cheers!

[gat_3]

Quick question, as I'm about to send my request for adjournment/delay as I didn't have sufficient notice, I've realised I need to amend the particulars of my claim, nothing too major but I need to clarify the acts my argument rests upon. Should I mention that I want to make this change in the email to the court or just send a separate N244? Also, can I just ask the other side if I can filed my amended claim is that okay without filing the form?

Thanks again for all the help, and hope everyone is enjoying this weather.