The Court of Protection Rules 2007

PART 5 GENERAL CASE MANAGEMENT POWERS

The court’s general powers of case management

25.—(1) The list of powers in this rule is in addition to any powers given to the court by any other rule or practice direction or by any other enactment or any powers it may otherwise have.

(2) The court may—

(a) extend or shorten the time for compliance with any rule, practice direction, or court order or direction (even if an application for extension is made after the time for compliance has expired);

(b) adjourn or bring forward a hearing;

(c) require P, a party, a party’s legal representative or litigation friend, to attend court;

(d) hold a hearing and receive evidence by telephone or any other method of direct oral communication;

(e) stay the whole or part of any proceedings or judgment either generally or until a specified date or event;

(f) consolidate proceedings;

(g) hear two or more applications on the same occasion;

(h) direct a separate hearing of any issue;

(i) decide the order in which issues are to be heard;

(j) exclude an issue from consideration;

(k) dismiss or give judgment on an application after a decision is made on a preliminary basis;

(l) direct any party to file and serve an estimate of costs; and

(m) take any step or give any direction for the purpose of managing the case and furthering the overriding objective.

(3) A judge to whom a matter is allocated may, if he considers that the matter is one which ought properly to be dealt with by another judge, transfer the matter to such a judge.

(4) Where the court gives directions it may take into account whether or not a party has complied with any rule or practice direction.

(5) The court may make any order it considers appropriate even if a party has not sought that order.

(6) A power of the court under these Rules to make an order includes a power to vary or revoke the order;

(7) Rules 25.12 to 25.15 of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (which make provision about security for costs) apply in proceedings to which these Rules apply as if the references in those Rules to “defendant” and “claimant” were to “respondent” and “applicant” respectively.

Court’s power to dispense with requirement of any rule

26.  In addition to its general powers and the powers listed in rule 25, the court may dispense with the requirement of any rule.

Exercise of powers on the court’s own initiative

27.—(1) Except where these Rules or some other enactment make different provision, the court may exercise its powers on its own initiative.

(2) The court may make an order on its own initiative without hearing the parties or giving them the opportunity to make representations.

(3) Where the court proposes to make an order on its own initiative it may give the parties and any person it thinks fit an opportunity to make representations and, where it does so, it will specify the time by which, and the manner in which, the representations must be made.

(4) Where the court proposes—

(a) to make an order on its own initiative; and

(b) to hold a hearing to decide whether to make the order,

it will give the parties and may give any other person it thinks likely to be affected by the order at least 3 days’ notice of the hearing.

General power of the court to rectify matters where there has been an error of procedure

28.  Where there has been an error of procedure, such as a failure to comply with a rule or practice direction—

(a) the error does not invalidate any step taken in the proceedings unless the court so orders; and

(b) the court may waive the error or require it to be remedied or may make such other order as appears to the court to be just.