FH delayed due to busy court

Final hearing listed for two days. Attended first day with barrister and solicitor for full day but didn''t start until just before lunch so morning wasted completely. Second day again with legal team left waiting for court to be free eventually to be told to go away as court too busy so would be adjourned to next day. What can I do after incurring two wasted days of legal fees due to court being too busy? Why when a final hearing is listed for two days and one has booked barristers and solicitors, do the court then on the day cause delays by putting in extra listings delaying the previously listed two day final hearing at great expense? Why is a court and judge not ''booked out'' for those two days? And if not can I claim compensation for wasted fees incurred? This will have wasted two days barristers and solicitor fees of over £6k for sitting around waiting, not to mention travel and hotel costs and lost days at work?

I am sorry to hear this happened to you too. I had something similar. Very late into court day 1 - only an hour in there. Day 2 court was too busy .. so adjourned for 5 weeks .. then my barrister not available so had to brief another .. and he had to pick up after someone else had done the opening..

My information then was that there is nothing you can do. The court will not refund fees and wasted costs. Cannot recall how much it did cost in the end (thousands) .. but I do recall the barrister did a deal on his fee so was a bit cheaper ...

Hadenoughnow

As the lady says there is nothing you can do about your wasted costs, your barrister can ask for costs but the judge will refuse, they always do, long story short the courts are stretched to breaking point and it gets worse year on year.

The hearing was booked but that won''t account of previous delays and emergency hearings.

Too few judges not enough staff, and they will have their budget cut again.

Thank you but it seems completely insane that this should happen. The financial impact is enormous and the emotional toll intolerable with no guarantee that there will be enough time to really focus on the key evidence. I am in complete despair with our judicial system when a simple administrative/management task cannot be carried out effectively what hope of a fair outcome.

I can only agree with you. It is shambolic. I am over being angry about it now .. but was furious at the time. You are all keyed up for a FH ... and then nothing but a big bill shocking.

It''s all too common and the real problem is people don''t complain enough and if they don''t nothing will happen, the powers that be are only interested in saving money, and if the planned cuts to legal aid go ahead it will be so much worse than it is right now.


It''s not the judges fault or the court, it''s a sime case of too few judges and staff to deal with the number of applications and hearings, 150,000 divorce applications were made last year, tally that with the number of county courts and the number of judges and the problem is obvious,that of course is the tip of the iceberg, divorce is fairly simple, what comes with it AR and contact hearings is another matter, not to mention ex parte hearings.

The best you can hope for is the barrister reduces the brief fee or may e doesnt charge a refresher for the next hearing, not much I know.

Thank you I do propose to complain once the AR proceedings are over - after all I will need a new project to fill my spare time when I no longer have to spend endless hours fighting for a fair settlement, this wll be my new cause!!