How a civil trial unfolds — from the order of proceedings and the burden of proof to evidence, judgment and the costs consequences that follow.
Everything in civil litigation builds towards this stage, where the case is finally tested and decided. This chapter begins with the purpose and conduct of trial — the public hearing rule, the three procedural tracks, the order in which parties present their cases and the judge's controlling role — before setting out who bears the burden of proof and the civil standard that must be met. It then examines evidence at trial: witness statements as evidence-in-chief, memory-refreshing, the duty to put one's case in cross-examination, re-examination and the fate of a statement where the witness fails to attend. Finally, it deals with mid-trial applications, relief from sanctions, non-attendance and setting aside judgment, and closes with judgment itself and costs, including the standard and indemnity bases and the consequences of failing to beat a Part 36 offer.
