Legal professionals rarely receive any formal training or guidance on how to run a small claims case in the county court, while litigants in person often have to conduct such cases without legal representation. A lack of understanding of the rules frequently leads to confusion and mistakes, which in turn adds to expense and causes delay. The fifth edition of this popular title (formerly entitled Small Claims Procedure: A Practical Guide) will prove invaluable for busy practitioners and litigants in person alike, equipping them with the latest know-how on avoiding errors and making the most of the procedures that are available. The mediation section of the book has special prominence in this edition. Litigants using the small claims track can now agree to have their cases diverted to a mediation service run by the Courts service and at no additional charge. The system has been in operation now for over a year and has proved popular with court users, especially litigants in person. This book sets out the scheme in detail together with practical tips on how to make the best use of this new service. Updating material in this edition has been significant; of particular importance are the clarified rules on the date upon which court proceedings are served and the material which must be included in letters before action and other pre-action steps. Finally, the book has been made even more user friendly by improved cross-referencing, handy tables and an extensive glossary.

Tricia Pearl is to be congratulated on this her 5th edition... should be used by in house legal teams, and should be made available at all libraries and CAB offices and should be compulsary reading for all County Court staff, trainee Solicitors and pupil barristers... Even in these times of cuts, money should be found for there to be one copy in each County Court to be lent out when procedural queries are raised...It should be included by all Judges in their library allocation. It is that good. * Law Bulletin *

Patricia Pearl is a former solicitor and full-time judge. Now a Circuit Judge, she previously worked as a District Judge, dealing with small claims cases on a daily basis for over eight years. Andrew Goodman is a barrister practising in professional indemnity, disciplinary and regulatory claims and in commercial, property and administrative law. He writes and lectures extensively on a range of subjects and is a Bar Council mediation advocacy trainer.