‘Interlocutory” means any court hearing occurring in the process of
preparing for a full hearing of the case before that final hearing. It would
include any applications before trial which the parties may make, or any
actions by the court to expedite the parties’ preparation and disclosure
prior to the hearing. This sometimes includes ‘interrogatories’ (which
means pre-trial questions and answers in writing under oath) and
‘discovery’ (which means forced disclosure of documents by a party which
might assist an opponent’s case).
‘Injunction’ is any order made by a court ordering any person to take or
not to take a specific action which could affect the outcome of the final
hearing of the case. They can also be part of the final decision of a court
where requested, instead of an award of damages. However, injunction
orders are discretionary & courts may decline to make them. These
orders may be made to people or organizations, even if they are not
parties to the case which the court is hearing. Injunctions can be either
temporary or final. They may also be ‘ex parte’ which means only one
party to the litigation is present seeking the court’s urgent order,
although there are strict rules applying regarding undertakings which
must be given by the applicant as to costs and damages when the court
hears only one party seeking the order.
‘Party/party costs’, compared with ‘solicitor/client costs’. The
difference between these two is that ‘party/party costs’ are those allowed
by an official court scale which are recoverable by a successful party
against an unsuccessful party in litigation where the court allows such
recovery, or which are prescribed for certain types of legal work such as
land dealings or work for deceased estates. ‘Solicitor/client costs’ are
costs actually charged by a solicitor for acting for a client, as agreed
between them in a retainer agreement and which the client must pay to
his/her solicitor. It is important to understand that ‘solicitor/client costs’
may be greater or less than ‘party/party costs’.
‘Mediation’ can be either private and voluntary or compulsory. It is a
process whereby parties in dispute meet with or without advisors, in
good faith in the presence of an independent mediator who helps the
parties to try to settle their dispute out of court. It is most useful in
commercial disputes where both parties have strengths and weaknesses
in their cases & want to save legal costs of a hearing where the outcome
might not be clear. It is also used widely in family law disputes. Usually,
the parties agree to share equally the mediator’s costs, irrespective of the
mediation outcome. Mediations are ‘off the record’ in the sense that
admissions or concessions made in mediation talks cannot be used in the
trial, if the mediation fails. The rules in many courts require the parties to
try mediation before the court will hear the case.
