GUERNSEY Law and Practice Contributed by: Elaine Gray and Steven Balmer, Carey Olsen
Naturally, the timeline of a case varies greatly depend- ing on the type of case, the number of parties involved and the complexity of the issues, with more complex cases often taking upwards of two years before reach- ing trial. The Court of Appeal sits every quarter, with additional sittings as required. Appeals tend to be concluded within 6-12 months of the notice of appeal being filed. Guernsey Court of Appeal An appeal from a final decision of the Royal Court of Guernsey will generally lie to the Guernsey Court of Appeal. An automatic right of appeal is available except where the sums involved are under GBP200, or the appeal relates to a consent order or an inter- locutory order (in which cases leave to appeal will be required). Judicial Committee of the Privy Council Following an amendment in 2022, there is no auto- matic right of appeal for cases over a certain value; instead, an appeal will only lie from the Guernsey Court of Appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, if leave is obtained from either the Court of Appeal or the Privy Council. The Guernsey Probate Registry The Guernsey Probate Registry deals with matters of probate and estates; previous proposals to amalgam- ate its functions into the Royal Court were rejected in 2021, and for now, therefore, these functions continue to be serviced by the Guernsey Probate Registry. 1.3 Court Filings and Proceedings Court filings are generally open to inspection for the public unless the court orders that the court file should be sealed. Similarly, cases are generally heard in public, with the fundamental principle of open justice being applied in the majority of cases. However, the Royal Court may, in certain circum- stances, seal the court file and/or conduct hearings in private. Such circumstances may include: • non-contentious trust applications; • cases concerning children or persons with capacity issues;
• matrimonial matters; • cases involving confidential information (eg, IP disputes and/or competition litigation); and • ex parte applications. 1.4 Legal Representation in Court Guernsey advocates have exclusive rights of audi- ence in the Royal Court and Court of Appeal, although a litigant in person can conduct litigation on their own behalf subject to certain procedural steps. Foreign lawyers have no rights of audience in Guernsey’s courts. In practice, however, many advocates’ firms employ lawyers qualified in other jurisdictions to work under the supervision of Guernsey advocates. Additionally, parties sometimes make use of barristers qualified in other jurisdictions; in some limited circumstances (some of) the costs of foreign counsel may be recov- erable. In contrast, several tribunals (eg, the Employment and Discrimination Tribunal) in Guernsey permit represen- tation by non-advocates. Third-party litigation funding is permitted, but the rules of maintenance and champerty have not been abolished by statute or at common law in Guernsey. In deciding whether or not a funding arrangement is champertous or amounts to maintenance, the Royal Court is likely to follow English principles. Guernsey advocates are expressly prohibited by the Guernsey Bar’s Rules of Professional Conduct from entering into any arrangement under which payment of a fee is contingent on success in the claim, com- monly called “no win, no fee” agreements. However, the Guernsey Bar has set up a working committee to look at the potential introduction of conditional fee arrangements and similar forms of litigation funding. 2.2 Third-Party Funding: Lawsuits Subject to the rules of maintenance and champerty, in principle it is permissible for a third party to fund a 2. Litigation Funding 2.1 Third-Party Litigation Funding
394 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook