BAHAMAS Law and Practice Contributed by: John F. Wilson KC and Adrienne N. Bellot, McKinney, Bancroft & Hughes
4. Pre-trial Proceedings 4.1 Interim Applications/Motions
• the statement of case does not accord with the rules on how to commence an action. 4.4 Requirements for Interested Parties to Join a Lawsuit The court may add a new party to proceedings without an application if it is desirable to add the new party so that the court can resolve all the matters in dispute in the proceedings or if there is an issue involving the new party that is con- nected to the matters in dispute in the proceed- ings and it is desirable to add the new party so that the court can resolve that issue. The court may not add a party except by substi- tution after the case management conference on the application of an existing party unless that party can satisfy the court that the addition is necessary due to a change of circumstance that became known after the case management con- ference. 4.5 Applications for Security for Defendant’s Costs A defendant can apply for an order requiring the plaintiff/claimant to pay a sum of money as security for the defendant’s costs. This is known as an application for security for costs. 4.6 Costs of Interim Applications/ Motions The general rule is that all applications must be listed for hearing at a case management con- ference or pre-trial review. Where an applica- tion is made which could have been dealt with at a case management conference or pre-trial review, the court will order the applicant to pay the costs of the application unless there are spe- cial circumstances.
It is possible to make interim/interlocutory appli- cations before trial. Parties are able to obtain remedies from the applications; eg, injunctions, payment into court, or security for costs. 4.2 Early Judgment Applications Parties can apply for early judgment by applying for summary judgment on the claim. The court may grant summary judgment if it considers that the claimant has no real prospect of succeeding on the claim or the issue or if the defendant has no real prospect of successfully defending the claim. The court may also order summary judg- ment on its own volition. The court may order that a statement of case or any part thereof be struck out. As it is a draconian measure, the court will only strike out claims in “plain and obvious” cases. 4.3 Dispositive Motions The dispositive motions that are commonly made before trial are summary judgments and striking out. The court will grant summary judg- ment where it has decided that the claimant has no real prospect of succeeding on the claim or where the defendant has no real prospect of defending the claim. The court will strike out an entire claim in plain and obvious cases where: • there has been a failure to comply with a rule, practice direction, order or direction given by the court in the proceedings; • the statement of case does not disclose any reasonable cause or ground for bringing the claim; • the statement of case is frivolous, vexatious, scandalous, an abuse of the court’s process or is likely to obstruct the just disposal of the proceedings; or
86
CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook