The Civil Court Practice 2009 - The Green Book

Publisher: LexisNexis Butterworths

General Editors: PKJ Thompson QC & Louise di Mambro

Price: £405.06

Standing Order Price: £384.59

Edition: 2009 Edition (April 2009)

ISBN: 978-1-405-73711-1

Buy from LexisNexis Butterworths: Click Here

To be a successful civil or commercial litigator, a solid understanding of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (the "CPR") is fundamental.  Practitioners have three or four main options and, in my  view, The Civil Court Practice (commonly known amongst practitioners as 'The Green Book') is the best because it provides a clear explanation of the Rules, the cases and, importantly, their application.

Edited by a team of leading commercial and civil litigators (including a number of judges), The Civil Court Practice has been thoroughly updated since the last edition to include the new cases and the important changes to the CPR.  Unlike previously revisions, the most recent changes include the somewhat unexciting increase of the fast track limit from £15,000 to £25,000 for claims issued after 6 April 2009 and the (relatively) more exciting codification of applications for cost capping orders.  It also continues to include many cases which are un-reported in competing texts but are of practical importance.

Fortunately, the 2009 edition of The Civil Court Practice comes (like the previous edition) into two hard-back volumes, a paper-back forms volume and an electronic copy accessible using the excellent CD-ROM.  Fortunately, the first volume contains a full copy of the CPR (including annotations and notes), the Pre-Action Protocols and the remaining parts of the County Court Rules and the Supreme Court Rules (which pre-date the CPR).  Volume two continues to be dedicated to particular topics like landlord and tenant, consumer credit and insolvency.  This volume is extremely useful because it includes extracts from the relevant statutes which are, where appropriate, annotated.

The publishers have also continued their extremely welcome decision to re-issue Volume 1 in the October when the rule changes often take place.  For many practitioners, this will be extremely relevant and welcome because it avoids mix-ups and the often difficult task of piecing together the supplement with the volume.  This can often save embarrassment (and a potential negligence claim) when an amendment is overlooked!  Those waiting with baited breath for the new Supreme Court are promised a special summer supplement telling the reader all they wanted to know (and, perhaps, didn't want to know) about this important development.

The Civil Court Practice 2009 is simply the leading text on the CPR.  It is extremely accessible.  It also has clearly and superbly written commentary (often combined with references to precedents in Butterworths' Civil Court Practice).  Its excellent layout, showing the rules with a grey background, also means it is easy to distinguish the text from commentary.  It is a text which remains constantly on my desk and I have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone involved in commercial or civil litigation.

Reviewed on 14 June 2009

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