Ruth Pratt considers extending time for service of a claim form
Claimants have four months from the date of issue to serve the claim form (six months if serving out of the jurisdiction).
Time for service can be extended on application: if made within the time limit, under CPR 7.6(2); if made outside the time limit, under CPR 7.6(3). CPR 7.6(3) provides a threshold checklist of conditions which must be satisfied before the court can order an extension. The court may make such an order only if—(i) the court has failed to serve the claim form; or (ii) the claimant has taken all reasonable steps to comply with R 7.5 but has been unable to do so; and (iii) in either case, the claimant has acted promptly in making the application.
There is no such checklist under CPR 7.6(2).
The cases
The exercise of the discretion is dependent on the individual facts of each case. The recent first instance decisions in Imperial Cancer, FG Hawkes v Beli Shipping and Sodastream v Coates
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