Yesterday (3 November) a statement from the Master of the Rolls announcing the end of the ‘overall arrangements for possession proceedings’, as of 1 November 2021, was put up on the judiciary website. The statement is here.
(The original version of this post referred to the mysterious disappearance of the announcement from the Judiciary website on 4 November. No sooner had I hit publish at 7.30 pm, than the statement reappeared on the website. Please judiciary website people, don’t do this to me.)
So, as of 1 November, albeit announced a couple of days later, the ‘overall arrangements’ are supposedly at an end. That means the system of review dates prior to listing substantive hearings, and the procedural requirements for those, and the prioritisation of certain kinds of possession claim has gone, or at least is going, as has ‘covid marking’ of cases, beyond that set out in PD 55C, which remains in force.
What this means for current possession claims already listed for review dates, and for the listing of hearings remains to be seen. Will there be a return to block listing? (Hopefully not!) Will already listed and notified review dates be withdrawn?
I have had Kingston-upon-Thames CC skip a review hearing citing: ‘upon the Court dispensing with the requirement for a Review to be listed. Claim to be served. First substantive hearing to be listed (date to be advised)’. Claim was issued pre-November ’21.