Rule 32: the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Property Chamber) Rules 2013/1169: Notice of hearings

(1) The Tribunal must give each party reasonable notice of the time and place of the hearing (including any adjourned or postponed hearing) and any changes to the time and place of the hearing.

(2) The notice period for a hearing to consider disposal of the proceedings must be no less than 14 days, except that the Tribunal may give shorter notice—

(a) with the parties’ consent; or

(b) in urgent or exceptional circumstances.

This rule has no old rule equivalent: it is another of those provisions which was missing from the old rules, but did not in fact cause any hitches in the progress of a case through the LVT process.

My experience of LVT hearings is that hearings are not often vacated – or listed – at the last minute, in the same way that court hearings can be. I am hopeful that this will continue in the new Tribunal, but in any event this rule ensures that:

• Reasonable notice is given to the parties in respect of any hearing, whether a final hearing or an interim one. What is reasonable will depend on the stage that an application has reached. For example, if the hearing is effectively the trial of the application where witnesses are to attend, the notice that the witnesses require will be relevant, and
• The parties have at least two weeks’ notice of any hearing which may lead to the disposal of the application unless one of the two conditions in subrule 2 is satisfied. On my reading of this subrule, that would include a hearing to consider striking out a party’s case as well as a full hearing equating to a trial of the application.