5.3.3. Consequences of making a statement of truth

Any person who makes a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth, or who causes such a statement to be made without an honest belief in its truth, is guilty of contempt of court. It is for this reason that it is highly desirable that such statements be signed by the party in question. If a statement is signed by a legal adviser its contents and the consequences of signing it are deemed by virtue of the signature to have been explained to the party and the signature will be taken by the court as mean­ing that the party has authorised a representative to sign (PD 22, para. 3.8). A solicitor must therefore always ensure that he has received specific full instructions on the con­tents of documents signed by him.

5.3.4 Particulars of claim

In the majority of cases the claim form will be supplemented by a full form of particu­lars of claim which will usually be served together. If they are not, the claim form must contain a statement that particulars of claim will follow and they must be served within 14 days after service of the claim form. Particulars of claim must include:

(a) A concise statement of the facts on which the claimant relies. The word 'concise' should not be taken too literally and it is desirable that a clear indication of pre­cisely what the case is about should be given. In fact increasingly there is quite a full narrative in the particulars of claim to the extent even of setting out matters of evidence. Although prolixity is to be deplored generally, giving a full picture at this stage may assist in the early resolution of the case.

Thus, for example, if the claim is in respect of an accident which caused personal injuries at the factory of the claimant's employers, the particulars of claim will set out details of the way in which the accident occurred, a series of allegations of the ways in which the defendant employers were in breach of proper health and safety procedures; a description of the injuries suffered by the claimant; and a description of the financial consequences flowing from the claimed injuries. These will generally be in the form of a schedule attached to the particulars of claim, though if they were very brief they might be set out in the body of the particulars of claim itself.

The particulars of claim will then go on to claim the appropriate relief, namely, damages.

If the case concerned a breach of contract, the particulars of claim would norm­ally describe the terms of the contract and the way in which it came about; and then go on to explain what breach was claimed and indicating what loss it had caused the claimant. The particulars would then end with a formal claim to damages, either in a specified amount, if it were capable of quantification, or general damages.

(b) Details of any interest claimed including an explanation of whether it is claimed under some contract with particulars, or under a statute. If the claim is for a speci­fied sum of money, the particulars of claim should state the percentage rate of interest claimed and give the computation of interest due as at the date of issue of proceedings together with the daily rate of interest accruing after that date.

(c) If either aggravated or exemplary damages are being claimed, a statement to that effect, together with the grounds on which they are claimed.

(d) If provisional damages are being claimed in a personal injury case, a statement to that effect, together with the grounds on which they are claimed.

(e) If the claim is to enforce a right to recover possession of goods, a statement showing the value of the goods.

(f) If the claim is based upon a written agreement, a copy of the contract or contrac­tual documents must be attached to or served with the particulars of claim.

(g) If the claim is based upon an oral agreement or an agreement by conduct, full particulars of the words spoken or the conduct relied upon.

There are a number of other specific matters raised by Part 16 which must be dealt with if the case concerns them. These include:

(a) allegations of fraud;

(b) illegality;

(c) misrepresentation;

(d) breach of trust;

(e) notice or knowledge of the fact;

(f) details of unsoundness of mind or undue influence;

(g) willful default;

(h) any facts relating to mitigation of loss or damage.

In addition, there are specialised requirements in a number of other claims for information which must be supplied. Reference to PD 16 should be made in such cases. The most important of these, however, relates to personal injury claims in which there are specific matters to be included in the particulars of claim or served with it. In particular:

(a) The claimant's date of birth.

(b) Brief details of the personal injuries.

(c) A schedule of details of any past and future expenses and losses claimed.

(d) A report from a doctor about the injuries must be attached if the claimant b relying on a doctor's evidence.

(e) A statement claiming provisional damages (if applicable), together with a state­ment that there is a chance that in the future the claimant may develop some serious disease or deterioration and specify what that is.