Blackstone's Civil Practice 2023

When I was a trainee in the civil litigation department, I came across various books providing detailed commentary on the Civil Procedure Rules – and I had heard about Blackstone’s Civil Practice in all its glory. At the same time, I had read comments such as ‘books like these are not required as the Civil Procedure Rules are all online’. While that is true, what I found I needed was detailed analysis and commentary that the .gov website does not provide.

Expertly written, the book is more than just guidance for newcomers to law, or even seasoned practitioners. It consists of over 2,200 pages of detailed commentary in a narrative style on the process of civil litigation. It addresses civil procedure in the county court, the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. It also includes detailed analysis of commencing a claim, through to the enforcement of judgments, while encompassing specialist areas such as insolvency proceedings.

Take electronic signatures as an example, or the section in the book titled ‘mechanically reproduced signatures’. During the pandemic, many firms had to adopt and adapt to the insertion of electronic signatures in various pleadings and forms. However, this did not stop some opposing parties arguing that the signature/s inserted in a Statement of Truth in the N1 Claim Form, or elsewhere, were not acceptable and did not comply with the CPR. The commentary in the book offers further guidance on when it is good practice, how the document containing the electronic signature is interpreted as ‘signed’, when it is accepted and/or rejected, and provides authority on when CPR 22.1(6) has been complied with.

As a practitioner, and I am sure many readers will agree, I am always in a rush and sometimes a quick guide is required when searching for an answer. This book includes procedural checklists and a quick-reference guide, allowing the user to access the information they need quickly.

Fast forward to 2023, and having been in practice for several years, I can confidently say that the contents of this book have lived up to its reputation.

Zainab Zaeem (née Zaeem-Sattar) is a solicitor at Runnymede Law, London