The overriding objective of these Rules is to secure that the Court is accessible, fair and efficient.

The Court must interpret and apply these Rules with a view to securing that the Court is accessible, fair and efficient and that unnecessary disputes over procedural matters are discouraged.

In these Rules—

In these Rules, except where the context otherwise requires—

References in these Rules to a practice direction mean a practice direction issued by the President of the Court.

References in these Rules or in any form to a party’s signing, filing or serving any document or taking any other procedural step include the signature, filing or service of that document or the taking of such other procedural step by the party’s solicitor.

Where any of these Rules or any practice direction requires a document to be signed, that requirement is satisfied if the signature is printed by computer or other mechanical means.

Where these Rules require or permit the Court to perform an act of a formal or administrative character, that act may be performed by a court officer.

A person who wishes to participate in an appeal as a party and who is legally represented by a solicitor or counsel must be a portal party in respect of that appeal.

A party who is not legally represented may be a portal party or a non-portal party.

A party who is or becomes a portal party at any stage of an appeal must remain a portal party until that appeal is finally disposed of, unless permitted to become a non-portal party by the Registrar.

A party who is a non-portal party at the start of an appeal but who becomes a portal party during the course of the appeal must notify the other parties to the appeal of that fact via the portal.

Orders issued in the portal are sealed with an electronic seal.

In these Rules, a form means a form set out in a practice direction and a reference to the “appropriate form” means the form provided by the relevant practice direction for any particular case.

The forms must be used in the cases to which they apply, and in the circumstances for which they are provided by the relevant practice direction, but a form may be varied by the Court or a party if the variation is required by the circumstances of a particular case.

Where appropriate, the Registrar shall notify the parties when a time limit is varied under this rule.

Where a party to a proposed appeal has applied for public funding and the Registrar is informed of the application, the Registrar may extend the time limits provided for in these rules until after the final determination of the application for public funding, having regard in particular to the promptness with which the party has made and the manner in which the party has pursued that application.

Documents shall be filed in the Registry by portal and non-portal parties in accordance with this rule.

Save where otherwise expressly provided for by these rules, a portal party must file all documents via the portal in accordance with the relevant practice direction.

A document filed by personal delivery or by electronic means is treated as filed on the day it is delivered or sent electronically. A document filed by a tracked delivery service is treated as filed on the day on which it is delivered to the addressee, according to the notification provided by the service to the sender.

Where the postal address of a non-portal party on whom a document is to be served is unknown, the Registrar may direct that service is effected by an alternative method of service.

A certificate of service by a non-portal party is a certificate giving details of the persons served, and the method of service used, and must state the date on which the document was served personally, delivered to the addressee by the tracked delivery service or sent electronically, as the case may be.

A document served by personal delivery or by electronic means is treated as served on the day it is delivered or sent electronically. A document served by a tracked delivery service is treated as served on the day on which it is delivered to the addressee, according to the notification provided by the service to the sender.

Non-portal service must take place within 7 days of filing the document or of the document being issued by the Court, whichever is the later, subject to any direction to the contrary by the Registrar.

Save as provided for in paragraph (3), after the person has taken the step referred to in paragraph (1), all communications between that party and the Court must be made via the portal using the public channel which enables all other portal parties participating in the application or appeal to view the communication via the portal.

Any communication made via the portal using the confidential channel must state clearly why it is being sent via that channel.

Where a non-portal party is a party to the proceedings, all parties must communicate with the Court and with the other parties in accordance with the relevant practice direction.

Any failure by a party to comply with these Rules or any relevant practice direction does not have the effect of making the proceedings invalid.

Where any provision in these Rules or any relevant practice direction is not complied with, the Court may give whatever directions appear appropriate, having regard to the seriousness of the nom-compliance and generally to the circumstances of the case.

In particular, the Registrar may refuse to accept any document which does not comply with any provision in these Rules or any relevant practice direction and may give whatever directions appear appropriate.

Directions given under this rule may include the summary dismissal of an appeal or debarring a respondent from resisting an appeal.

Where under these Rules any matter falls to be decided by a single Justice, that Justice may, where it appears appropriate, direct an oral hearing or may refer the matter to a panel of Justices to be decided with or without an oral hearing.

A party may apply for any decision of the Registrar under these Rules to be reviewed by a single Justice (in which case paragraphs (1) and (3) apply in relation to the Justice) and any application under this rule must be filed within 14 days of the Registrar’s decision.

Subject to rule 30, oral hearings on procedural matters must be heard in open court or in a place to which the public are admitted.

If any procedural question arises which is not dealt with by these Rules, the Court or the Registrar may adopt any procedure that is consistent with the overriding objective, the Act and these Rules.

An application for permission to appeal must be made first to the court below, and an application may be made to the Court only after the court below has refused to grant permission to appeal.

Subject to any enactment which makes special provision with regard to any particular category of appeal, an application for permission to appeal must be filed within 28 days from the date of the order of the court below refusing permission to appeal.

Where an application for permission to appeal is filed by a portal party in accordance with rule 7(2), that party must upload to the portal the documents listed in paragraph (4).

Where an application for permission to appeal is filed by a non-portal party in accordance with rule 7(3), it must be accompanied by the documents listed in paragraph (4).

The Registrar must notify the appellant of any request made for submissions to another proposed party and must provide the appellant with a copy of any submissions received.

Subject to paragraph (5), the Court shall issue the application for permission and shall direct the appellant to serve the application.

Once an application for permission to appeal has been issued by the Court and the Registrar has directed the appellant to serve the application, it must be served in accordance with this rule.

All portal and non-portal parties must serve the application (but not the documents listed in rule 13(4)) by way of non-portal service (regardless of whether the person to be served is a portal party or a non-portal party) in accordance with rule 8(3) and (4).

Each respondent who wishes to object to the application for permission to appeal must, within 14 days after being served with the application, file notice of objection setting out any submissions the respondent wishes to make including any submissions as to the jurisdiction of the Court to grant permission.

The notice of objection shall be issued by the Court either in the portal or by being approved by the Court as the case may be.

A respondent who does not file and serve a notice of objection under this rule will not be permitted to participate in the application and will not be given notice of its progress.

Any submissions which are filed and served shall be referred to the panel of Justices which considers the application for permission to appeal.

Every issued application for permission to appeal (together with any submissions made under rule 16 and any respondent’s notice of objection) shall be considered without a hearing by a panel of Justices.

Where the panel of Justices has invited the parties’ submissions as to terms, it shall reconsider the application without a hearing and may refuse permission or grant permission (either unconditionally or on terms) to advance all or any of the grounds of appeal.

Where the panel of Justices grants permission to advance limited grounds of appeal it shall (unless it directs otherwise) be taken to have refused permission to advance the other grounds.

An order of the Court shall be prepared and sealed by the Registrar to record any decision made under this rule.

Any person who is notified under paragraph (6)(a)(iii) or (b) or under rule 18(2) of an order granting permission and who wishes to intervene in the appeal must make an application under rule 24.

Where the panel of Justices has directed an oral hearing, the appellant and every respondent who has given notice under rule 15 shall be informed of the date of the oral hearing.

An order of the Court shall be prepared by the Registrar to record any decision made under this rule. The order must be notified in accordance with rule 17(6).

An appellant who files a notice to proceed under paragraph (1)(c) must serve that notice on each respondent and on any person who was an intervener in the court below.

An appellant who is a non-portal party must file a certificate of service in accordance with rule 8(5).

This rule and rule 21 apply to appeals where permission to appeal has been granted by the court below or where there is an appeal as of right to the Court.

The Court shall issue the notice of appeal and direct the appellant to serve the notice.

Once a notice of appeal has been issued by the Court and the Registry has directed the appellant to serve the notice, the notice of appeal must be served by the appellant in accordance with this rule.

All portal and non-portal parties must serve the notice (but not the documents listed in rule 20(4)) by way of non-portal service, regardless of whether the person to be served is a portal party or a non-portal party, in accordance with rule 8(3) and (4).

Each respondent who intends to participate in the appeal must file notice of intention to participate.

A respondent who wishes to argue that the order appealed from should be upheld on grounds different from those relied on by the court below, must state that clearly in the notice of acknowledgment (but need not cross-appeal).

Each respondent must within 7 days of filing the notice under paragraph (1) serve that notice on the appellant and any other respondent.

A respondent who does not file and serve notice under this rule will not be permitted to participate in the appeal and will not be given notice of its progress.

Subject to paragraph (2) below, a respondent who wishes to argue that the order appealed from should be varied must obtain permission to cross-appeal from the Court and must pay the appropriate fee.

An application to the Court for permission to cross appeal must be filed by the respondent within 14 days of the respondent filing a notice of acknowledgment under rule 22(1).

Part 3 of these Rules applies (with appropriate modifications) to an application to the Court for permission to cross-appeal and (if practicable) applications for permission to appeal and to cross-appeal shall be considered together by the same panel of Justices.

An application under this rule must be filed via the portal.

Every person who is granted permission to intervene under paragraph (3) or who wishes to intervene under paragraph (4) must seek directions from the Registrar as soon as reasonably practicable to enable that person to participate in the appeal.

This rule applies where the Court is considering proceedings in which a party is arguing that the Court should depart from assimilated case law.

Notice under paragraph (4) may be given at any time during the proceedings.

Where the Court receives notice under paragraph (4), the Registrar shall serve that notice on the parties and give directions as to the intervention.

Expressions used in this rule have the same meaning as in section 6C of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, and references to “assimilated case law” include references to “retained case law” so far as necessary.

Within 28 days of either the filing of the notice of intention to proceed under rule 19(1)(c) or the issue of the notice of appeal under rule 20(5), the Registry will contact the parties seeking the information listed in paragraph (2) and such further information as the Registrar considers appropriate.

Following receipt of the information in paragraph (2), the Registrar shall inform the parties of the period within which the hearing will take place and the number of Justices who will be sitting on the panel to hear the case. The parties must then provide the Registrar with an agreed list of dates which are convenient for the parties.

Within 112 days after the filing of the notice of intention to proceed under rule 19(1)(c) or the issue of the notice of appeal under rule 20(5), the appellant must file a statement of the relevant facts and issues, the contents of which have been agreed with every respondent.

The statement of facts and issues must be served by the appellant on every intervener after being filed.

The appellant and every respondent (and any intervener and advocate to the Court) must then file their respective written cases and serve them on the other parties, in accordance with the practice direction.

Where there is more than one respondent, any respondent claiming to have a separate interest may (at that respondent’s own risk as to costs) file and serve a separate case.

An intervener may not include in its written case any submissions on an issue which is not an issue raised in the notice of appeal or cross-appeal for which permission has been granted, or in the respondent’s notice of acknowledgement.

As soon as the parties’ cases have been exchanged the appellant must prepare, in accordance with the practice direction, a key documents bundle, including an index for use at the hearing, taking into account any grouping of appeals pursuant to rule 35.

Every contested appeal shall be heard in open court except where it is necessary in the interests of justice or in the public interest to sit in private for all or part of an appeal hearing.

Where the Court considers it necessary for a party and that party’s representative to be excluded from a hearing or part of a hearing in order to secure that information is not disclosed contrary to the public interest, the Court must conduct the hearing, or that part of it from which the party and the representative are excluded, in private but the Court may exclude a party and any representative only if a person who has been appointed as a special advocate to represent the interests of that party is present when the party and the representative are excluded.

Where the Court decides it is necessary for the Court to sit in private, it shall announce its reasons for so doing publicly before the hearing begins.

An order of the Court may be enforced in the same manner as an order of the court below or of the appropriate superior court.

Every order of the Court must be prepared and sealed by the Registrar and must state the date on which it is made and comes into effect. The Registrar may invite written submissions as to the form of the order.

Every procedural application must be filed via the portal by a portal party or in the appropriate form for general procedural applications by a non-portal party unless a particular form is provided for a specific application.

Once an application has been filed, it must be served on every other party.

A party who wishes to oppose an application must, within 7 days after service, file a notice of objection and must serve a copy of that notice on the applicant and any other parties.

An application for permission to appeal, a notice of appeal or any other document filed under these Rules may be amended on application under this rule or with the permission of the Registrar on such terms as appear appropriate, and the Registrar may invite the parties’ written submissions on any application to amend.

Any request for urgent consideration of an application for permission to appeal or for an expedited hearing must be made to the Registrar.

Wherever possible the views of all parties should be obtained before such a request is made.

An application for permission to appeal or a notice of appeal may be withdrawn with the written consent of all parties or with the permission of the Court on such terms as appear appropriate.

The Court may set aside or vary the order appealed from by consent and without an oral hearing if satisfied that it is appropriate so to do.

In this rule an “application for permission to appeal” includes an application to cross-appeal under rule 23 and a “notice of appeal” includes a notice of cross-appeal.

The Court may request a law officer to appoint, or may itself appoint, an advocate to the Court to assist the Court with legal submissions.

In accordance with section 44 of the Act the Court may, at the request of the parties or of its own initiative, appoint one or more independent specially qualified advisers to assist the Court as assessors on any technical matter.

The fees and expenses of any advocate to the Court or assessor will be costs in the appeal.

An order made under this rule may require payment of the judgment debt (and costs) in the court below instead of, or in addition to, the amount ordered by way of security for costs.

If a party for whom a solicitor is acting wishes to change solicitors, that party or the new solicitor must notify the Registrar and the former solicitor of the change.

Until such notices are given the former solicitor shall continue to be treated as the party’s solicitor.

All documents filed become the property of the Court and may be inspected by the media or members of the public on application to the Registrar but the Registrar may refuse an application for reasons of commercial confidentiality or national security or in the public interest.

In each appeal or reference to the Court, the published documents will be made available to the public via the Court’s website.

A party who objects to the publication on the website of all or part of any published document must apply to the Registrar as soon as possible and, in any event, not later than 42 days before the hearing for a direction that the document should not be published or that it should be published subject to redactions proposed in a copy of the relevant document attached to the application.

The Registrar will decide whether the proposed withholding or redactions are necessary for reasons of commercial confidentiality, national security or otherwise in the public interest.

Subject to the determination of any application made under paragraph (3) the published documents will be placed on the Court’s website not later than 7 days before the hearing.

Any hard copy documents provided to the Court may be destroyed following the disposal of the appeal unless the Registrar (on a written application made within 21 days of the end of the proceedings) directs otherwise.

Where an appeal raises a question of incompatibility under section 4 of the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Crown is not already a party to the appeal, the Registrar must give 21 days’ notice of the question to the Crown.

If notice is given that the Crown wishes to be joined, the appropriate Minister or other person shall be joined accordingly.

A reference must state the question or issue to be decided by the Court.

In this rule, the “UNCRC Incorporation Act” means the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Act 2024.

Where on an application for permission to appeal, a panel of Justices decides to make a reference to the Court of Justice of the European Union before determining the application, it shall give consequential directions as to the form of the reference and the staying of the application (but it may if it thinks fit dispose of other parts of the application at once).

Where at or before the hearing of an appeal the Court decides to make a reference to the Court of Justice of the European Union it shall give consequential directions as to the form of the reference and the staying of the appeal (but it may if it thinks fit dispose of other parts of the appeal at once).

An order of the Court must be prepared and sealed by the Registrar to record any decision made under this rule.

A reference under section 6A of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 is made when a court or tribunal (other than a higher court) sends the reference to the Court.

Any person referred to in paragraph (3) may make written submissions to the Court as to whether the Court should accept the reference.

Every reference made under paragraph (1), together with any submissions made under paragraph (4) or under rule 47, shall be considered without a hearing by a panel of Justices.

The Registrar must prepare and seal an order of the Court to record any decision accepting or refusing a reference made under this rule.

Expressions used in this rule have the same meaning as in the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and references to “assimilated case law” include references to “retained case law” so far as necessary.

Any person, and in particular any official body or non-governmental organisation seeking to make submissions in the public interest, may make written submissions to the Court as to whether the Court should accept a reference under section 6A of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and request that the Court takes them into account.

Any submissions made under paragraph (1) must be filed with the Court and served on the referring court or tribunal and each of the persons referred to in rule 46(3).

Any submissions made under this rule shall be referred to the panel of Justices which considers the reference.

A reference under section 6B of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 is made when a law officer files the reference with the Court.

Once the law officer has filed the reference with the Court, he or she must serve the reference on each of the other law officers.

On any appeal under sections 12 and 13 of the Administration of Justice Act 1969 from an order for revocation of a patent, the appellant must serve notice of the appeal on the Comptroller-General, Intellectual Property Office (“the Comptroller”) as well as on every respondent.

A respondent who decides not to oppose the appeal must serve notice of that decision on the Comptroller together with the relevant statements of case.

The Comptroller must within 14 days serve on the appellant and file a notice stating whether or not the Comptroller intends to appear on the appeal.

Where notice is given under paragraph (3), the Comptroller may appear on the appeal.

The Court may make such orders as it considers just in respect of the costs of any appeal, application for permission to appeal, or other application to or proceeding before the Court.

The Court’s powers to make orders for costs may be exercised either at the final determination of an appeal or application for permission to appeal or in the course of the proceedings.

Orders for costs will not normally be made either in favour of or against interveners but such orders may be made if the Court considers it just to do so (in particular if an intervener has in substance acted as the sole or principal appellant or respondent).

A party who wishes to make submissions as to costs should notify the Court of this either before or after judgment.

Where the Court has made an order for costs, the claim for costs must be submitted to the Registrar within three months beginning with the date on which the costs order was made.

The claim for costs must comply with the relevant practice direction and the receiving party must supply such further particulars, information and documents as the Registrar may direct.

The receiving party must serve the claim for costs on the paying party.

Within 21 days beginning with the day on which a claim for costs is served, the paying party may (or, in the circumstances specified in the relevant practice direction, must) file points of dispute and, if so, must serve them on the receiving party.

Within 14 days beginning with the day on which points of dispute are served, the receiving party may file a response and, if so, must serve it on the paying party.

Every detailed assessment of costs shall be carried out by one or more costs assessors.

The receiving party and the paying party will, where appropriate, be notified by the costs assessor of the date of the assessment.

Where one of the parties so requests or in the circumstances specified in the relevant practice direction, the costs assessor may make a provisional assessment of costs without the attendance of the parties.

The costs assessor must notify the parties of the outcome of a provisional assessment and, if a party is dissatisfied with the outcome and points of disagreement cannot be resolved in correspondence, the costs officer must appoint a date for an oral hearing.

Any request for an oral hearing following a provisional assessment of costs must be made within 14 days of the receipt of the decision on the assessment.

In this rule a “costs assessor” means a costs officer, a Costs Judge (a Taxing Master of the Senior Courts) who has been appointed as a costs officer and the Registrar.

Where the Court makes an order about costs without indicating the basis on which the costs are to be assessed, the costs shall be assessed on the standard basis.

This rule applies subject to any order or direction to the contrary.

Costs assessed on the standard basis are allowed only if they are proportionate to the matters in issue and are reasonably incurred and reasonable in amount.

Any doubt as to whether costs assessed on the standard basis are reasonably incurred and are reasonable and proportionate in amount shall be resolved in favour of the paying party.

Costs assessed on the indemnity basis are allowed only if they are reasonably incurred and reasonable in amount.

Any doubt as to whether costs assessed on the indemnity basis are reasonably incurred and are reasonable in amount shall be resolved in favour of the receiving party.

A party who is dissatisfied with the assessment of costs made at an oral hearing may apply for that decision to be reviewed by a single Justice and any application under this rule must be made in the appropriate form and be filed within 14 days of the decision.

The single Justice may (without an oral hearing) affirm the decision made on the assessment or may, where it appears appropriate, refer the matter to a panel of Justices to be decided with or without an oral hearing.

An application may be made under this rule only on a question of principle and not in respect of the amount allowed on any item in the claim for costs.

Subject to paragraph (1), the 2009 Rules are revoked.