Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to help individuals or companies correct County Court records which wrongly indicate that they have a judgment against them without incurring costs.

If an individual or company believes that a County Court judgment has been wrongly made against them, they can apply to the court to have the judgment set aside. The Civil Procedure Rules govern court processes and Part 13 sets out the procedure for setting aside or varying a judgment which was entered without a court hearing.

An application to set aside a County Court Judgment attracts a fee. Help with paying fees is available to individuals under the Help with Fees scheme. Those who qualify may have their fees remitted in part or in full, depending on their financial means.

If the application is successful, the defendant can also apply to the court to recover his or her costs including any court fees incurred.