A Court Appearance

I have, on many occasions, attended this court, giving evidence in court cases for my former employer.  Even so it is more than 20 years since I last walked into the building.

We dutifully rolled up this morning for a full day appeal against a notice we served back in July.  The notice, requiring a home owner to stop the noise of cockerels she keeps in her back garden, is one of only a handful we serve each year.  A far cry from my previous employer, where typically over 200 would be served each year.

We sat and waited, and waited, and.............!

Our solicitor came out to tell us that despite the case being listed for a full day, the court had decided to list another couple of trials for the same day in the same court.  To make matters worse, one of the magistrates could only sit for the morning!  And they hadn't read the evidence bundle!  There were 14 people listed to give evidence, all waiting (im)patiently (by this time) for the appeal to start.  In the end it was adjourned until January, a waste of a lot of people's time.

You had to feel for everyone involved, but mostly for the complainants who must endure the noise for another month before knowing what the court will decide.