An admission is a statement by a party to civil proceedings which:
- is against the interests of the party making the statement, or
- admits the truth of the whole or any part of another party's case.
Admissions may be made orally, in writing or by conduct.
When an admission is made in a statement of case, the other party may rely on the fact admitted, and is relieved of the burden of proof to formally prove it at the trial.
Admissions may be made two different separate times.
1. Before the Commencement of legal proceedings.
These are usually known as “pre-action admissions”.
They may be made in general correspondence between the parties in pre-action correspondence, whether or not litigation was in contemplation at the time.
Summary judgment may be entered on the strength of pre-action admissions.
They can be made in without prejudice letters and conversations.
2. After the Commencement of litigation
Admissions may be made in writing, by email or in a letter.
They can also be made:
- in the particulars of claim, defence or a counterclaim, and in Further Information and Clarification
Admissions made in statements of case are binding on the party making them.
It can also happen by failing to respond to an allegation of fact set out in a statement of case served by the opposing party - in a witness statement
- in respect to the authenticity of a document. This happens automatically within set time frames unless the party gives notice that the document is to be proved at the trial under CPR 32.19.
- by agreement
- by an advocate at the trial. These may also be called “concessions”.
“Admit” in Statement of Case
In a statement of case, allegations of fact which are true are usually admitted as a matter of course where there:
- can be no contest about the truth of the allegation
- reliable evidence exists that the fact alleged is true. For example, the Register of Companies shows that a company alleged to be formed in England was incorporated in England, or
- is no purpose to not admit or deny the allegation.
Admitting allegations on this basis:
- allows the parties and the court to narrow the issues in litigation to the real issues
- avoids unnecessary escalation of costs and wasting time
- to allow the parties to narrow the issues in litigation to the real issues in dispute. Which is a good thing.
Allegations in a statement of case can also be not admitted, or denied.
Limited Admissions
Parties may admit only part of the allegation.
For example, an allegation may be able to be read in two or more different ways.
In those cases, the party can admit one or more interpretations and exclude all others.
The allegation is likely to be dealt with appropriately when the limited admission is accompanied by an express denial or non-admission (ie not admit) for the “unadmitted” interpretations.
Withdrawal of Admissions
Once an admission is made in court, permission of the court is required to withdraw it. Courts retain a general discretion to permit a party to withdraw admissions.
Prior to allowing a party to do so, a court is likely to:
- assess the prejudice which would be caused to any of the parties.
The court will be interested to hear whether a party has relied on the admission to its own detriment - consider all the circumstances and the Overriding Objective, which applies in all litigation
- unjustified or unexplained delay making the application. Excessive delay is likely to be fatal.
Reliability of Admissions
The circumstances of an admission are likely to affect the weight the Court attributes to an admission and the inferences to be drawn from it.
For instance:
- the admission may have been made by a party labouring under a misapprehension of law or fact or
- made in ignorance of relevant facts.
A court may take the view that it is unlikely that a person in the shoes of the witness would have made the admission in the circumstances in conjunction with other contemporaneous events.
It may also be relevant to consider whether the person had a motive to conceal or misrepresent matters.
Admissions properly made in without prejudice communication are excluded form evidence.