# Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1907, Paragraph 36.G1: Allocation of diets and timetables

Extent: S

(1) The sheriff clerk shall, on the lodging of defences in the action or, where there is more than one defender, the first lodging of defences—
(a) allocate a diet of proof of the action, which shall be no earlier than 4 months (unless the sheriff on cause shown directs an earlier diet to be fixed) and no later than 9 months from the date of the first lodging of defences; and
(b) issue a timetable stating—
(i) the date of the diet mentioned in subparagraph (a); and
(ii) the dates no later than which the procedural steps mentioned in paragraph (1A) are to take place.
(1A) Those procedural steps are—
(a) application for a third party notice under rule 20.1;
(b) the pursuer serving a commission for recovery of documents under rule 36.D1;
(c) the parties adjusting their pleadings;
(d) the pursuer lodging a statement of valuation of claim in process;
(e) the pursuer lodging a record;
(f) the defender (and any third party to the action) lodging a statement of valuation of claim in process;
(g) the parties each lodging in process a list of witnesses together with any productions upon which they wish to rely; and
(h) the pursuer lodging in process the minute of the pre-trial meeting.
(1B) The dates mentioned in paragraph (1)(b)(ii) are to be calculated by reference to periods specified in Appendix 3, which, with the exception of the period specified in rule 36.K1(2), the sheriff principal may vary for his sheriffdom or for any court within his sheriffdom.
(2) A timetable issued under paragraph (1)(b) shall be in Form PI5 and shall be treated for all purposes as an interlocutor signed by the sheriff; and so far as the timetable is inconsistent with any provision in these Rules which relates to a matter to which the timetable relates, the timetable shall prevail.
(3) Where a party fails to comply with any requirement of a timetable other than that referred to in ... rule 36.K1(3), the sheriff clerk may fix a date and time for the parties to be heard by the sheriff.
(4) The pursuer shall lodge a certified copy of the record, which shall consist of the pleadings of the parties, in process by the date specified in the timetable and shall at the same time send one copy to the defender and any other parties.
(5) The pursuer shall, on lodging the certified copy of the record as required by paragraph (4), apply by motion to the sheriff, craving the court—
(a) to allow to parties a preliminary proof on specified matters;
(b) to allow a proof; or
(ba) to allow a jury trial;
(c) to make some other specified order.
(6) The motion lodged under paragraph (5) must specify the anticipated length of the preliminary proof, proof, or jury trial, as the case may be.
(7) In the event that any party proposes to crave the court to make any order other than an order allowing a proof under paragraph (5)(b) or a jury trial under paragraph (5)(ba), that party shall, on making or opposing (as the case may be) the pursuer’s motion, specify the order to be sought and give full notice in the motion or the notice of opposition thereto of the grounds thereof.
(8) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(8A) A party who seeks to rely on the evidence of a person not on his or her list lodged in accordance with paragraph (1A)(g) must, if any other party objects to such evidence being admitted, seek leave of the sheriff to admit that evidence whether it is to be given orally or not; and such leave may be granted on such conditions, if any, as the sheriff thinks fit.
(8B) The list of witnesses intimated in accordance with paragraph (1A)(g) must include the name, occupation (where known) and address of each intended witness and indicate whether the witness is considered to be a vulnerable witness within the meaning of section 11(1) of the Act of 2004 and whether any child witness notice or vulnerable witness application has been lodged in respect of that witness.
(9) A production which is not lodged in accordance with paragraph (1A)(g) shall not be used or put in evidence at proof unless—
(a) by consent of parties; or
(b) with the leave of the sheriff on cause shown and on such conditions, if any, as to expenses or otherwise as the court thinks fit.
(10) In a cause which is one of a number of causes arising out of the same cause of action, the sheriff may—
(a) on the motion of a party to that cause; and
(b) after hearing parties to all those causes,
appoint that cause or any part of those causes to be the leading cause and to sist the other causes pending the determination of the leading cause.
(11) In this rule, “pursuer” includes additional pursuer or minuter as the case may be.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Edw7/7/51/schedule/1/paragraph/36.G1 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/sheriff-courts-scotland-act-1907/schedule-1/paragraph-36.G1
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.