CPR Part 35: medico-legal reports explained
CPR Part 35 governs expert evidence in civil claims in England and Wales, and its central rule is that the expert's overriding duty is to the court. This guide explains what a Part 35 report must contain, the main report types, Part 35 questions, the Single Joint Expert and joint statements. Expert Medical is a MedCo registered MRO; we provide medical evidence, not legal advice.
What is CPR Part 35?
CPR Part 35 is the part of the Civil Procedure Rules that governs expert evidence in civil claims in England and Wales.
Its central rule, CPR 35.3, is that an expert's overriding duty is to help the court on matters within their expertise, and that this duty overrides any obligation to the person who instructed or is paying them. Practice Direction 35 (PD35) then sets out what a report must contain, including the declaration of duty and the statement of truth.
Part 35 also controls how expert evidence is used: a party needs the court's permission to rely on an expert under CPR 35.4, written questions can be put to an expert under CPR 35.6, and the court can direct a single joint expert or a discussion between experts. Expert Medical prepares medico-legal reports to these standards; we provide medical evidence, not legal advice.
What a CPR Part 35 report should include
Practice Direction 35 sets a defined structure. A compliant report should:
- 01The expert's qualifications and relevant experience.
- 02The substance of the instructions received, and the material facts and assumptions relied on.
- 03The literature or any other material the expert has relied on in making the report.
- 04Which tests or examinations were carried out, and, where carried out by someone else under the expert's supervision, that person's qualifications.
- 05The reasoned opinion on diagnosis, causation and prognosis.
- 06Any range of professional opinion, and the reasons for the expert's own view.
- 07Where the expert cannot give an opinion without qualification, a statement to that effect.
- 08A summary of the conclusions.
- 09A statement that the expert understands and has complied with their duty to the court.
- 10A signed statement of truth in the form required by the rules.
The declaration of duty and the statement of truth are not formalities. They are what mark the document out as expert evidence prepared for the court, rather than a private medical letter.
Types of medico-legal report
The report a claim needs depends on the issues in dispute. The main types prepared to CPR Part 35 are:
Condition and prognosis report
The most common report in personal injury claims. It sets out the injury, its cause, the current effect and the likely recovery or long-term outlook.
Liability and causation report
Used more in clinical negligence. It additionally addresses whether care fell below a reasonable standard, and whether that failing caused the harm.
Addendum report
A supplementary report prepared after the original, to take account of new records, further examination, a change in condition, or the other side's evidence.
We match each instruction to an expert in the right specialism. See our medico-legal reports and expert medical report pages for how a report is prepared.
Part 35 questions
Under CPR 35.6, a party may put written questions to an expert about their report. The questions must normally be put within 28 days of service of the report, once only, and only to clarify it, unless the court gives permission or the other party agrees. The expert's written answers are treated as part of the report.
The court controls how questions are used and who bears the cost of answering them. Our experts respond to properly framed Part 35 questions within the timescales the case requires, keeping the answer within their expertise and their duty to the court.
The Single Joint Expert
A Single Joint Expert (SJE) is one expert instructed jointly by both parties instead of each side instructing its own. Under CPR 35.7 the court can direct that evidence on a particular issue be given by a single joint expert, often to save cost and time in lower-value or less contentious cases.
An SJE owes the same overriding duty to the court and reports impartially to both parties. Where the parties cannot agree joint instructions, each may, where the court permits or directs, give its own instructions to the expert, who then addresses both.
Experts' discussions and joint statements
Where each side has its own expert, the court can order a discussion between them under CPR 35.12. The experts then prepare a joint statement setting out the issues on which they agree and disagree, with brief reasons.
The purpose is to narrow the dispute so the court can focus on what genuinely remains in issue. The content of the discussion is not usually referred to at trial unless the parties agree, and where the experts agree on an issue that agreement does not bind the parties unless they expressly agree to be bound.
Independence, and what makes evidence admissible
Independence is the point of Part 35, not a constraint on it. Because the expert's duty is to the court, the same report can be relied on whichever party instructed it. The opinion has to be objective and unbiased, has to state any range of professional view, and has to set out anything that detracts from the expert's own opinion.
One point is worth being clear about. Preparing a report to CPR Part 35 and Practice Direction 35 makes it compliant and credible. It does not, on its own, make the evidence admissible. Under CPR 35.4 a party needs the court's permission to rely on expert evidence, and admissibility is a matter for the court on the facts of each case.
CPR Part 35 reports from Expert Medical
Expert Medical Examination Ltd is an independent, MedCo registered medical reporting organisation (MRO). Every report is prepared by a clinician on the GMC or HCPC register and written to CPR Part 35 and Practice Direction 35, with the declarations and statement of truth the rules require, and checked for compliance before delivery.
We match each instruction to an expert in the right field, answer Part 35 questions within agreed timescales, and act as a single joint expert where the court so directs. We provide the medical evidence; we do not give legal advice or run the claim.
CPR Part 35: frequently asked questions
What is CPR Part 35?
CPR Part 35 is the part of the Civil Procedure Rules that governs expert evidence in civil claims in England and Wales. It makes the expert's overriding duty a duty to the court, not to the party paying, and sets out how expert evidence is permitted, prepared and used. Practice Direction 35 (PD35) sets the required report content.
What must a CPR Part 35 medical report contain?
Under Practice Direction 35 a report should set out the expert's qualifications, the literature and material relied on, the substance of the instructions, the facts and assumptions, the tests carried out and by whom, the reasoned opinion on diagnosis, causation and prognosis, any range of opinion, a summary, a statement of the duty to the court, and a signed statement of truth.
What is a condition and prognosis report?
A condition and prognosis report is the most common type of medico-legal report in personal injury claims. It sets out the claimant's injuries, how they were caused, their current effect, and the likely recovery or long-term outlook. It is prepared by a suitably qualified expert to CPR Part 35 standards, with the expert's duty owed to the court.
What are Part 35 questions?
Part 35 questions are written questions a party may put to an expert about their report under CPR 35.6. They must normally be put within 28 days of service of the report, once only and to clarify it, unless the court permits otherwise or the other party agrees. The expert's written answers form part of the report.
What is a Single Joint Expert (SJE)?
A Single Joint Expert is one expert instructed jointly by both parties, rather than each side instructing its own. Under CPR 35.7 the court can direct that evidence on an issue be given by a single joint expert, often to save cost and time in lower-value or less contentious cases. The SJE's duty is to the court.
What is a joint statement between experts?
Where each side has its own expert, the court can order a discussion between them under CPR 35.12. The experts then produce a joint statement setting out the issues on which they agree and disagree, with reasons. It narrows the dispute. Where the experts agree on an issue, that agreement does not bind the parties unless they expressly agree to be bound.
What is an addendum report?
An addendum report is a supplementary report an expert prepares after their original report, usually to take account of new records, further examination, a change in the claimant's condition, or the other side's evidence. It is prepared to the same CPR Part 35 standards and forms part of the expert evidence in the case.
Is a CPR Part 35 report automatically admissible in court?
No. Preparing a report to CPR Part 35 and Practice Direction 35 makes it compliant and credible, but it does not make it admissible on its own. Under CPR 35.4 a party needs the court's permission to rely on expert evidence, and admissibility is a matter for the court on the facts of each case.
What is the expert's duty under CPR Part 35?
Under CPR 35.3 an expert's overriding duty is to help the court on matters within their expertise, and that duty overrides any obligation to the person instructing or paying them. In practice this means the opinion must be independent, objective and unbiased, and must state any range of view and anything that detracts from the expert's opinion.
What is the difference between a condition and prognosis report and a liability and causation report?
A condition and prognosis report describes the injury, its cause and the likely recovery, and is common in personal injury claims. A liability and causation report, used more in clinical negligence, additionally addresses whether care fell below a reasonable standard and whether that failing caused the harm. Both are prepared to CPR Part 35 standards.
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