Nicholas Bevan considers the changes to PT36 in his second article on the 44th update to the CPR
The Civil Procedure (Amendment No 3) Rules 2006 (SI 2006/3435) introduce two completely re-written sections to the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR). Parts 36 and 37 come into effect on 6 April 2007. They replace the existing rules governing offers and payments into court. An important objective behind this reform is to simplify the provisions for making Pt 36 offers. Offers to settle are governed by the new Pt 36. The new Pt 37 has nothing to do with offers to settle. It is short and limited to regulating payments into court under a court order or where a defendant wishes to raise a defence of tender.
The Advanced Guidance Notice issued by the Department for Constitutional Affairs sets out the principles underlying the reform of Pts 36 and 37:
“[They] are amended to incorporate provisions for removing the requirement for defendants to make an offer to settle money claims in the form of a payment into court.
