The importance of being heard

Stories of unrepresented litigants in small claims cases and private family proceedings

Abstract

The article explores narrativisation practices in small claims cases and
private family proceedings, focusing predominantly on cases where at least one
of the parties is not represented by a lawyer. By drawing on the data collected
during court observations and analysed using the ethnography of communication
as the main methodological framework, the study identifies narrative genres
across different stages of legal proceedings and illustrates communication barriers
experienced by lay court users. The discussion focuses on how formalised narrative
genres and the staggered presentation of narratives impact the degree to which
court users can use their voice. The article also links the notion of voice projection
to procedural justice and suggests that the main narratives should be elicited
sooner as part of an open narrative strategy to ensure the court users’ voices are
heard by the judiciary in the initial stages of the proceedings.