CIVIL PROCEDURE — Cause of Action — Reasonable Cause of Action — Meaning and Test for Determining

This principle elaborates on the test for a reasonable cause of action. The court looks at the statement of claim and asks whether, assuming the facts pleaded are true, the plaintiff has a legally recognizable claim. The claim need not be strong or certain to succeed; it only needs “some chance of success.” It is only where the claim is plainly hopeless and bound to fail that it should be struck out. The court does not weigh evidence or consider the defence. The principle strikes a balance between the plaintiff’s right to access justice and the court’s duty to weed out frivolous claims.