(1) Subject to the provisions of this section and the following provisions of this Part of this Act and to any order made by the Lord Chancellor under section 56(1) of the Access to Justice Act 1999, if any party to any proceedings in the county court is dissatisfied with the determination of a judge or jury, he may appeal from it to the Court of Appeal in such manner and subject to such conditions as may be provided by Civil Procedure Rules.
(1A) Without prejudice to the generality of the power to make rules of court ..., such rules may make provision for any appeal from the exercise by a judge of the county court of any power given to him by virtue of any enactment to be to another judge of the county court .
(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(5) Subject to the provisions of this section and the following provisions of this Part of this Act, where an appeal is brought under subsection (1) in any action, an appeal may be brought under that subsection in respect of any claim or counterclaim in the action notwithstanding that there could have been no such appeal if that claim had been the subject of a separate action.
(6) In proceedings in which either the plaintiff or the defendant is claiming possession of any premises this section shall not confer any right of appeal on any question of fact if by virtue of—
(a) section 13(4) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954; or
(b) Cases III to IX in Schedule 4 to the Rent (Agriculture) Act 1976; or
(c) section 98 of the Rent Act 1977, as it applies to Cases 1 to 6 and 8 and 9 in Schedule 15 to that Act, or that section as extended or applied by any other enactment; or
(d) section 99 of the Rent Act 1977, as it applies to Cases 1 to 6 and 9 in Schedule 15 to that Act; or
(e) section 84(2)(a) of the Housing Act 1985; or
(ee) section 7 of the Housing Act 1988, as it applies to the grounds in Part II of Schedule 2 to that Act; or
(eg) section 209 (breach of contract ground) of the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 (anaw 1); or
(eh) section 210 (estate management grounds) of the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016; or
(f) any other enactment,
the court can only grant possession on being satisfied that it is reasonable to do so.
(7) This section shall not—
(a) confer any right of appeal from any judgment or order where a right of appeal is conferred by some other enactment; or
(b) take away any right of appeal from any judgment or order where a right of appeal is so conferred,
and shall have effect subject to any enactment other than this Act.
(8) In this section—
“enactment” means an enactment whenever passed; . . .
. . .
78 Assistance of Trinity masters for Court of Appeal in Admiralty proceedings.
Where, on an appeal by a party to any Admiralty proceedings which have been heard in the county court with the assistance of assessors, any party makes application to the Court of Appeal in that behalf, the court shall summon Trinity masters to assist on the hearing of the appeal if the court is of opinion that such assistance is necessary or desirable.
(1) No appeal shall lie from any judgment, direction, decision or order of a judge of the county court if, before the judgment, direction, decision or order is given or made, the parties agree, in writing signed by themselves or their legal representativesor agents, that it shall be final.
(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(1) At the hearing of any proceedings in the county court in which there is a right of appeal or from which an appeal may be brought with leave, the judge shall, at the request of any party, make a note—
(a) of any question of law raised at the hearing; and
(b) of the facts in evidence in relation to any such question; and
(c) of his decision on any such question and of his determination of the proceedings.
(2) Where such a note has been taken, the judge shall (whether notice of appeal has been served or not), on the application of any party to the proceedings, and on payment by that party of such fee as may be prescribed by an order under section 92 of the Courts Act 2003 (fees), furnish him with a copy of the note, and shall sign the copy, and the copy so signed shall be used at the hearing of the appeal.
81 Powers of Court of Appeal on appeal from county court.
(1) On the hearing of an appeal, the Court of Appeal may draw any inference of fact and either—
(a) order a new trial on such terms as the court thinks just; or
(b) order judgment to be entered for any party; or
(c) make a final or other order on such terms as the court thinks proper to ensure the determination on the merits of the real question in controversy between the parties.
(2) Subject to Civil Procedure Rules, on any appeal from the county court the Court of Appeal may reverse or vary, in favour of a party seeking to support the judgment or order of the county court in whole or in part, any determinations made in the county court on questions of fact, notwithstanding that the appeal is an appeal on a point of law only, or any such determinations on points of law, notwithstanding that the appeal is an appeal on a question of fact only.
(3) Subsection (2) shall not enable the Court of Appeal to reverse or vary any determination, unless the party dissatisfied with the determination would have been entitled to appeal in respect of it if aggrieved by the judgment or order.
82 Decision of Court of Appeal on probate appeals to be final.
No appeal shall lie from the decision of the Court of Appeal on any appeal from the county court in any proceedings in respect of any contentious matter arising with any grant, or revocation, of probate or administration that under section 105 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 has been applied for through the principal registry of the Family Division or a district probate registry .
83 Stay of proceedings in case of certiorari or prohibition.
(1) The grant by the High Court of leave to make an application for an order of certiorari or prohibition to the county court shall, if the High Court so directs, operate as a stay of the proceedings in question until the determination of the application, or until the High Court otherwise orders.
(2) Where any proceedings are so stayed, ... the county court shall from time to time adjourn the hearing of the proceedings to such day as the court thinks fit.
(1) Where an application is made to the High Court for an order of prohibition addressed to the county court, the matter shall be finally disposed of by order.
(2) Upon any such application, no judge of the county court is to be served with notice of it or, except by the order of a judge of the High Court—
(a) be required to appear or be heard; or
(b) be liable to any order for the payment of the costs of the application;
but the application shall be proceeded with and heard in the same manner in all respects as an appeal duly brought from a decision of a judge of the county court, and notice of the application shall be given to or served upon the same parties as in the case of an order made or refused by a judge of the county court in a matter within his jurisdiction.
85 Execution of judgments or orders for payment of money.
(1) Subject to article 8 of the High Court and County Courts Jurisdiction Order 1991,any sum of money payable under a judgment or order of the county court may be recovered, in case of default or failure of payment, forthwith or at the time or times and in the manner thereby directed, under a warrant under subsection (2).
(2) A judge of the county court, on the application of the party prosecuting any such judgment or order, shall issue a warrant of control whereby any person authorised by or on behalf of the Lord Chancellor is empowered to use the procedure in Schedule 12 to the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 (taking control of goods) to recover the money payable under the judgment or order.
(2A) The person to whom a warrant under subsection (2) must be directed is to be determined in accordance with arrangements made by a person authorised by or on behalf of the Lord Chancellor.
(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(4) It shall be the duty of every constable within his jurisdiction to assist in the execution of every such warrant.
86 Execution of orders for payment by instalments.
(1) Where the court has made an order for payment of any sum of money by instalments, a warrant of control to recover any of that sum shall not be issued until after default in payment of some instalment according to the order.
(2) Rules of court may prescribe the cases in which a warrant of control is to be issued if there is any such default and limit the amounts for which and the times at which a warrant of control may be issued.
(3) Except so far as may be otherwise provided by rules of court made for those purposes, a warrant or successive warrants of control may be issued if there is any such default for the whole of the said sum of money and costs then remaining unpaid or for such part as the court may order either at the time of the original order or at any subsequent time; but except so far as may be otherwise provided by such rules, no warrant of control may be issued unless when it is issued the whole or some part of an instalment which has already become due remains unpaid.
(1) In or upon every warrant of control issued from the county court against the goods of any person, the court shall cause to be inserted or indorsed the total amount to be recovered, inclusive of the fee for issuing the warrant but exclusive of the fees for its execution.
(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
If at any time it appears to the satisfaction of the court that any party to any proceedings is unable from any cause to pay any sum recovered against him (whether by way of satisfaction of the claim or counterclaim in the proceedings or by way of costs or otherwise), or any instalment of such a sum, the court may, in its discretion, stay any execution issued in the proceedings for such time and on such terms as the court thinks fit, and so from time to time until it appears that the cause of inability has ceased.
(1) If any person rescues or attempts to rescue any goods seized in execution under process of the county court , he shall be liable—
(a) on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month or to a fine of an amount not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale, or both; or
(b) on an order made by the county court in that behalf, to be committed for a specified period not exceeding one month to . . . prison . . . or to a fine of an amount not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale or to be so committed and to such a fine.
and an officer of the court may take the offender into custody, with or without warrant, and bring him before the county court .
(2) A judge of the county court may at any time revoke an order committing a person to prison under this section and, if he is already in custody, order his discharge.
(3) This section does not apply in the case of goods seized under Schedule 12 to the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.
(1) This section applies to—
(a) a warrant of control issued under section 85(2);
(b) a warrant of delivery or of possession, but only if it includes a power to take control of and sell goods to recover a sum of money and only for the purposes of exercising that power.
(2) The person to whom the warrant is directed must, as soon as possible after receiving it, endorse it by inserting on the back the date and time when he received it.
(3) No fee may be charged for endorsing a warrant under this section.
(1) If a claim is made to or in respect of any goods seized in execution under process of the county court , or in respect of the proceeds or value of any such goods, the court may, as well before as after any action brought in respect of the claim , issue a summons calling before the court the party at whose instance the process issued and the party making the claim.
(2) Upon the issue of the summons, any action brought in the county court or any other court in respect of the claim or of any damage arising out of the execution of the warrant shall be stayed.
(3) On the hearing of the summons, the court shall adjudicate upon the claim, and shall also adjudicate between the parties or either of them and the person executing the warrant upon any claim to damages arising or capable of arising out of the execution of the warrant ..., and shall make such order in respect of any such claim and the costs of the proceedings as he thinks fit.
(4) This section does not apply in the case of goods seized under Schedule 12 to the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.
104 Information as to writs and warrants of execution.
(1) Where a writ against the goods of any person issued from the High Court is delivered to an enforcement officer who is under a duty to execute the writ or to a sheriff, then on demand from a judge of the county court that person shall—
(a) in the case of an enforcement officer, by writing signed by that officer or a person acting under his authority, and
(b) in the case of a sheriff, by writing signed by any clerk in the office of the under-sheriff,
inform the ... judge of the precise time the writ was delivered to him.
(2) The person to whom a warrant issued by the county court is directed shall on demand show his warrant to any enforcement officer, any person acting under the authority of an enforcement officer and any sheriff’s officer.
(3) Any writing purporting to be signed as mentioned in subsection (1) and the endorsement on any warrant issued from the county court shall respectively be sufficient justification to any ... judge, or enforcement officer or sheriff, acting on it.
(4) In this section “ enforcement officer ” means an individual who is authorised to act as an enforcement officer under the Courts Act 2003.
(1) The power of the county court to appoint a receiver by way of equitable execution shall operate in relation to all legal estates and interests in land.
(2) The said power may be exercised in relation to an estate or interest in land whether or not a charge has been imposed on that land under section 1 of the Charging Orders Act 1979 for the purpose of enforcing the judgment, decree, order or award in question, and the said power shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any power of any court to appoint a receiver in proceedings for enforcing such a charge.
(3) Where an order under section 1 of the Charging Orders Act 1979 imposing a charge for the purpose of enforcing a judgment, decree, order or award has been registered under section 6 of the Land Charges Act 1972, subsection (4) of that section (which provides that, amongst other things, an order appointing a receiver and any proceedings pursuant to the order or in obedience to it, shall be void against a purchaser unless the order is for the time being registered under that section) shall not apply to an order appointing a receiver made either in proceedings for enforcing the charge or by way of equitable execution of the judgment, decree, order or award or, as the case may be, of so much of it as requires payment of moneys secured by the charge.
(1) Subject to any order for the time being in force under subsection (4), this section applies to any deposit account, and any withdrawable share account, with a deposit-taker.
(2) In determining whether, for the purposes of the jurisdiction of the county court to attach debts for the purpose of satisfying judgments or orders for the payment of money, a sum standing to the credit of a person in an account to which this section applies is a sum due or accruing to that person and, as such, attachable in accordance with rules of court, any condition mentioned in subsection (3) which applies to the account shall be disregarded.
(3) Those conditions are—
(a) any condition that notice is required before any money or share is withdrawn;
(b) any condition that a personal application must be made before any money or share is withdrawn;
(c) any condition that a deposit book or share-account book must be produced before any money or share is withdrawn; or
(d) any other prescribed condition.
(4) The Lord Chancellor may by order make such provision as he think fit, by way of amendment of this section or otherwise, for all or any of the following purposes, namely—
(a) including in, or excluding from, the accounts to which this section applies accounts of any description specified in the order;
(b) excluding from the accounts to which this section applies all accounts with any particular deposit-taker so specified or with any deposit-taker of a description so specified.
(5) An order under subsection (4) shall be made by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
109 Administrative and clerical expenses of garnishees.
(1) Where an interim third party debt order made in the exercise of the jurisdiction mentioned in subsection (2) of the preceding section is served on a deposit-taker, it may, subject to the provisions of this section, deduct from the relevant debt or debts an amount not exceeding the prescribed sum towards its administrative and clerical expenses of the institution in complying with the order; and the right . . . to make a deduction under this subsection shall be exercisable as from the time the interim third party debt order is served on it.
(1A) In subsection (1) “ the relevant debt or debts ”, in relation to an interim third party debt order served on a deposit-taker , means the amount, as at the time the order is served on it , of the debt or debts of which the whole or a part is expressed to be attached by the order.
(1B) A deduction may be made under subsection (1) in a case where the amount referred to in subsection (1A) is insufficient to cover both the amount of the deduction and the amount of the judgment debt and costs in respect of which the attachment was made, notwithstanding that the benefit of the attachment to the creditor is reduced as a result of the deduction.
(2) An amount may not in pursuance of subsection (1)be deducted or, as the case may be, retained in a case where by virtue of section 346 of the Insolvency Act 1986or section 325 of the Companies Act 1948 or otherwise, the creditor is not entitled to retain the benefit of the attachment.
(3) In this section “prescribed” means prescribed by an order made by the Lord Chancellor.
(4) An order under this section—
(a) may make different provision for different cases; . . .
(b) without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (a) may prescribe sums differing according to the amount due under the judgment or order to be satisfied.
(c) may provide for this section not to apply to deposit-taker of any prescribed description.
(5) Any such order shall be made by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
110 Penalty for non-attendance on judgment summons.
(1) If a debtor summoned to attend the county court by a judgment summons fails to attend on the day and at the time fixed for any hearing of the summons, the court may adjourn or further adjourn the summons to a specified time on a specified day and order the debtor to attend at that time on that day.
(2) If—
(a) a debtor, having been ordered under subsection (1) to attend at a specified time on a specified day, fails to do so; . . .
(b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
the court may make an order committing him to prison for a period not exceeding 14 days in respect of the failure or refusal.
(3) In any case where the court has power to make an order of committal under subsection (2) for failure to attend, he may in lieu of or in addition to making that order, order the debtor to be arrested and brought before the court either forthwith or at such time as the court may direct.
(4) A debtor shall not be committed to prison under subsection (2) for having failed to attend as required by an order under subsection (1) unless there was paid to him at the time of the service of the judgment summons, or paid or tendered to him at the time of the service of the order, such sum in respect of his expenses as may be prescribed for the purposes of this section.
(5) The court may at any time revoke an order committing a person to prison under this section and, if he is already in custody, order his discharge.
(1) For the purpose of executing a warrant to give possession of any premises, it shall not be necessary to remove any goods from those premises.
(2) The duration of any warrant of possession issued by the county court to enforce a judgment or order for the recovery of land or for the delivery of possession of land shall be such as may be fixed by or in accordance with rules of court.
(1) Where a debtor—
(a) is unable to pay forthwith the amount of a judgment obtained against him; and
(b) alleges that his whole indebtedness amounts to a sum not exceeding the county court limit, inclusive of the debt for which the judgment was obtained;
the county court may make an order providing for the adminstration of his estate.
(2) In this Part of this Act—
“administration order” means an order under this section; and
...
(3) Before an administration order is made, the county court shall, in accordance with rules of court, send to every person whose name the debtor has notified to the county court as being a creditor of his, a notice that that person’s name has been so notified.
(4) So long as an administration order is in force, a creditor whose name is included in the schedule to the order shall not, without the leave of the county court , be entitled to present, or join in, a bankruptcy petition against the debtor unless—
(a) his name was so notified; and
(b) the debt by virtue of which he presents, or joins in, the petition, exceeds £1500; and
(c) the notice given under subsection (3) was received by the creditor within 28 days immediately preceding the day on which the petition is presented.
(5) An administration order shall not be invalid by reason only that the total amount of the debts is found at any time to exceed the county court limit, but in that case the court may, if it thinks fit, set aside the order.
(6) An administration order may provide for the payment of the debts of the debtor by instalments or otherwise, and either in full or to such extent as appears practicable to the court under the circumstances of the case, and subject to any conditions as to his future earnings or income which the court may think just.
(7) The Secretary of State may by regulations increase or reduce the sum for the time being specified in subsection (4)(b); but no such increase in the sum so specified shall affect any case in which the bankruptcy petition was presented before the coming into force of the increase.
(8) The power to make regulations under subsection (7) shall be exercisable by statutory instrument; and no such regulations shall be made unless a draft of them has been approved by resolution of each House of Parliament.
Where an administration order has been made—
(a) notice of the order—
(i) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(ii) shall be posted on an appropriate website , and
(iii) shall be sent to every person whose name the debtor has notified to the county court as being a creditor of his or who has proved;
(b) any creditor of the debtor, on proof of his debt before the county court , shall be entitled to be scheduled as a creditor of the debtor for the amount of his proof;
(c) any creditor may object in the prescribed manner to any debt scheduled, or to the manner in which payment is directed to be made by instalments;
(d) any person who, after the date of the order, becomes a creditor of the debtor shall, on proof of his debt before the county court , be scheduled as a creditor of the debtor for the amount of his proof, but shall not be entitled to any dividend under the order until the creditors who are scheduled as having been creditors before the date of the order have been paid to the extent provided by the order.
(1) Subject to sections 115 and 116, when an administration order is made, no creditor shall have any remedy against the person or property of the debtor in respect of any debt—
(a) of which the debtor notified the county court before the administration order was made; or
(b) which has been scheduled to the order,
except with the leave of the county court , and on such terms as that court may impose.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), when an administration order is made, the county court is to stay any proceedings in the county court which are pending against the debtor in respect of any debt so notified or scheduled, ..., but may allow costs already incurred by the creditor, and such costs may, on application, be added to the debt.
(3) The requirement to stay proceedings shall not operate as a requirement to stay any proceedings in bankruptcy which are pending against the debtor.
(1) Where it appears to ... the county court at any time while an administration order is in force that property of the debtor exceeds in value the minimum amount, the court shall, at the request of any creditor, and without fee, issue execution against the debtor’s goods.
(1A) In subsection (1) above “the minimum amount” means £50 or such other amount as the Lord Chancellor may by order specify instead of that amount or the amount for the time being specified in such an order; and an order under this subsection shall be made by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(2) Section 89 applies on an execution under this section as it applies on an execution under Part V.