Administration of Justice Act 1969

Part I

Increase of general jurisdiction in contract and tort and in respect of money recoverable by statute

1

Corresponding increases under other provisions

2

In the following provisions of the principal Act, that is to say, section 41 (abandonment of part of claim to give court jurisdiction), section 45(2) (transfer of actions of contract or tort from High Court to county court), section 68 (transfer of interpleader proceedings from High Court to county court), section 80 (actions by persons under 21 for payment of remuneration) and section 146 (transfer from High Court of applications to attach debts or levy executions against members of firms), and, in Schedule 1 to that Act, in the entry relating to section 136 of the Law of Property Act 1925, for each reference to five hundred pounds there shall be substituted the words " £750 ".

Transfer of certain actions of contract or tort from county court to High Court at defendant's instance

3

In section 44 of the principal Act, in subsection (1), for the words " forty pounds " there shall be substituted the words " £100 ",

and in subsection (2), for the words from " the amount claimed and the costs of trial" to the end of paragraph (a) there shall be substituted the words " such amount as the registrar may determine, and ".

Costs of proceedings commenced in High Court which could have been commenced in county court

4

• (1) In section 47 of the principal Act (costs of actions of contract or tort commenced in High Court which could have been commenced in county court), in subsection (1).—

• (a) the words " and the action is not referred for trial to an official referee " shall cease to have effect;

• (b) in paragraph (a), for the reference to four hundred pounds there shall be substituted the words " £500 "; and

• (c) in paragraph (b), for the words " seventy-five pounds " there shall be substituted the words " £100 ",

and after that subsection there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

(1A) In relation to an action brought to enforce a right to recover possession of goods, or to enforce such a right and to claim payment of a debt or other demand or damages, subsection (1) of this section shall have effect as if— (a) in paragraph (a) of that subsection, for the words 'he recovers a sum less than £500' there were substituted the words ' the aggregate amount recovered by him in the action, including the value of any goods ordered in the action to be delivered to him, is less than £500and (b) in paragraph (b) of that subsection, for the words 'he recovers a sum less than £100' there were substituted the words ' the aggregate amount recovered by him in the action, including the value of any goods ordered in the action to be delivered to him, is less than £100', and as if, in the words so substituted, any reference to an order for the delivery of goods to the plaintiff included a reference to an order to deliver goods to the plaintiff or to pay their value to him.

• (2) Subsection (4) of the said section 47 shall cease to have effect.

• (3) In section 60 of the principal Act (costs of certain Admiralty proceedings commenced in High Court which could have been commenced in county court), in subsection (3), for the words " seventy-five pounds " there shall be substituted the words " £100 ".

Increase of jurisdiction in equity and certain related proceedings

5

In section 52(1) of the principal Act (equity jurisdiction) and in Schedule 1 to that Act (excluding the entry in that Schedule relating to section 136 of the Law of Property Act 1925) for the words " five hundred pounds", in each place where they occur, there shall be substituted the words " £5,000 ", and for the words " thirty pounds ", in each place where they occur, there shall be substituted the words " £300 ".

General ancillary jurisdiction

6

In section 74 of the principal Act the words " in any proceedings before it " shall cease to have effect, and at the end of that section there shall be added the following subsection:—

(2) For the purposes of this section it shall be assumed (notwithstanding any enactment to the contrary) that any proceedings which can be commenced in a county court could be commenced in the High Court.

Right of audience

7

• (1) In section 89 of the principal Act, in paragraph (c), for the words " but not a solicitor retained as an advocate by a; solicitor so acting " there shall be substituted the words " (in this paragraph referred to as a ' solicitor on the record '), any solicitor employed by a solicitor on the record, any solicitor engaged as an agent by a solicitor on the record and any solicitor employed by a solicitor so engaged " , and paragraph (i) of the proviso shall be omitted.

• (2) At the end of the said section 89 there shall be added the following subsections:—

(2) Where an action is brought in a county court by a local authority for either or both of the following, that is to say— (a) the recovery of possession of a house belonging to the authority; (b) the recovery of any rent, mesne profits, damages or other sum claimed by the authority in respect of the occupation by any person of such a house, then, in so far as the proceedings in the action are heard by the registrar, any officer of the authority authorised by the authority in that behalf, not being a person entitled to address the court by virtue of subsection (1) of this section, may address the registrar as if he were a person so entitled. (3) In this section ' local authority' means the council of a county, county borough, London borough or county district, the Greater London Council or the Common Council of the City of London, ' house ' includes a part of a house, a flat or any other dwelling and also includes any yard, garden, outhouse or appurtenance occupied with a house or part of a house or with a flat or other dwelling, and any reference to the occupation of a house by a person includes a reference to anything done by that person, or caused or permitted by him to be done, in relation to the house as occupier of the house, whether under a tenancy or licence or otherwise.

Assessors

8

In section 91 of the principal Act, at the beginning of subsection (2) there shall be inserted the words " Subject to the next following subsection " , and after that subsection there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

(2A) For the purpose of assisting the judge in reviewing the taxation by the registrar of the costs of any proceedings, the power conferred by subsection (1) of this section shall be exercisable by the judge without any application being made by any party to the proceedings; and, where one or more assessors are summoned for that purpose otherwise than on the application of a party to the proceedings, the remuneration of any such assessor— (a) shall be at such rate as may be determined by the Lord Chancellor with the approval of the Treasury, and (b) shall be payable out of moneys provided by Parliament.

County court rules

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• (1) In section 102 of the principal Act (county court rules), in subsection (3)(c)(iii) (under which county court rules may authorise the registrar, by leave of the judge and in the absence of objection by the parties, to hear and determine actions in which the sum claimed or the amount involved does not exceed £30), for the words " thirty pounds " there shall be substituted the words " £75 ".

• (2) For paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of the said section 102 (under which rules may authorise a judge of county courts in certain circumstances to direct that the hearing in proceedings pending in one of his courts shall take place in the court for another district of which he is the judge) there shall be substituted the following paragraph:—

(d) authorising directions to be given as follows, where the same judge is the judge for two or more districts, that is to say— (i) authorising the judge to direct that the hearing in proceedings pending in the court for one of those districts, being proceedings which are to be heard and determined by the judge, shall take place in the court for another of those districts, or (ii) authorising the registrar for one of those districts to direct that the hearing in proceedings pending in the court for the district for which he is the registrar, being proceedings which are to be heard and determined by the judge, shall take place in the court for another of those districts.

• (3) After paragraph (e) of subsection (3) of the said section 102 there shall be inserted the following paragraph:—

(f) making, with respect to proceedings in county courts, any provision regarding solicitors of the Supreme Court which could be made by rules of court with respect to proceedings in the High Court

.

Power to raise limits of jurisdiction

10

Miscellaneous amendments of principal Act

11

Part II — Appeal from High Court to House of Lords

Grant of certificate by trial judge

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• (1) Where on the application of any of the parties to any proceedings to which this section applies the judge is satisfied—

• (a) that the relevant conditions are fulfilled in relation to his decision in those proceedings, and

• (b) that a sufficient case for an appeal to the House of Lords under this Part of this Act has been made out to justify an application for leave to bring such an appeal, and

• (c) that all the parties to the proceedings consent to the grant of a certificate under this section,

the judge, subject to the following provisions of this Part of this Act, may grant a certificate to that effect.

• (2) This section applies to any civil proceedings in the High Court which are either—

• (a) proceedings before a single judge of the High Court (including a person acting as such a judge under section 3 of the Judicature Act 1925), or

• (b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• (c) proceedings before a Divisional Court.

• (3) Subject to any Order in Council made under the following provisions of this section, for the purposes of this section the relevant conditions, in relation to a decision of the judge in any proceedings, are that a point of law of general public importance is involved in that decision and that that point of law either—

• (a) relates wholly or mainly to the construction of an enactment or of a statutory instrument, and has been fully argued in the proceedings and fully considered in the judgment of the judge in the proceedings, or

• (b) is one in respect of which the judge is bound by a decision of the Court of Appeal or of the House of Lords in previous proceedings, and was fully considered in the judgments given by the Court of Appeal or the House of Lords (as the case may be) in those previous proceedings.

• (4) Any application for a certificate under this section shall be made to the judge immediately after he gives judgment in the proceedings:

• (5) No appeal shall lie against the grant or refusal of a certificate under this section.

• (6) Her Majesty may by Order in Council amend subsection (3) of this section by altering, deleting, or substituting one or more new paragraphs for, either or both of paragraphs (a) and (b) of that subsection, or by adding one or more further paragraphs.

• (7) Any Order in Council made under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

• (8) In this Part of this Act “civil proceedings” means any proceedings other than proceedings in a criminal cause or matter, and “the judge”, in relation to any proceedings to which this section applies, means the judge . . . referred to in paragraph (a) . . . of subsection (2) of this section, or the Divisional Court referred to in paragraph (c) of that subsection, as the case may be.

Leave to appeal to House of Lords

13

• (1) Where in any proceedings the judge grants a certificate under section 12 of this Act, then, at any time within one month from the date on which that certificate is granted or such extended time as in any particular case the House of Lords may allow, any of the parties to the proceedings may make an application to the House of Lords under this section.

• (2) Subject to the following provisions of this section, if on such an application it appears to the House of Lords to be expedient to do so, the House may grant leave for an appeal to be brought directly to the House; and where leave is granted under this section—

• (a) no appeal from the decision of the judge to which the certificate relates shall lie to the Court of Appeal, but

• (b) an appeal shall lie from that decision to the House of Lords.

• (3) Applications under this section shall be determined without a hearing.

• (4) Any order of the House of Lords which provides for applications under this section to be determined by a committee of the House—

• (a) shall direct that the committee shall consist of or include not less than three of the persons designated as Lords of Appeal in accordance with section 5 of the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876, and

• (b) may direct that the decision of the committee on any such application shall be taken on behalf of the House.

• (5) Without prejudice to subsection (2) of this section, no appeal shall lie to the Court of Appeal from a decision of the judge in respect of which a certificate is granted under section 12 of this Act until—

• (a) the time within which an application can be made under this section has expired, and

• (b) where such an application is made, that application has been determined in accordance with the preceding provisions of this section.

Appeal where leave granted

14

In relation to any appeal which lies to the House of Lords by virtue of subsection (2) of section 13 of this Act—

• (a) section 4 of the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 (which provides for the bringing of appeals to the House of Lords by way of petition),

• (b) section 5 of that Act (which regulates the composition of the House for the hearing and determination of appeals), and

• (c) except in so far as those orders otherwise provide, any orders of the House of Lords made with respect to the matters specified in section 11 of that Act (which relates to the procedure on appeals),

shall have effect as they have effect in relation to appeals under that Act.

Cases excluded from s. 12

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• (1) No certificate shall be granted under section 12 of this Act in respect of a decision of the judge in any proceedings where by virtue of any enactment, apart from the provisions of this Part of this Act, no appeal would lie from that decision to the Court of Appeal, with or without the leave of the judge or of the Court of Appeal.

• (2) No certificate shall be granted under section 12 of this Act in respect of a decision of the judge where—

• (a) the decision is in proceedings other than proceedings under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1965, and

• (b) by virtue of any enactment, apart from the provisions of this Part of this Act, no appeal would (with or without the leave of the Court of Appeal or of the House of Lords) lie from any decision of the Court of Appeal on an appeal from the decision of the judge.

• (3) Where by virtue of any enactment, apart from the provisions of this Part of this Act, no appeal would lie to the Court of Appeal from the decision of the judge except with the leave of the judge or of the Court of Appeal, no certificate shall be granted under section 12 of this Act in respect of that decision unless it appears to the judge that apart from the provisions of this Part of this Act it would be a proper case for granting such leave.

• (4) No certificate shall be granted under section 12 of this Act where the decision of the judge, or any order made by him in pursuance of that decision, is made in the exercise of jurisdiction to punish for contempt of court.

Application of Part II to Northern Ireland

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• (1) In the application of this Part of this Act to Northern Ireland—

• “the Court of Appeal” means Her Majesty’s Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland;

• “the High Court” means the High Court of Justice in Northern Ireland;

• “statutory instrument” includes an instrument made under an enactment of the Parliament of Northern Ireland;

• for the references in section 12(2) to section 3 of the Judicature Act 1925 there shall be substituted a reference to sections 6 and 7 of the Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978; and

• for the reference in section 15(2)(a) to the Matrimonial Causes Act 1965 there shall be substituted a reference to the Matrimonial Causes Act (Northern Ireland) 1939 or any enactment re-enacting that Act (whether with or without modifications).

• (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Part III

Provision for executing will for patient

17

Supplementary provisions as to wills executed under s 103(1)(dd)

18

The following section shall be inserted in the principal Act after section 103:—