The Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (Commencement No. 13) Order 2013

Made: 7th May 2013

The Secretary of State makes the following Order in exercise of the power conferred by section 182(5) of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009[^f00001]:

Citation

1

This Order may be cited as the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (Commencement No. 13) Order 2013.

Appointed day

2

The following provisions of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 come into force on 28th May 2013—

• (a) section 144 (treatment of convictions in other member States etc), so far as it relates to the provisions specified in sub-paragraph (b);

• (b) paragraphs 4 and 5 of Schedule 17 (treatment of convictions in other member States etc).

Signed

Signed by the authority of the Secretary of State

Damian Green — Minister of State — Ministry of Justice — 7th May 2013

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Order brings into force paragraphs 4 and 5 of Schedule 17 to the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (c. 25) (“the 2009 Act”) on 28th May 2013.

Schedule 17 to the 2009 Act implements Framework Decision 2008/675/JHA on taking account of convictions in the Member States of the European Union in the course of new criminal proceedings. Article 3(1) of that Framework Decision requires that, in the course of criminal proceedings against a person, previous convictions in other European Union Member States are taken into account to the same extent as previous convictions in domestic courts. The provisions that this Order brings into force achieve this in relation to the allocation procedure contained in Schedule 3 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44) (“the 2003 Act”).

Paragraph 4 of Schedule 17 to the 2009 Act amends section 19 of the Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980 (c. 43), that section having been substituted by paragraph 5 of Schedule 3 to the 2003 Act. The effect of this amendment is that when a magistrates’ court is considering whether an either way offence appears to it more suitable for summary trial or trial on indictment and the court is informed by the prosecution of the accused’s previous convictions, those convictions are to include previous convictions in another European Union Member State.

Paragraph 5 of Schedule 17 to the 2009 Act amends paragraph 9 of Schedule 3 to the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (c. 37), that paragraph having been amended by paragraph 20 of Schedule 3 to the 2003 Act. This amendment will apply when a case is sent to the Crown Court, but the indictment has subsequently been amended so as to remove the indictable only offence that had required the case to be sent. The effect of the amendment is that when the Crown Court is considering whether any remaining either way offences on the charge are more suitable for summary trial or trial on indictment and it is informed by the prosecution of the accused’s previous convictions, those convictions are to include previous convictions in another European Union Member State.

These provisions are being brought into force on 28th May 2013 to coincide with the full commencement of most of the provisions of Schedule 3 to the 2003 Act. Those provisions in the 2003 Act implement the new procedure for deciding on the allocation of either way offences to the magistrates’ court or to the Crown Court.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: 2009 c. 25.