Administration of Justice Act 1964

9 Integration of jurisdiction of stipendiary and lay magistrates

(1) In the inner London area the jurisdiction conferred on justices of the peace by any enactment, by their commission or by the common law shall be exercisable both by metropolitan stipendiary magistrates and by justices of the peace for that area who are not metropolitan stipendiary magistrates (hereafter in this Act referred to as lay justices).

(2) Metropolitan stipendiary magistrates shall continue to exercise the jurisdiction conferred on them as such by any enactment, but the inner London area shall take the place of the metropolitan stipendiary courts area as the area for which magistrates' courts are to be held by metropolitan stipendiary magistrates.

(3) Lay justices for the inner London area may, in addition to exercising the jurisdiction mentioned in subsection (1) of this section, exercise the jurisdiction conferred on metropolitan stipendiary magistrates as such by any enactment except the following enactments:—

(a) the Extradition Acts 1870 to 1935 ;

(b) section 40 of the Pawnbrokers Act 1872 ;

(c) the Fugitive Offenders Act 1881;

(d) section 28 of the Pilotage Act 1913 ;

(e) section 25 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 ;

but a magistrates' court consisting of lay justices for the inner London Area shall not by virtue of this subsection try an information summarily or hear a complaint except when composed of at least two justices.

(4) Without prejudice to subsection (1) of this section, sections 1 to 3 of the Stipendiary Magistrates Act 1858 (which enable a provincial stipendiary magistrate sitting alone to exercise the jurisdiction exercisable by two justices of the peace, except jurisdiction exercisable by quarter sessions) shall apply to metropolitan stipendiary magistrates.