Criminal Justice Act 1925

32 Form of documents in criminal proceedings before justices

(1) Every information, complaint, summons, warrant or other document laid, issued or made for the purpose of or in connection with any proceedings before examining justices or a court of summary jurisdiction for an offence, shall be sufficient if it contains a statement of the specific offence with which the accused person is charged, together with such particulars as may be necessary for giving reasonable information as to the nature of the charge.

(2) The statement of the offence shall describe the offence shortly in ordinary language, avoiding as far as possible the use of technical terms, and without necessarily stating all the essential elements of the offence, and, if the offence charged is one created by statute, shall contain a reference to the section of the statute creating the offence.

(3) After the statement of the offence, necessary particulars of the offence shall be set out in ordinary language, in which the use of technical terms shall not be required.

(4) Any information, complaint, summons, warrant or other document to which this section applies which is in such form as would have been sufficient in law if this Act had not passed shall notwithstanding anything in this section continue to be sufficient in law.