The Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994 (Commencement No. 3 and Transitional Provisions) Order 1994

Statutory Instruments

1994 No. 2594 (C.55)

MAGISTRATES' COURTS

The Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994 (Commencement No. 3 and Transitional Provisions) Order 1994

Made

8th October 1994

Laid before Parliament

10th October 1994

Coming into force

1st November 1994

The Lord Chancellor, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by section 94(2), (4), (5) and (7) of the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994(1), hereby makes the following Order:

Citation and Commencement

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994 (Commencement No. 3 and Transitional Provisions) Order 1994.

(2) This Order shall come into force on 1st November 1994.

Interpretation

2.  In this Order—

“the 1979 Act” means the Justices of the Peace Act 1979(2);

“the 1994 Act” means the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994.

3.  Subject to article 5, the following provisions of the 1994 Act shall come into force by virtue of this Order—

(a) section 69 (alteration of magistrates' courts committee areas);

(b) section 70 (constitution of magistrates' courts committees);

(c) section 71 (regulations as to constitution etc. of magistrates' courts committees);

(d) section 74 (reports and plans);

(e) section 78 (independence of justices' clerk and staff in relation to legal functions);

(f) section 85 (regulations as to accounts and audit);

(g) section 86 (inspectors of the magistrates' courts service);

(h) section 87 (powers of inspectors);

(i) section 88 (default powers), except for subsection (6);

(j) section 89 (studies by Audit Commission);

(k) section 90 (regulations under the 1979 Act);

(l) section 91(1) (magistrates' courts: minor and consequential amendments), so far as it relates to the entries in Part 1 of Schedule 8 referred to in article 6 below;

(m) section 92 (interpretation of Part IV);

(n) section 93 (repeals), so far as it relates to the entries in Part II of Schedule 9 (magistrates' courts: repeals) referred to in article 7 below.

4.  Section 79 of the 1994 Act (inner London area) and section 93, so far as it relates to the entry in Part II of Schedule 9 in respect of section 35 of the 1979 Act, shall come into force for the purpose only of enabling a magistrates' courts committee for the inner London area to be constituted in accordance with regulations made under section 21 of the 1979 Act as amended by section 71 of the 1994 Act.

5.—(1) Sections 70 and 71 of the 1994 Act shall come into force subject to the transitional provisions specified below.

(2) Notwithstanding the substitution by section 70 of a new section 20 (“the new section 20”) for the old section 20 (“the old section 20”) of the 1979 Act—

(a) the old section 20 shall continue to apply in relation to magistrates' courts committees constituted in accordance with the Magistrates' Courts Committees (Constitution) Regulations 1973(3)as if the new section 20 had not been so substituted;

(b) the new section 20 shall come into force only in relation to magistrates' courts committees constituted in accordance with regulations made under section 21 of the 1979 Act as amended by section 71 of the 1994 Act;

(c) notwithstanding the amendments made by section 71(1), (2) and (3) to section 21 of the 1979 Act, section 21 of that Act shall continue to apply in relation to magistrates' courts committees constituted in accordance with the Magistrates' Courts Committees (Constitution) Regulations 1973 as if those amendments had not been made.

Magistrates' courts: minor and consequential amendments of the 1979 Act

6.  The entries in Part 1 of Schedule 8 (amendments of the 1979 Act) referred to in paragraph (l) of article 3 above are—

(a) paragraph 2(1) and (2) (amendment of section 17(1));

(b) paragraph 2(1), (3) and (4) (amendment of section 17(2) and insertion of new section 17(2A));

(c) paragraph 3 (amendment of section 18);

(d) paragraph 4 (amendment of section 19);

(e) paragraph 6 (amendment of section 23);

(f) paragraph 7 (amendment of section 24);

(g) paragraph 8 (amendment of section 24A);

(h) paragraph 9 (amendment of section 24B);

(i) paragraph 17 (amendment of section 42);

(j) paragraph 22 (substitution of new definition of “magistrate” and insertion of definition of “magistrates' courts committee area” in section 70), except that the former definition of “magistrate” in section 70 shall continue to apply for the purposes of interpretation of the old section 20 (as defined in paragraph (2) of article 5 above).

Repeals

7.  The entries in Part II of Schedule 9 (repeals: magistrates' courts) referred to in paragraph (n) of article 3 above are—

(a) section 12(7) of the 1979 Act;

(b) section 18(2) of the 1979 Act;

(c) section 19(3) and (4) of the 1979 Act;

(d) section 21(1) of the 1979 Act;

(e) section 23(1) of the 1979 Act;

(f) section 24(1)(a), (2) and (5) of the 1979 Act;

(g) section 24A(1) of the 1979 Act;

(h) the definition of “joint committee area” in section 70 of the 1979 Act.

Mackay of Clashfern, C

Dated 8th October 1994

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order brings into force on 1st November 1994 various sections of Part IV (which relates to magistrates' courts) of the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994 and certain provisions of the Act in Part I of Schedule 8 (minor and consequential amendments) and Part II of Schedule 9 (repeals). Section 79 of the Act is brought into force only for the purpose of constituting a magistrates' courts committee for the inner London area.

Note as to Earlier Commencement Orders

(This note is not part of the Order)

The following provisions of the Act have been brought into force by commencement order made before the date of this Order:

Provision	Date of Commencement	S.I. No.
Sections 1 to 3 and Schedules 1 and 2 (partially), section 18 (partially), section 41, section 44 and Schedule 5 (partially), section 46, section 52 (partially), section 65, section 93 and Schedule 9 (partially).	8.8.94	1994/2025
Part III, section 93 and Schedule 9 (partially).	23.8.94	1994/2151
Section 4 (partially), section 8 (partially), section 10 (partially), section 11 (partially), sections 14 to 16 (partially), section 22, section 25, section 31 (partially), section 32 (partially), section 33, section 39 (partially), section 42, section 43 and Schedule 4 (partially), section 44 and Schedule 5 (partially), section 45 (partially), section 93 and Schedule 9 (partially).	1.10.94	1994/2025

The following provisions of the Act are to be brought into force after the date of the making of this Order by virtue of a commencement order made before the date of this Order:

Provision	Date of Commencement	S.I. No.
Section 17 (partially), section 27 (partially),section 28 (partially).	1.11.94	1994/2025

(1)

1994 c. 29.

(2)

1979 c. 55.

(3)

S.I. 1973/1522 as amended by S.I. 1980/1258, 1985/1383 and 1992/2047.