The Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 (c. 43) is an Act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...

. It is a

consolidation Act A consolidation bill is a bill introduced into the Parliament of the United Kingdom with the intention of consolidating several Acts of Parliament or Statutory Instruments into a single Act. Such bills simplify the statute book without significan ...

.The Public General Acts and General Synod Measures 1980. HMSO. London. . Part IV. Pages ''i'', ''j'' and i. It codifies the procedures applicable in the magistrates' courts of England and Wales and largely replaces the

Magistrates' Courts Act 1952 The Magistrates' Courts Act 1952 (15 & 16 Geo 6 & 1 Eliz c 55) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which related to magistrates' courts. It was repealed by section 154 of, and Schedule 9 to, the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980. Se ...

. Part I of the Act sets out provisions in relation to the courts' criminal jurisdiction, and Part II in relation to civil proceedings. Section 1 of the Act empowers a

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or '' puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the s ...

to issue a

summons A summons (also known in England and Wales as a claim form and in the Australian state of New South Wales as a court attendance notice (CAN)) is a legal document issued by a court (a ''judicial summons'') or by an administrative agency of governme ...

arrest warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a ...

alleging the commission of a crime against an identifiable person. Section 127 of the Act establishes a six-month

limitation period A statute of limitations, known in civil law systems as a prescriptive period, is a law passed by a legislative body to set the maximum time after an event within which legal proceedings may be initiated. ("Time for commencing proceedings") In m ...

for summary (but not indictable) offences.

References

External links

Magistrates' Courts Act 1980
as amended from the National Archives.
Magistrates' Courts Act 1980
as originally enacted from the National Archives. Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning England and Wales English criminal law United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1980 Magistrates' courts in England and Wales 1980 in England 1980 in Wales {{Criminal-law-stub

See also

References

External links