Criminal Injuries (Compensation) (Northern Ireland) Order 1988

Procedure, etc.

21.—(1) Where—

(a) the Secretary of State receives notice of any assignment, or of any act or event in the law, affecting any compensation;

(b) the person entitled to compensation or to whom any sum is payable under this Order is under a disability or is out of the United Kingdom; or

(c) the Secretary of State is satisfied that the address of such a person cannot be ascertained without undue expense or delay, the Secretary of State may, in accordance with county court rules, pay the compensation or sum into such county court as appears to him to be appropriate.

(2) A payment into court under paragraph (1)—

(a) shall to that extent be a sufficient discharge to the Secretary of State; and

(b) shall, subject to any county court rules regarding money paid into court under section 63 of the [1958 c. 23 (N.I.)] Trustee Act (Northern Ireland) 1958, be dealt with in accordance with the orders of the court.

(3) Subject to Article 16(3) and to section 21A of the [1947 c. 44] Crown Proceedings Act 1947, the county court may award costs to or against any party to or person appearing on any proceedings before it under this Order.

(4) Without prejudice to section 22 of the Crown Proceedings Act 1947, an appeal from any order made by a county court on or in connection with any proceedings under this Order (except an ap-plication under Article 15) shall lie at the instance of—

(a) the Secretary of State; or

(b) any person who appeared or might have appeared on the hearing of those proceedings,

as if the order had been made in exercise of the jurisdiction conferred by part III of the [1980 NI 3] County Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1980 and the appeal were brought under part VI of that Order.