Attachment of Earnings Act 1971

2 Principal definitions

In this Act—

(a) " maintenance order" means any order specified in Schedule 1 to this Act and includes such an order which has been discharged if any arrears are recoverable thereunder;

(b) " High Court maintenance order", " county court maintenance order" and " magistrates' court maintenance order " mean respectively a maintenance order enforceable by the High Court, a county court and a magistrates' court;

(c) " judgment debt " means a sum payable under—

(i) a judgment or order enforceable by a court in England and Wales (not being a magistrates' court);

(ii) an order of a magistrates' court for the payment of money recoverable summarily as a civil debt; or

(iii) an order of any court which is enforceable as if it were for the payment of money so recoverable, but does not include any sum payable under a maintenance order or an administration order;

(d) " the relevant adjudication ", in relation to any payment secured or to be secured by an attachment of earnings order, means the conviction, judgment, order or other adjudication from which there arises the liability to make the payment; and

(e) " the debtor ", in relation to an attachment of earnings order, or to proceedings in which a court has power to make an attachment of earnings order, or to proceedings arising out of such an order, means the person by whom payment is required by the relevant adjudication to be made.