Justices of the Peace Act 1979 (repealed 19.6.1997) (c. 55)

Part VII E+W Miscellaneous and Supplementary Provisions

70 Interpretation. E+W

In this Act, except in so far as the context otherwise requires,—

• [F1 “capital expenditure” means expenditure for capital purposes (construed in accordance with section 40 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989);]

• “commission area” has the meaning assigned to it by section 1 of this Act;

• “joint committee area” has the meaning assigned to it by section 19(3) of this Act;

• “justices’ clerk” means a clerk to the justices for a petty sessions area;

• “London commission areas”, “inner London area” and “outer London areas” have the meanings assigned to them by section 2 of this Act;

• “magistrate”, in relation to a county, a London commission area or the City of London, means a justice of the peace for the county, London commission area or the City, as the case may be, other than a justice whose name is for the time being entered in the supplemental list, and, in relation to a part of a county or of a London commission area, means a person who (in accordance with the preceding provisions of this definition) is a magistrate for that county or area and ordinarily acts in and for that part of it;

• “officer” includes the holder of any place, situation or employment, and “office” shall be construed accordingly;

• “petty sessional court-house” means any of the following, that is to say—

  (a)

  a court-house or place at which justices are accustomed to assemble for holding special or petty sessions or for the time being appointed as a substitute for such a court-house or place (including, where justices are accustomed to assemble for either special or petty sessions at more than one court-house or place in a petty sessional division, any such court-house or place);

  (b)

  a court-house or place at which a stipendiary magistrate is authorised by law to do alone any act authorised to be done by more than one justice of the peace;

• “petty sessions area” has the meaning assigned to it by section 4 of this Act;

• “prescribed” in Part II of this Act means prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of State by statutory instrument;

• “the Receiver” means the Receiver for the metropolitan police district;

• “stipendiary magistrate” includes a metropolitan stipendiary magistrate;

• “the supplemental list” has the meaning assigned to it by section 8 of this Act.

Textual Amendments

F1 Definition in s. 70 inserted (31.10.1991) by Criminal Justice Act 1991 (c. 53, SIF 39:1), s. 93(4); S.I. 1991/2208, art. 2(4), Sch. 3.