The Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992

Magistrates' courts

53.—(1) Justices of the peace for a commission area within which is situated the area of a billing authority shall have jurisdiction to act under the provisions of this Part as respects that authority.

(2) Subject to any other enactment authorising a stipendiary magistrate or other person to act by himself, a magistrates' court shall not under this Part hear a summons, entertain an application for a warrant or hold an inquiry as to means on such an application except when composed of at least two justices.

(3) References to a justice of the peace in regulations 34(2) and 46(2) shall be construed subject to rule 3 of the Justices' Clerks Rules 1970(1) (which authorises certain matters authorised to be done by a justice of the peace to be done by a justices' clerk).

(4) In any proceedings under regulation 34 (application for liability order), regulation 46 (appeals in connection with distress) or regulation 47 (commitment to prison), a statement contained in a document constituting or forming part of a record compiled by the applicant authority shall be admissible as evidence of any fact stated in it of which direct oral evidence would be admissible.

(5) In proceedings where the applicant authority desires to give a statement in evidence in accordance with paragraph (4), and the document containing that statement is produced by a computer, a certificate—

(a) identifying the document containing the statement and the computer by which it was produced;

(b) containing a statement that at all material times the computer was operating properly, or if not, that any respect in which it was not operating properly or was out of operation was not such as to affect the production of the document or the accuracy of its contents;

(c) giving such explanation as may be appropriate of the content of the document; and

(d) purporting to be signed by a person occupying a responsible position in relation to the operation of the computer,

shall be admissable as evidence of abything which is stated in it to the best of the signatory’s information and belief.

(6) In paragraph (4) above, “statement” includes any representation of fact, whether made in words or otherwise; and the reference to an application under regulation 47 includes a reference to an application made in the circumstances mentioned in regulation 48(3).

(1)

S.I. 1970/231, to which there are amendments not relevant to these Regulations.