Administration of Justice Act 1964

29 Administrative provisions relating to quarter sessions and their staff

(1) The existing functions of the standing joint committee of the court of quarter sessions and the council of any county, except functions exercisable by the committee as police authority, shall cease to be exercisable by the committee and shall be exercisable in accordance with the following provisions of this section.

(2) Subject to the following provisions of this section, the county council shall provide such courthouses and other accommodation, whether in the county or elsewhere, and such furniture, books and other things, as the council may determine to be proper for the due transaction of the business, and convenient keeping of the records and documents, of the court of quarter sessions for the county or any committee of quarter sessions; and the functions of the county council under this subsection shall include the functions of managing, controlling and maintaining any such accommodation which by virtue of section 30(3) of the Local Government Act 1888 were exercisable immediately before the commencement of this Act by the standing joint committee.

(3) The county council shall consult with the court of quarter sessions before making any determination under subsection (2) of this section and, without prejudice to the foregoing provision, shall consider and determine any matter which they have been requested by the court to consider and determine.

(4) If a court of quarter sessions are aggrieved by any determination of a county council under this section they may appeal to the Secretary of State.

(5) Any functions to which subsection (1) of this section applies, other than functions relating to the matters mentioned in subsection (2) of this section, shall be exercisable by the court of quarter sessions for the county.

(6) The court of quarter sessions for a county where the offices of clerk of the county council and clerk of the peace are held by different persons shall appoint such officers (in addition to a deputy clerk of the peace) or provide such other assistance as they may, after consultation with the county council, determine to be necessary for the purpose of assisting the clerk of the peace in carrying out his duties as such, and—

(a) the salary and other terms and conditions of service of any officer appointed under this subsection and the terms on which other assistance is provided thereunder shall be such as may from time to time be determined by the court after consultation with the county council; and

(b) section 60 of the Local Government Act 1958 (transfer and compensation of officers) shall apply to officers affected by the fact of the clerk of the county council's becoming or, as the case may be, ceasing to be clerk of the peace for the county as it applies to officers affected by an order under Part II of that Act, subject, however, to the following modifications—

(i) a reference to the aforesaid fact shall be substituted for the reference in subsection (2) of that section to the provisions of any such order; and

(ii) the provisions mentioned in subsection (1) of that section shall, instead of being contained in any such order, be contained in regulations made by such Minister as may be determined by the Treasury to be appropriate in relation to the officers affected and those regulations shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(7) Section 8(8) and (9) of this Act shall apply to the following officers of a court of quarter sessions as they apply to officers of the court of quarter sessions for a London commission area, that is to say—

(a) a clerk of the peace who is not also clerk of the county council;

(b) a deputy clerk of the peace who does not fall within paragraph C of Part II of Schedule 2 to the Local Government Superannuation Act 1937 ;

(c) an officer appointed under subsection (6) of this section.

(8) The provisions of subsections (6) and (7) of this section, except such of those provisions as are adopted by a resolution of the county council, shall not apply to any county for which provision for purposes corresponding to any of the purposes of those subsections is made by any local Act passed before, or in the same session as, this Act.

(9) The following expenditure of a court of quarter sessions, that is to say.—

(a) any expenditure incurred by them in exercising their functions under subsection (5) of this section ; and

(b) the sums payable by way of salary or expenses to officers appointed under subsection (6) of this section, together with any employer's contributions payable in respect of them under the National Insurance Acts 1946 to 1963, and any expenditure on any other assistance provided for the clerk of the peace under that subsection ;

shall be defrayed by the county council.

(10) If a county council are aggrieved—

(a) by the incurring of any expenditure by a court of quarter sessions in the exercise of their functions under subsection (5) of this section; or

(b) by any determination of a court of quarter sessions under subsection (6) of this section ;

the council may appeal to the Secretary of State.

(11) Any functions of a court of quarter sessions with respect to the appointment of, and other matters relating to, the clerk of the peace, deputy clerk of the peace and other officers of the court shall, except so far as the count otherwise resolves, be exercised by a committee consisting of the chairman of the court and such other justices as may be appointed by the court, and any other administrative functions of a court of quarter sessions may, if the court so resolves, be exercised by a committee so constituted; and section 96 of the Local Government Act 1933 (proceedings of committees) shall apply to any such committee with the substitution of references to the court of quarter sessions for references to a local authority.

(12) The foregoing provisions of this section, except subsections (6) to (8), shall apply to a London commission area as they apply to a county with the substitution of references to the Greater London Council for references to a county council.

(13) The Secretary of State may by order make such amendments of or repeals in any local Act, including an Act confirming a provisional order, or any instrument in the nature of a local enactment made under any Act, as appear to him to be appropriate in consequence of the foregoing provisions of this section or of a resolution under subsection (8) of this section; and any such order shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.