Part 5

Civil recovery of the proceeds etc. of unlawful conduct
Chapter 2

Civil recovery in the High Court or Court of Session

Property freezing orders (England and Wales and Northern Ireland)

Application for property freezing order
245A
1
Where the enforcement authority may take proceedings for a recovery order in the High Court, the authority may apply to the court for a property freezing order (whether before or after starting the proceedings).
2
A property freezing order is an order that—
a
specifies or describes the property to which it applies, and
b
subject to any exclusions (see section 245C(1)(b) and (2)), prohibits any person to whose property the order applies from in any way dealing with the property.
3
An application for a property freezing order may be made without notice if the circumstances are such that notice of the application would prejudice any right of the enforcement authority to obtain a recovery order in respect of any property.
4
The court may make a property freezing order on an application if it is satisfied that the condition in subsection (5) is met and, where applicable, that the condition in subsection (6) is met.
5
The first condition is that there is a good arguable case—
a
that the property to which the application for the order relates is or includes recoverable property, and
b
that, if any of it is not recoverable property, it is associated property.
6
The second condition is that, if—
a
the property to which the application for the order relates includes property alleged to be associated property, and
b
the enforcement authority has not established the identity of the person who holds it,
the authority has taken all reasonable steps to do so.
Ss. 245A-245D and cross-heading inserted (1.1.2006) by Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (c. 15), ss. 98(1), 178(8); S.I. 2005/3136, art. 3(a)
Pt. 5 Ch. 2: power to modify conferred (25.4.2013) by Crime and Courts Act 2013 (c. 22), s. 61(11)(f), Sch. 25 para. 7