See also Practice Direction RSC
52

CCR ORDER 29
COMMITTAL FOR BREACH OF ORDER OR UNDERTAKING

Contents of this Order

Title	Number
Enforcement of judgment to do or abstain from doing any act	Rule 1
Undertaking given by party	Rule1A
Solicitor’s undertaking	Rule 2
Discharge of person in custody	Rule 3

Enforcement of judgment to do or abstain from doing any
act

Rule 1

(1) Where a person required by a judgment or order to
do an act refuses or neglects to do it within the time fixed by the judgment or
order or any subsequent order, or where a person disobeys a judgment or order
requiring him to abstain from doing an act, then, subject to the Debtors Acts
1869 and 1878¹ and to the provisions of
these rules, the judgment or order may be enforced, by order of the judge, by a
committal order against that person or, if that person is a body corporate,
against any director or other officer of the body.

(2) Subject to paragraphs (6) and (7), a judgment or
order shall not be enforced under paragraph (1) unless –

(a) a copy of the judgment or order has been
served personally on the person required to do or abstain from doing the act in
question and also, where that person is a body corporate, on the director or
other officer of the body against whom a committal order is sought; and

(b) in the case of a judgment or order requiring
a person to do an act, the copy has been so served before the expiration of the
time within which he was required to do the act and was accompanied by a copy
of any order, made between the date of the judgment or order and the date of
service, fixing that time.

(3) Where a judgment or order enforceable by committal
order under paragraph (1) has been given or made, the court officer shall, if
the judgment or order is in the nature of an injunction, at the time when the
judgment or order is drawn up, and in any other case on the request of the
judgment creditor, issue a copy of the judgment or order, indorsed with or
incorporating a notice as to the consequences of disobedience, for service in
accordance with paragraph (2).

(4) If the person served with the judgment or order
fails to obey it, the judgment creditor may issue a claim form or, as the case
may be, an application notice seeking the committal for contempt of court of
that person and subject to paragraph (7), the claim form or application notice
shall be served on him personally.

(4A) The claim form or application notice (as the case
may be) shall –

(a) identify the provisions of the injunction or
undertaking which it is alleged have been disobeyed or broken;

(b) list the ways in which it is alleged that the
injunction has been disobeyed or the undertaking has been broken;

(c) be supported by an affidavit stating the
grounds on which the application is made,

and unless service is dispensed with under
paragraph (7), a copy of the affidavit shall be served with the claim form or
application notice.

(5) If a committal order is made, the order shall be
for the issue of a warrant of committal and, unless the judge otherwise orders
–

(a) a copy of the order shall be served on the
person to be committed either before or at the time of the execution of the
warrant; or

(b) where the warrant has been signed by the
judge, the order for issue of the warrant may be served on the person to be
committed at any time within 36 hours after the execution of the
warrant.

(5A) A warrant of committal shall not, without further
order of the court, be enforced more than 2 years after the date on which the
warrant is issued.

(6) A judgment or order requiring a person to abstain
from doing an act may be enforced under paragraph (1) notwithstanding that
service of a copy of the judgment or order has not been effected in accordance
with paragraph (2) if the judge is satisfied that, pending such service, the
person against whom it is sought to enforce the judgment or order has had
notice of the judgment or
order either –

(a) by being present when the judgment or order
was given or made; or

(b) by being notified of the terms of the
judgment or order whether by telephone, fax,
e-mail or otherwise.

(7) Without prejudice to its powers under Part 6 of the
CPR, the court may dispense with service of a copy of a judgment or order under
paragraph (2) or a claim form or application notice under paragraph (4) if the
court thinks it just to do so.

(8) Where service of the claim form or application
notice has been dispensed with under paragraph (7) and a committal order is
made in the absence of the respondent, the judge may on his own initiative fix
a date and time when the person to be committed is to be brought before him or
before the court.

Undertaking given by party

Rule1A

Rule 1 (except paragraph (6)) shall apply to
undertakings as it applies to orders with the necessary modifications and as if
–

(a) for paragraph (2) of that rule there were
substituted the following –

‘(2) A copy of the document recording
the undertaking shall be delivered by the court officer to the party giving the
undertaking –

(a) by handing a copy of the document to
him before he leaves the court building; or

(b) where his place of residence is known,
by posting a copy to him at his place of residence; or

(c) through his solicitor,

and, where delivery cannot be effected in
this way, the court officer shall deliver a copy of the document to the party
for whose benefit the undertaking is given and that party shall cause it to be
served personally as soon as is practicable’.

(b) in paragraph (7), the words from ‘a
copy of’ to ‘paragraph (2) or’ were omitted.

Solicitor’s undertaking

Rule 2

(1) An undertaking given by a solicitor in relation to
any proceeding in a county court may be enforced, by order of the judge of that
court, by committal order against the solicitor.

(2) Where it appears to the judge that a solicitor has
failed to carry out any such undertaking, he may of his own initiative direct
the court officer to issue a notice calling on the solicitor to show cause why
he should not be committed to prison.

(3) Where any party to the proceedings desires to have
the undertaking enforced by committal order, the court officer shall, on the
application of the party supported by an affidavit setting out the facts on
which the application is based, issue such a notice as is referred to in
paragraph (2).

Discharge of person in custody

Rule 3

(1) Where a person in custody under a warrant or order,
other than a warrant of committal to which Order 27, rule 8, or Order 28, rule
4 or 14, relates, desires to apply to the court for his discharge, he shall
make his application in writing attested by the governor of the prison (or any
other officer of the prison not below the rank of principal officer) showing
that he has purged or is desirous of purging his contempt and shall, not less
than one day before the application is made, serve notice of it on the party,
if any, at whose instance the warrant or order was issued.

(2) If the committal order –

(a) does not direct that any application for
discharge shall be made to a judge; or

(b) was made by the district judge under section
118 of the Act², any application for
discharge may be made to the district judge.

(3) Nothing in paragraph (1) shall apply to an
application made by the Official Solicitor in his official capacity for the
discharge of a person in custody.

Footnotes

1. 1869 c.62; 1878 c.54.

2. Section 118 was amended by the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1986
(c.12); and by the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 (c.41), section 74(6).