Source: https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/family/parts/part-39-attachment-of-earnings
Timestamp: 2019-07-22 22:28:34
Document Index: 502508857

Matched Legal Cases: ['ART 39', 'ART 39', 'ART 39', 'art 6', 'art 47', 'art 18']

PART 39 - ATTACHMENT OF EARNINGS
SCHEDULE 1 NEW PART 39 OF THE FAMILY PROCEDURE RULES 2010
PART 39 ATTACHMENT OF EARNINGS
39.1.—
(1) Chapter 2 of this Part applies where an attachment of earnings order is sought in the family court to secure payments under a family court or High Court maintenance order whether or not arrears have accrued.
(Section 1 of the 1971 Act(a) makes provision for when the family court or the High Court may make an attachment of earnings order.)
If requested to do so by any person having a maintenance order against a debtor, the court officer must—
(b) issue a certificate of the result of the search.
SECURING PAYMENTS UNDER A MAINTENANCE ORDER IN THE FAMILY COURT – ATTACHMENT OF EARNINGS ORDER
An application for an attachment of earnings order to which this Chapter applies must be sent to the family court.
39.5.—
(1) Where an application is made for an attachment of earnings order on the making of the maintenance order or of an order varying the maintenance order, the remainder of this rule and rule 39.6 do not apply.
(a) an application in accordance with rule 33.3(1); and
(b) a copy of the sealed (GL) maintenance order.
39.6.—
(1) Notice of the application and a reply form must be served by the court on the debtor in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 6.
(3) No proceedings may be brought for an alleged offence under section 23(2)(c) or (f) of the 1971 Act(a) in relation to the requirement to reply unless—
(b) the court is satisfied that those documents came to the debtor’s knowledge in sufficient time to comply with the requirement.
(c) The court officer must send to the creditor a copy of any reply form received from the debtor.
39.7.—
(1) Without prejudice to the power conferred by section 14(1) of the 1971 Act, a court officer may, at any stage of the proceedings, send to any person appearing to be the debtor’s employer a notice requesting that person to give to the court a statement of the debtor’s earnings.
(a) state the debtor’s earnings;
(b) state the debtor’s anticipated earnings;
(c) include such particulars as requested in the notice from the court; and
(d) be given to the court within such period as is specified in the notice.
An application for an attachment of earnings order to secure payments under a maintenance order must be heard in private, unless the court directs otherwise.
39.9.—
(1) If the debtor has failed to comply with rule 39.6(2) or to make payment to the creditor, the court officer may issue an order under section 14(1) of the 1971 Act which must, in addition to meeting the requirements of rule 39.18(1), direct that any payments made after the date of service of the order must be paid to the court and not direct to the creditor.
(b) to complete and file the form of reply, including the statement of means; or
(c) make payment,
39.10.—
(1) An order under section 23(1) of the 1971 Act for the attendance of the debtor at an adjourned hearing for an attachment of earnings order to secure payments under a maintenance order—
(a) Must be served on the debtor personally not less than 5 days before the day fixed for the adjourned hearing; and
(b) may direct that any future payments made after the date of service of the order under section 23(1) of the 1971 Act must be paid into the court and not direct to the creditor.
(a) be made to court in writing without notice to any other party, stating the reasons for the debtor’s failure to attend the court or refusal to be sworn or to give evidence (as the case may be) and containing an undertaking by the debtor to attend the court or be sworn or to give evidence when required to do so; and
(b) if the debtor has already been lodged in prison, be attested by the governor of the prison (or any other officer of the prison not below rank of principal officer), and in any other case be made in a witness statement or affidavit,
39.11.—
(1) If the debtor fails to attend an adjourned hearing of an application for an attachment of earnings order and a committal order is made, the court making the committal order may direct that its execution be suspended for such period or on such terms or conditions as it may specify.
39.12.—
(1) Where costs are allowed to the creditor on an application for an attachment of earnings order, there may be allowed—
(a) a charge of a legal representative for preparing the application, attending the hearing and, if applicable, for serving the application; and
(b) the court fee for issuing the application.
(2) The costs may be fixed and allowed without detailed assessment under CPR Part 47( ).
39.13.—
(1) An attachment of earnings order must contain such of the following information about the debtor as is known to the court—
(b) the debtor’s place of work;
(c) the nature of the debtor’s work and works number, if any.
(b) that corporation has requested that the court serve on the corporation documents relating to the debtor or to the class of persons to whom the debtor belongs at a particular address,
39.14.—
(1) An application to the court under section 16 of the 1971 Act to determine whether payments to the debtor of a particular class or description are earnings for the purposes of an attachment of earnings order may be made to the court in accordance with Part 18.
(2) If such an application is made, the court officer must fix a date for the hearing of the application by the court and give notice of that hearing to the persons mentioned in section 16(2)(a), (b) and (c) of the 1971 Act( ).
Where an attachment of earnings order made by the family court to secure payments under a maintenance order ceases to have effect under section 8(3) of the 1971 Act( ) and—
(b) the related maintenance order was made by the High Court; and—
(i) the court officer has received notice of the cessation from the court officer of the High Court; or
(ii) a committal order has been made in the family court for the enforcement of the related maintenance order,
39.16.—
(1) The powers conferred by section 9(1) of the 1971 Act may be exercised by the court of its own initiative in the circumstances specified in this rule.
(4) Where the court has made an attachment of earnings order and it appears to the court that the related maintenance order has ceased to have effect (whether by virtue of the terms of the maintenance order or under section 28 of the 1973 Act( ) or otherwise), the court may discharge or vary the attachment of earnings order.
(a) the court makes an order for another form of enforcement for the recovery of payments under the maintenance order; or
(b) there is no further sum payable under the maintenance order.
If, in the opinion of the family court sitting in a Designated Family Judge area in which an attachment of earnings order has been made, the matter could more conveniently proceed in another Designated Family Judge area (whether by reason of the debtor having become resident in that other Designated Family Judge area or otherwise), the court may order that the matter should proceed in that other area.
39.18.—
(1) An order under section 14(1) of the 1971 Act must—
(a) be endorsed with or incorporate a notice warning the person to whom it is directed of the consequences of disobeying the order; and
(b) be served on that person personally.
39.19.—
(a) it is alleged that a person has committed any offence mentioned in section 23(2)(a), (b), (d), (e) or (f) of the 1971 Act in relation to proceedings in, or to an attachment of earnings order made by, the family court; and
39.20.—
(1) This rule applies where a creditor applies for an attachment of earnings order to enforce the payment of arrears which became due more than 12 months before the date of the application for an attachment of earnings order.
(a) section 32 of the 1973 Act(a);
(b) section 32(4) of the 1978 Act(a); or
(c) paragraph 63 of Schedule 5 to the 2004 Act(a),
SECURING PAYMENTS UNDER A MAINTENANCE ORDER IN THE HIGH COURT – ATTACHMENT OF EARNINGS ORDER
Where an application is made to the High Court under this Chapter, the rules in Chapter 2 apply with the following modifications—
(a) for rule 39.4 there is substituted—
(b) for rule 39.8 there is substituted—
(c) rule 39.13(5) is omitted;
(d) for rule 39.15 there is substituted—
(e) for rule 39.17, including the heading to that rule, there is substituted—
If, in the opinion of the High Court sitting in a District Registry in which an attachment of earnings order has been made, the matter could more conveniently proceed in another District Registry (whether by reason of the debtor having become resident in the area of that District Registry or otherwise), the court may order that the matter should proceed in that other District Registry.”;
(f) in rule 39.19(1)(a), for “family court” there is substituted “High Court”; and
(g) in rule 39.20(2), sub-paragraph (b) is omitted.”