Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

committal definition

What does committal mean? In practice, committal refers either to transferring a case or defendant from one court to another, or to ordering a person’s detention in custody. England and Wales: formal committal for trial from the magistrates’ court has been replaced by sending for trial, but courts still commit for sentence where magistrates’ sentencing powers are insufficient, and may issue a warrant of committal to custody (for example, for contempt of court or certain enforcement failures). Northern Ireland: committal proceedings before a magistrates’ court remain the usual gateway to the Crown Court (testing whether there is a case to answer), alongside developing direct committal reforms. Scotland:...

Archived pre-1 October 2020 CPR 81 guide: committal and sequestration applications, evidence, hearings, legal aid, right to silence, abuse of process, warrants (England and Wales)

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Practice notes

ARCHIVED:

This Practice Note is archived and is no longer maintained. It is provided solely for historical reference, as it concerns CPR 81 as it then applied before 1 October 2020, and Practice Direction 81, which is revoked in its entirety with effect from 1 October 2020. If you are dealing with a committal application post 1 October 2020, please refer instead to the CPR 81 currently in force and the Practice Notes that cover this—see: Contempt and committal—overview. For the pre‑1 October 2020 version of CPR 81 or Practice Direction 81, see:

This note sets out the practical ‘nuts and bolts’ of committal applications, detailing the necessary components and ingredients, the procedural formal steps, and the hurdles that must be satisfied when pursuing committal for contempt or seeking writs of Sequestration. It may be helpful to read it alongside the following Practice Notes:

Committal proceedings—hearings in absence and hearings in private
Committal proceedings—appeals, purges and discharge
Committal proceedings—Discontinuance, defects and strike out
Committal proceedings—sentencing

For guidance on the individual and specific ‘types’ of contempt or writs of sequestration, see the following relevant Practice Notes:

Committal proceedings—false statements [Archived]
Committal proceedings—interference with the administration of justice
Civil contempt proceedings—non-compliance with a...

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Alexander West

Albion Chambers

Alexander West specialises in Matrimonial Finance, Regulatory Crime and Inquests.Having started his career with a City finance firm before moving to Linklaters LLP, Alexander now practices across the Western Circuit and beyond, undertaking a range of work across each of his areas of specialism. Alexander is a scholar of Middle Temple at GDL and BPTC level, and received the Sachs Award (top 5%) from City Law School for his results following the vocational element of his training. Alexander qualified as a mediator in 2010 and has since provided mediation training to barristers, solicitors and non-legal professionals, focusing on a facilitative approach to dispute resolution. Alexander is ranked by both Chambers & Partners and the Legal 500. ...

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