Citation, commencement and effect

1.-(1) This Order may be cited as the Justice of the Peace Court Fees (Scotland) Order 2012 and, subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), comes into force on 10th December 2012.

(2) Article 2(1)(b) and Schedule 2 come into force, and article 2(1)(a) and Schedule 1 cease to have effect, on 1st April 2013.

(3) Article 2(1)(c) and Schedule 3 come into force, and article 2(1)(b) and Schedule 2 cease to have effect, on 1st April 2014.

Fees payable to Justice of the Peace courts

2.-(1) Subject to articles 3 and 4-

(a)the fees payable to a JP court in respect of the matters specified in column 1 of the Table of Fees in Schedule 1 are the fees specified in relation to those matters in column 2 of that Table;

(b)the fees payable to a JP court in respect of the matters specified in column 1 of the Table of Fees in Schedule 2 are the fees specified in relation to those matters in column 2 of that Table;

(c)the fees payable to a JP court in respect of the matters specified in column 1 of the Table of Fees in Schedule 3 are the fees specified in relation to those matters in column 2 of that Table.

(2) The fees payable under this Order are to be paid to the JP court.

(3) The fees regulated by this Order are not payable by the Crown in the enforcement of the criminal law or in the exercise of powers or the performance of duties arising out of or relating to that enforcement.

(4) No act is required of the JP court in connection with a matter specified in relation to any fee prior to the payment of that fee, or an arrangement being entered into for payment of that fee.

Exemption of certain persons from fees

3.-(1) A fee regulated by this Order is not payable by a person if-

(a)the person or the person's partner is in receipt of income support under the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992(2);

(b)the person is in receipt of an income-based jobseeker's allowance (payable under the Jobseekers Act 1995)(3);

(c)the person or the person's partner is in receipt of guarantee credit under the State Pension Credit Act 2002(4);

(d)the person or the person's partner is in receipt of working tax credit, provided that-

(i)child tax credit is being paid to the party, or otherwise following a claim for child tax credit made jointly by the members of a couple (as defined in section 3(5A) of the Tax Credits Act 2002(5)) which includes the party; or

(ii)there is a disability element or severe disability element (or both) to the tax credit received by the party;

and that the gross annual income taken into account for the calculation of the working tax credit is £16,642 or less; or

(e)the person or the person's partner is in receipt of income-related employment and support allowance under the Welfare Reform Act 2007(6).

(2) In this article "partner" means a person to whom a person is married or with whom the person is registered as a civil partner in terms of sections 1(1), 85(1) or 137(1) of the Civil Partnership Act 2004(7).

Revocation

4. The District Court Fees Order 1984(8) is revoked.

Article 2(1)(a)

SCHEDULE 1TABLE OF FEES

Article 2(1)(b)

SCHEDULE 2TABLE OF FEES

Article 2(1)(c)

SCHEDULE 3TABLE OF FEES

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order makes provision for the fees payable to Justice of the Peace courts in Scotland. JP courts were established by virtue of the Criminal Proceedings etc. (Reform) (Scotland) Act 2007, which Act also abolished districts courts.

Articles 1 and 2 and Schedules 1 to 3 specify fee levels payable to the JP court in respect of certain matters.

• The fee levels for the period from 1st December 2012 until 31st March 2013 are given effect by the Table of Fees in Schedule 1.

• The fee levels for the period from 1st April 2013 until 31st March 2014 are given effect by substituting the Table of Fees in Schedule 1 with the Table of Fees in Schedule 2.

• The fee levels from 1st April 2014 onwards are given effect by substituting the Table of Fees in Schedule 2 with the Table of Fees in Schedule 3.

Article 2(3) provides that fees are not to be payable by the Crown or any other government body that requests information in the enforcement of the criminal law or in the exercise of their powers or the performance of their duties arising out of or relating to that enforcement.

Article 2(4) provides that the JP court is not required to do any act in connection with the matter specified in relation to that fee without either prior payment of the fee or entering into an arrangement for payment of the fee.

Article 3 exempts certain persons from payment of fees.

Article 4 revokes the District Court Fees Order 1984.