The Judicial Office is open from 10am-5pm on Mondays to Thursdays during the law terms and from 10am-4pm on Fridays and during parliamentary recesses. The Judicial Office is closed from 1-2pm daily; and until 2pm on the day of the State Opening of Parliament.

  During the law terms the Appellate Committee sits on Mondays from 11am-4pm and on Tuesdays to Thursdays from 10.30am-4pm, with an hour's adjournment daily from 1-2pm.

FEES AND TAXATION

  Fee enquiries should be addressed to the Judicial Office.

Taxation enquiries (assessment of costs) should be addressed to the Judicial Taxing Clerk, telephone 020-7219 3105.

  Drafts and cheques for fees, including taxing fees, should be made payable to 'House of Lords Account'.

  Drafts and cheques for security money only should be made payable to 'House of Lords Security Fund Account'.

ADMISSION PASSES

  No special admission passes are required for persons wishing to attend hearings of the Appellate Committee or judgments in the House. Prior notice of attendance is not required. Those wishing to attend should enter the Palace of Westminster via St Stephen's entrance.

  Special admission passes to the Palace of Westminster are required by counsel and all those attending the Judicial Office. Application for special admission passes is made as follows:

To attend hearing: application should be made in advance by letter to the Judicial Office. Each party to an appeal is entitled to passes for counsel and a maximum of two clerks and two solicitors The application should give the names of those for whom passes are desired and state the number of days for which passes are required. Passes are available for collection from the Pass Office on the first day on which the pass is required.

To attend judgment: application should be made in advance by letter to the Judicial Office. Each party to an appeal is entitled to passes for counsel and one clerk only.

All others attending a hearing or judgment should enter by St Stephen's entrance.

To attend the Judicial Office: application should be made on the day in person to the Pass Office.

The Pass Office is located at Black Rod's Garden entrance, near the Victoria Tower.

Applications by telephone are not accepted. In no circumstances are passes sent through the post.

1. Leave to appeal

Introduction

1.1  The judicial procedures of the House of Lords are regulated by statute, by standing orders of the House and by practice directions[1]. Copies of these and other documents may be obtained free of charge from the Judicial Office of the House of Lords or downloaded from the Internet.

Terminology

1.2  The Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 is the basic Act governing the judicial function of the House of Lords. This booklet uses the terminology of that Act. The term "leave to appeal" means permission to appeal. A "petition for leave to appeal" is an application for permission to appeal.

Right of appeal

1.3  The right of appeal to the House of Lords is regulated by statute and subject to statutory restrictions. The relevant statutes for criminal appeals are: the Administration of Justice Act 1960; the Criminal Appeal Act 1968; the Courts-Martial (Appeals) Act 1968; the Administration of Justice Act 1969; the Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978; the Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1980; the Extradition Act 2003. Every applicant for leave to appeal must comply with the statutory requirements before the application can be considered by the House. The Human Rights Act 1998 applies to the House in its judicial capacity. But that Act does not confer any general right of appeal to the House, or any right of appeal in addition to or superseding any right of appeal provided for in Acts passed before the coming into force of the Human Rights Act 1998.

Stay of execution

1.4  Presentation of a petition for leave to appeal or of a petition of appeal does not operate as a stay of execution of any order or decision of the lower court. The House does not grant stays of execution of legal proceedings. A party seeking a stay must apply to the court appealed from.

England and Wales and Northern Ireland

1.5  An appeal to the House of Lords may only be brought with the leave of the court below or, if refused by that court, with the leave of the House of Lords. In criminal matters such leave may not be granted unless the court below has issued the certificate referred to in direction 2.

1.6  Subject to directions 1.5 and 2, an application for leave to appeal to the House of Lords in a criminal matter may be made by either the defendant or the prosecutor, as follows:

(a)  from any decision of the Court of Appeal Criminal Division in England and Wales on an appeal to that court[2];

(b)  from any decision of the Courts-Martial Appeal Court on an appeal to that court[3];

(c)  from any decision of the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland on an appeal to that court by a person convicted on indictment[4];

(d)  from any decision of the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland in a criminal cause or matter on a case stated by a county court or magistrates' court[5];

(e)  from any decision of the High Court of Justice in England and Wales in a criminal cause or matter[6];

(f)  from any decision of the High Court of Justice in Northern Ireland in a criminal cause or matter[7].

Scotland

1.7  No appeal lies to the House of Lords from the High Court of Justiciary in Scotland.

Contempt of court

1.8  In cases involving criminal contempt of court, an appeal lies to the House of Lords at the instance of the defendant only and, in respect of an application for committal or attachment, at the instance of the applicant from any decision of the Court of Appeal Criminal Division, the Courts-Martial Appeal Court or the High Court[8].

2. CERTIFICATE OF POINT OF LAW

2.1  Leave to appeal to the House of Lords in a criminal matter may only be granted if it is certified by the court below that a point of law of general public importance is involved in the decision of that court, and it appears to that court or to the House that the point is one that ought to be considered by the House[9]. A petition for leave to appeal without the required certificate may not be lodged (direction 4.8), except as provided by directions 2.2 - 2.4.

2.2  A certificate is not required for an appeal from a decision of the High Court in England and Wales or of the High Court in Northern Ireland on a criminal application for habeas corpus[10].

2.3  A certificate is not required for an appeal by a minister of the Crown or a person nominated by him, a member of the Scottish Executive, a Northern Ireland minister or a Northern Ireland department when they have been joined as a party to any criminal proceedings other than in Scotland by a notice given under the Human Rights Act 1998 ss 5(1) and 5(2) and wish to appeal under s 5(4) of that Act against any declaration of incompatibility made in those proceedings.

2.4  A certificate is not required in contempt of court cases where the decision of the court below was not a decision on appeal[11].

3. TIME LIMITS

Time within which to apply for leave to appeal

3.1  Application for leave to appeal to the House of Lords must first be made to the court below. Such application must be made within a period of fourteen days beginning with the date of the decision of the court below (and not the following day)[12]. This requirement also applies to contempt of court and habeas corpus cases whether or not a certificate is granted. If the court below refuses leave to appeal, application must then be made to the House of Lords.

3.2  Application to the House of Lords for leave to appeal is made by petition (direction 4) and must be made within a period of fourteen days beginning with the date on which the application for such leave was refused by the court below (and not the following day). This date is not necessarily that on which the point of law was certified. Where the time prescribed expires on a Saturday, Sunday, bank holiday or other day on which the Judicial Office is closed, the application is accepted as being in time if it is received on the next day on which the Judicial Office is open.

Application for extension of time to lodge petition for leave

3.3  Except for appeals under the Extradition Act 2003 (where no extension may be granted)[13], the House of Lords or the court below may, on application made at any time by the defendant but not the prosecutor[14], extend the time within which application for leave to appeal to the House may be made to the House or to that court[15]. Such an application to the House is incorporated in the petition for leave itself, and should set out briefly the reason(s) why the petition is being presented outside the statutory fourteen-day period. The reason(s) should not normally exceed a paragraph in length. For form of petition, see Appendix A, Form 3.

Public funding and legal aid

3.4  The House of Lords does not grant public funding or legal aid. In criminal proceedings, depending on the route of appeal, application is made to the court appealed from or, in Northern Ireland, to the Legal Aid Committee. Where an application for public funding/legal aid has been made but not determined within the statutory fourteen days set out in direction 3.1, then provided the Judicial Office and the respondents to the proposed petition have been informed of the application for funding, the period within which the petition for leave to appeal must be lodged is extended to fourteen days from the date of the final determination of the funding application. Such an extension may not be granted to a petitioner under the Extradition Act 2003[16].

4. LODGMENT OF PETITION

Form of petition

4.1  A petition for leave to appeal should be produced on durable quality A4 paper, bound on the left like a book, using both sides of the paper. The petition should set out briefly the facts and points of law; and conclude with a summary of the reasons why leave should be granted[17]. Petitions which are not legible or which are not produced in the required form are not accepted. A petition should not contain annexes or appendices. Parties may consult the Judicial Office at any stage of preparation of the petition, and may submit petitions in draft for approval.

4.2  In petitions where a prosecuting authority is petitioner, the prosecuting authority should be described in the preamble to the petition as follows: "Director of Public Prosecutions (or other prosecuting authority) (on behalf of Her Majesty)".

4.3  Supporting documents other than those set out in direction 5.2 are not normally accepted.

4.4  Amendments to petitions and the lodging of supplementary petitions are allowed only in exceptional circumstances. The Head of the Judicial Office may allow amendments to petitions and the lodging of supplementary petitions if he is satisfied that this will assist the Appeal Committee and will not unfairly prejudice the respondents or cause undue delay. Any such amendments and supplementary petitions must be served on the respondents (direction 4.14).

4.5  If a petition for leave to appeal:

(a) asks the House to depart from one of its own decisions;

(b) raises issues relating to the Human Rights Act 1998; or

(c) seeks a reference to the Court of Justice of the European Communities,

this point should be stated clearly in the petition.

4.6  A petition for leave to appeal must be signed by the petitioners or their agents

4.7  On the back of the petition for leave, underneath the certificate of service, there should be inserted the neutral citation of the judgment petitioned against, the references of any law report in the courts below, and subject matter catchwords for indexing, whether or not the case has been reported (see direction 4.9).

4.8  The Judicial Office cannot accept for lodgment any petition for leave to appeal that is not accompanied by the certificate from the court below required by statute, certifying a point of law of general public importance (see direction 2)[18].

Case title

4.9  Petitions for leave to appeal to the House of Lords carry the same title as in the court below, except that the parties are described as petitioner(s) and respondent(s). For reference purposes, the names of parties to the original action who are not parties to the appeal should nevertheless be included in the title: their names should be enclosed in square brackets. The names of all parties should be given in the same sequence as in the title used in the court below.

4.10  Petitions in which trustees, executors etc. are parties are titled in the short form, for example Trustees of John Black's Charity (Respondents) v. White (Petitioner).

4.11  In any petition concerning minors or where in the court below the title used has been such as to conceal the identity of one or more parties to the action, this fact should be clearly drawn to the attention of the Judicial Office at the time the petition is lodged, so that the title adopted in the House of Lords can take account of the need for anonymity. Petitions involving minors are normally given a title in the form In re B (see also direction 10.4).

4.12  In case titles involving the Crown, the abbreviation "R" meaning "Regina" is used. "R" is always given first. So case titles using this abbreviation take the form "R v Jones (Petitioner)" or "R v Jones (Respondent)" (as the case may be) or "R (on the application of Jones) (Petitioner) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Respondent)".

4.13  Apart from the above, Latin is not used in case titles.

Service

4.14  A copy of the petition must be served on the respondents or their agents, either by delivery in person or by first class post, before it is lodged in the Judicial Office. A certificate of such service (noting the full name and address of the respondents or their agents) must be endorsed on the back of the original petition and signed[19]. In habeas corpus appeals and/or in appeals concerning extradition, the petition must be served on the government that is seeking extradition or on the Director of Public Prosecutions if he is acting for that government.

Lodgment

4.15  Two top copies of the original petition must be lodged in the Judicial Office, together with a copy of the order appealed from and, if separate, a copy of the order of the court below refusing leave to appeal. If the substantive order appealed against is not immediately available, the petition should nevertheless be lodged within the required time limits, and the order lodged as soon as possible thereafter.

4.16  An agent who attends the Judicial Office to lodge a petition for leave to appeal and/or accompanying papers must be familiar with the subject matter of the petition.

Appearance for respondents

4.17  Respondents or their agents enter appearance to a petition for leave as soon as they have received service. The respondents or their agents enter appearance by attending at the Judicial Office to enter their name and address or that of their firm and paying the fee, or by letter to the Judicial Office together with the fee. The fee is refunded if the petition is dismissed as inadmissible.

4.18  Respondents who do not intend to take part in the proceedings do not need to enter appearance, but the Judicial Office sends communications concerning a petition for leave to appeal only to those who have entered appearance.

4.19  An order for costs will not be made in favour of a respondent who has not entered an appearance.

Communications by fax/e-mail

4.20  Communications with the Judicial Office may be transmitted by facsimile (fax) or e-mail only in urgent circumstances. No document which is to be presented to the House or on which a fee is payable may be transmitted by fax or e-mail.

5. APPEAL COMMITTEE

5.1  Petitions for leave to appeal to the House of Lords are considered by an Appeal Committee consisting of three Lords of Appeal in Ordinary. Petitions are generally decided on the papers alone, without a hearing.

Additional papers

5.2  The following additional papers for use by the Appeal Committee must be lodged within one week of lodgment of the petition:

(a)  four copies of the petition;

(b)  four copies of the order appealed from;

(c)  if separate, four copies of the order of the court below refusing leave to appeal to the House of Lords;

(d)  five copies of the official transcript of the judgment of the court below[20];

(e)  five copies of the order of the court of first instance;

(f)  five copies of the official transcript of the judgment of the court of first instance[21];

(g)  five copies of any unreported judgment cited in the petition or judgment of a court below.

No other papers are required, and documents other than those listed above are not normally received.

5.3  Papers lodged in accordance with direction 5.2 above should be lodged as individual documents, double-sided, not bound together or inserted into ring binders. Documents which are not clearly legible or which are not in the required style or form (see direction 4.1) are not accepted.

5.4  Where the required papers are not lodged within three months of presentation of the petition and no good reason is given, the petition may at the direction of the Head of the Judicial Office be referred to an Appeal Committee without the required accompanying papers.

Consideration on the papers

5.5  The Appeal Committee decides first whether a petition for leave to appeal is admissible. The rules on admissibility are set out in directions 1 and 2. If the Appeal Committee determines that a petition is inadmissible, it may refuse leave on that ground alone and not consider the content of the petition. The Appeal Committee gives a reason for its decision that the petition is inadmissible.

5.6  If the Appeal Committee decides that a petition is admissible, the Committee may then:

(a)  refuse leave (see direction 5.8);

(b)  give leave outright (see direction 5.9);

(c)  invite the respondents to lodge objections to the petition (see direction 5.10);

(d)  give leave on terms (see direction 5.13);

(e)  refer the petition for an oral hearing (see direction 5.14).

5.7  Leave to appeal is granted to petitions that raise an arguable point of law of general public importance which ought to be considered by the House at this time, bearing in mind that the matter will already have been the subject of judicial decision and reviewed on appeal. A petition which in the opinion of the Appeal Committee does not raise such a point of law is refused on that ground. The Appeal Committee gives brief reasons for refusing leave to appeal[22] but does not otherwise explain its decisions[23].

Leave refused

5.8  If the Appeal Committee is unanimous that a petition should be refused, the parties are notified that the petition is dismissed.

Leave given outright

5.9  If the Appeal Committee is unanimous that a petition should be allowed without further proceedings, the House grants leave outright (without inviting respondents' objections).

Respondents' objections

5.10  The Appeal Committee may invite the respondents to lodge objections to the petition. Respondents' objections set out briefly the reasons why the petition should be refused or make submissions as to the terms upon which leave should be granted (for example, on costs). A copy of the respondents' objections should be sent to the agents for the other parties. In certain circumstances the Appeal Committee may invite further submissions from the petitioners in the light of the respondents' objections, but petitioners do not have a right to comment on respondents' objections. Where the Appeal Committee does not require further submissions, and provided the Committee is unanimous in its decision to grant or refuse leave, it reports its decision to the House and the parties are informed. If after considering the respondents' objections the Appeal Committee proposes terms for granting leave, the parties have the right to make submissions on the terms within 14 days (direction 5.13).

5.11  Respondents have no right to submit objections to a petition for leave to appeal, and may do so only at the request of the Appeal Committee. The Appeal Committee does not accept respondents' objections or submissions before these have been requested and respondents must not anticipate the Appeal Committee's decision in this regard (and so incur costs unnecessarily).

5.12  Parties invited to submit objections to the granting of leave are informed of the date by which they should do so (normally within two weeks). Seven copies of the objections are required to be lodged in the Judicial Office. Parties should inform the Judicial Office by the same date if no such submissions are to be made.

Leave given on terms

5.13  If the Appeal Committee decides that leave to appeal should be given on terms, the Committee proposes the terms. The parties have the right to make submissions on the proposed terms within 14 days.

Petition referred for oral hearing

5.14  In all cases where the members of the Appeal Committee are not unanimous, or where further argument is required, a petition for leave to appeal is referred for an oral hearing.

5.15  If the respondents have not already been invited to lodge objections, they should do so as soon as possible after being informed that the petition has been referred for a hearing.

5.16  When a petition is referred for an oral hearing, the petitioners and all respondents who have entered appearance are notified of the date of the hearing before the Appeal Committee.

5.17  Parties may be heard before the Appeal Committee by counsel, by agent, or in person, but one only may be heard on each side.

5.18  If counsel is briefed, agents should ensure that the Judicial Office is notified of their name. Only a junior counsel's fee is allowed on taxation (assessment of costs).

5.19  Authorities are not normally cited before the Appeal Committee or provided for the Committee's use at the hearing.

Lodgment of petition of appeal

5.20  If leave to appeal is given, the petition of appeal (direction 10) must be lodged within two weeks of the date of the Appeal Committee's decision.

Order of the House

5.21  Copies of the Minutes of Proceedings of the House recording the report of the Appeal Committee and the order of the House are sent to all parties who have entered appearance.

5.22  A formal order of the Appeal Committee is not normally issued but will be issued on written request and on payment of a fee. A formal order is not required for taxation of costs arising from the application for leave to appeal.

Expedition

5.23  Once the required papers are lodged in the Judicial Office, the procedure described above is normally completed within eight sitting weeks (excluding any oral hearing). However, in cases involving liberty of the subject, urgent medical intervention or the well-being of children, application for expedition may be made in writing to the Judicial Office.

6. COSTS

6.1  Where a petition for leave to appeal is determined without an oral hearing, costs may be awarded as follows:

(a)  to a publicly funded or legally aided petitioner, reasonable costs incurred in preparing papers for the Appeal Committee[24];

(b)  to a publicly funded or legally aided respondent, only those costs necessarily incurred in attending the client, attending the petitioner's agents, perusing the petition, entering appearance and, where applicable, preparing respondent's objections to the petition[25];

(c)  to an unassisted respondent where the petitioner is publicly funded or legally aided, payment out of the Community Legal Service Fund (pursuant to s 11 of the Access to Justice Act 1999[26])[27] of costs as specified at (b) above;

(d)  to a petitioner or respondent, payment out of central funds, pursuant to s 16 or s 17 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985, of costs incurred at (a) or (b) above, as the case may be;

(e)  to a respondent where neither party is publicly funded or legally aided, costs as specified at (b) above to be paid by the petitioner [28].

Where costs are sought under (c), (d) or (e) above, the application may be made by letter addressed to the Judicial Office or may be included in a bill of costs lodged in the Judicial Office conditional upon the application being granted.

6.2  Where a petition for leave to appeal is referred for an oral hearing and is dismissed, application for costs must be made by the respondent at the end of the hearing. No order for costs will be made unless requested at that time.

6.3  Where a petition for leave to appeal is allowed, the costs of the petition will be costs in the ensuing appeal.

6.4  Bills of costs for taxation must be lodged within three months from the date of the decision of the Appeal Committee or the date on which a petition for leave is withdrawn in accordance with Direction 42. If an extension of the three months period is desired, application must be made in writing to the Taxing Officer and copies of all such correspondence sent to all interested parties. In deciding whether to grant an application for an extension of time made after the expiry of the three month period the Taxing Officer takes into account the circumstances set out in the practice directions applicable to judicial taxations[29].

6.5  The practice directions relating to judicial taxations and forms of bills of costs are available on request from the Judicial Office. Fees are payable on taxation of a bill of costs.

7. FEES

7.1  No fee is payable at any stage of a petition for leave to appeal in a criminal matter, except when a formal order of the House is requested[30]. Fees are payable on the taxation of a bill of costs.

8. TIME LIMITS

8.1  Standing Order I provides that petitions of appeal must be lodged in the Judicial Office within three months of the date on which the order appealed from was made[31]. The order appealed from is the substantive order complained of.

8.2  However, this time limit may be varied (but not increased) by an order of the House when granting leave or by an order of the court below.

8.3  Appeals under the Extradition Act 2003 must be lodged within 28 days of the grant of leave, starting with the day on which leave is granted. The time for doing so may not be extended[32].

Out of time appeals

8.4  Where a petition of appeal is not lodged within the time allowed, a petition for leave to present the appeal out of time may be lodged. This petition is referred to an Appeal Committee.

Fees

8.5  No fee is payable at any stage of a criminal appeal, except taxation (assessment of costs).

9. LONDON AGENTS

9.1  Solicitors outside London may appoint London agents. Those who decide not to do so should note that any additional costs incurred as a result of that decision may be disallowed on taxation (assessment of costs).

10. LODGMENT OF APPEAL

Form of petition of appeal

10.1  Petitions of appeal (and all other formal documents to the House of Lords) must be produced on durable quality A4 paper, bound on the left like a book, using both sides of the paper (see Appendix A, Form 4 for style of petition and direction 24 for preparation of documents).

10.2  Where leave to appeal has been obtained from the court below or from the House, it is enough for the petition of appeal to be signed by the appellants or their agents.

Case title

10.3  (a) Petitions of appeal to the House of Lords carry the same title as in the court below, except that the parties are described as appellant(s) and respondent(s). For reference purposes, the names of parties to the original action who are not parties to the appeal should nevertheless be included in the title: their names should be enclosed in square brackets. The names of all parties should be given in the same sequence as in the title used in the court below.

(b) Petitions in which trustees, executors, etc. are parties are titled in the short form, for example Trustees of John Black's Charity (Respondents) v. White (Appellant).

(c) In any petition concerning minors or where in the court below the title used has been such as to conceal the identity of one or more parties to the action, this fact should be clearly drawn to the attention of the Judicial Office at the time the petition is lodged, so that the title adopted in the House of Lords can take account of the need for anonymity. Petitions involving minors are normally given a title in the form In re B.

(d) In case titles involving the Crown, the abbreviation "R" meaning "Regina" is used. "R" is always given first. Case titles using this abbreviation take the form "R v Jones (Appellant)" or "R v Jones (Respondent)" (as the case may be) or "R (on the application of Jones) (Appellant) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Respondent)".

(e) Apart from the above, Latin is not used in case titles.

Anonymity and reporting restrictions

10.4  In any appeal concerning children the parties should, in addition to considering the case title to be used, also consider whether it would be appropriate for the House to make an order under s 39 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933. The parties should always inform the Judicial Office if such an order has been made by a court below. A request for such an order to be made by the House should be made in writing, preferably on behalf of all parties to the appeal, as soon as possible after the appeal has been presented and not later than two weeks before the start of the hearing.

10.5  Direction 10.4 also applies to a request for an order under s 4 of the Contempt of Court Act 1981.

Human Rights Act 1998

10.6  Appellants must notify the Judicial Office in writing when:

(a)  the House is to be asked to consider whether to make, uphold or reverse a declaration that a provision of primary or subordinate legislation is incompatible with a European Human Rights Convention right[33], or is to be asked to consider any issue which may lead the House to make such a declaration, or where such an issue is or may be raised in respect of a judicial act;

(b)  a party seeks to challenge an act of a public authority under the Human Rights Act 1998; or

(c)  a party relies in whole or in part on the provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998.

Appellants should indicate whether notification is made under (a), (b) or (c) above (see direction 32.1). They should set out briefly the arguments involved; and state whether the point was taken in the courts below. In appeals in which (a) above is an issue, the Crown has a right to be joined as a party to the appeal (direction 32.2).

Service

10.7  A copy of the petition of appeal must be served on the respondents or their agents, either by delivery in person or by first class post, before lodgment in the Judicial Office. A certificate of such service noting the full name and address of the respondents or their agents must be endorsed on the back of the original petition and signed by the appellants or their agents[34].

Lodgment

10.8  The petition of appeal together with seven copies must be lodged in the Judicial Office. If leave to appeal was granted by the court below, a copy of the order appealed from must also be lodged and, if separate, a copy of the order granting leave to appeal to the House of Lords. If the order is not immediately available, the petition should be lodged in time and the order lodged as soon as possible thereafter.

10.9  Once the petition of appeal has been lodged, it is presented to the House and recorded in the Minutes of Proceedings of the House. A copy of the Minutes is sent to all parties who have entered appearance (direction 10.10).

Appearance for respondents

10.10  Respondents or their agents should enter appearance to an appeal as soon as they have received service of the petition of appeal. They enter appearance by attending at the Judicial Office to enter their name and address or that of their firm, and paying the fee. Respondents may enter appearance by letter to the Judicial Office together with the fee. Respondents who do not intend to take part in the proceedings do not need to enter appearance, but the Judicial Office sends communications concerning the appeal only to those who have entered appearance. An order for costs will not be made in favour of a respondent who has not entered an appearance.

Children

10.11  In a case involving a child, where delay might affect the facts of the case or the interests of the child, parties should draw these facts to the attention of the Head of the Judicial Office not later than the day of presentation of the petition of appeal.

Citations and references

10.12  On the back page of the petition below the certificate of service there should be inserted the neutral citation of the judgment appealed against, the references of any law report of the case in the courts below and subject matter catchwords for indexing (whether or not the case has been reported).

11. SECURITY FOR COSTS AND FEES

11.1  No security for costs is required to be lodged in criminal appeals to the House of Lords and no fee is payable, except on taxation.

12. STATEMENT OF FACTS AND ISSUES

12.1  The appellants must lodge a Statement of the facts and issues and an Appendix containing documents used in evidence or recording proceedings in the courts below. This must be done within six weeks of the presentation of the appeal, or longer period approved by the House (direction 14.3). The Statement should be a succinct account of the main facts of the case, including an account of judicial proceedings up to that point and an account of the issues raised by the appeal. The appellants are responsible for drawing up the Statement in draft and they must submit it to the respondents for discussion and agreement. The Statement must be a single document agreed between the parties. In the event of disagreement, disputed material should be removed from the draft Statement and included instead in each party's case (direction 16). The Statement must be signed on behalf of each party by at least one counsel who appeared in the court below or who will appear at the hearing before the House.

12.2  In any appeal under the Criminal Appeal Act 1968, the Statement must state clearly whether any grounds of appeal have been left undetermined by the Court of Appeal[35] (see also direction 16.6).

Form of Statement of facts and issues

12.3  The Statement of facts and issues should be produced on durable quality A4 paper and incorporate:

(a)  pages printed on both sides of the paper;

(b)  capital letters down the inside margins;

(c)  references on the outside margins to relevant pages of the Appendix;

(d)  on the front cover, the reference of every law report of the case in the courts below, together with the catchword summary of one of the reports;

(e)  on the front cover, a headnote summary, whether or not the case has been reported;

(f)  on the front cover, a statement of the time occupied in the courts below; and

(g)  at the end, the signatures of counsel for both parties above their printed names.

13. APPENDIX

13.1  It is the appellants' responsibility in consultation with the respondents to prepare and lodge an Appendix of documents considered necessary for the appeal. These documents include all the documents used in evidence or recording proceedings in the courts below.

13.2  The appellants bear the cost of preparing the Appendix, although these costs are ultimately subject to the decision of the House as to the costs of the appeal.

Contents of Appendix

13.3  The Appendix contains only documents or extracts from documents that are necessary to support and understand the argument when the appeal is heard by the Appellate Committee. No document which was not used in evidence or does not record proceedings relevant to the action in the courts below may be included. Transcripts of arguments in the courts below may not be included unless remarks by a judge are relied on by any party or the arguments refer to facts which are admitted by all parties and as to which no evidence was called.

13.4  The Appendix consists of one or more parts. Part 1 must contain:

(a)  formal originating documents;

(b)  case stated (if any);

(c)  judgments and orders relating to the decisions at first instance and on appeal;

(d)  relevant legislative provisions including delegated legislation; and

(e)  any relevant document on which the action is founded (such as a will, contract, map, plan etc.) or an extract from such document.

Published documents under (b), (c) and (d) above may so far as is practicable be placed in a pocket attached to the inside of the back cover of the Appendix.

13.5  For judgments that have been published, unbound parts of the relevant Law Reports or the Weekly Law Reports should be used if available; otherwise the All England Reports, Tax Cases, Simons' Tax Cases, Reports of Patent Cases and Lloyd's List Reports may be used. In Scottish appeals, Session Cases should be used where available; otherwise, Scots Law Times and Scottish Civil Case Reports may be used. Where, at the time of preparation of the Appendix, a judgment of a court below has not been published, a transcript must be included, which may later be replaced by the published version. In such circumstances, 15 copies of the published version should be submitted to the Judicial Office. Judgments in draft are not accepted. For legislation, if the printed Act or set of Regulations is conveniently small; it should be used; if the provisions are bulky or numerous, the relevant provisions should be copied. Halsbury's Statutes may be used.

13.6  Other documents should be included in Part 2 of the Appendix and, if the bulk of the documents makes it necessary, in Parts 3, 4 etc. The Appendix volume should only be numbered Part 1 if there is more than one Part.

Form of Appendix

13.7  The Appendix takes the following form:

(a)  it must be A4 size bound with a plastic comb binding and red card covers (red indicating a criminal appeal);

(b)  documents must be printed on both sides of the paper;

(c)  documents must be numbered;

(d)  original documents under the size of A4 may be enlarged to A4 size with a broad outside margin;

(e)  if the Appendix has more than one Part, each Part must contain a list of its contents;

(f)  documents of an unsuitable size or form for binding (for example, booklets or charts) should be included in a pocket attached to the inside back cover of the appropriate Appendix volume.

Examination of Appendix

13.8  The Appendix is for the use of all parties and the contents of the Appendix must be agreed by appellants and respondents. Disputed documents (see direction 13.9) should not be included in the Appendix. As soon as proofs of the Appendix are available they should be examined against the originals by all parties, if possible at one joint examination. As soon as practicable after the examination, a final proof of the Appendix should be provided to each party.

Documents in readiness at hearing

13.9  Disputed documents and any document not included in the Appendix which may be required at the hearing should be held in readiness and, subject to leave being given by the Appellate Committee, may be introduced at an appropriate moment. Fifteen copies are required. All such documents are subject to previous examination by the other parties. Where the appellants refuse to include in the Appendix any documents that the respondents consider necessary, the respondents must prepare and reproduce the documents at their own expense, subject to the final order on costs.

14. LODGMENT OF STATEMENT AND APPENDIX

Time limits

14.1  The Statement and Appendix must be lodged by the appellants within six weeks of the presentation of the appeal, or within such longer period as may be allowed on petition (see direction 14.3)[36].

14.2  If this time limit expires during a parliamentary recess, it is automatically extended to the third next sitting day of the House of Lords[37]; and if any party has applied for public funding/legal aid, the time limit is automatically extended to one month after the notification of the result of the funding decision, provided that the Judicial Office has been informed of the application[38].

Petitions for extension of time—first extension

14.3  Appellants who are unable to complete preparation of the Statement and Appendix within the initial six weeks' period may apply by petition for an extension of that time[39]. The petition takes the form common to all formal documents of the House. It should explain briefly the reason(s) why an extension is needed. Application may be made for an extension of up to six weeks from the original expiry date, and the petition must specify the date to which the extension is requested. If that date seems likely to fall in a parliamentary recess, the petition may request extension until '[specify date] or the third sitting day of the next ensuing meeting of the House'[40].

14.4  A petition for extension of time must be signed by the appellants. It must be submitted to those respondents who have entered appearance, for the endorsement of their consent. The petition must be lodged before the expiry of the six weeks initially allowed for lodging the Statement and Appendix.

Petitions for extension of time—second and subsequent extensions

14.5  Up to three extensions of time are normally granted, provided that they do not prejudice the preparation for the hearing or its proposed date. A petition for a fourth extension of time, and any subsequent petitions, may, at the discretion of the Head of the Judicial Office, be referred to an Appeal Committee.

Respondents' consent

14.6  Respondents are expected not to withhold unreasonably their consent to a petition for extension of time. If consent is refused the petition must be endorsed with a certificate that it has been served on the respondents. The petition is then referred to an Appeal Committee and decided after an oral hearing. In that event, eight copies of the petition must be lodged.

Lodgment

14.7  When the Statement and Appendix are ready, eight copies of the Statement, eight copies of Part 1 of the Appendix and 15 copies of Parts 2 etc (if any) must be lodged in the Judicial Office. The appellants must at the same time apply to set down the appeal for hearing.

15. SETTING DOWN FOR HEARING

15.1  An appeal is set down for hearing at the same time as the appellants lodge the Statement and Appendix[41].

15.2  Once an appeal has been set down for hearing, it may be called on at any time. Certain directions, for example directions 16.14 - 16.15, may be dispensed with to enable an appeal to be called on at short notice.

Estimates of length of time needed for hearing of appeal

15.3  Within seven days of the setting down of an appeal, each party must notify the Judicial Office of the number of hours that their counsel estimate to be necessary for each of them to address the Appellate Committee. The Listings Officer arranges the programme of hearings on the basis of these estimates, and so they should be as accurate as is reasonably possible. Subject to any directions by the Appellate Committee before or at the hearing, counsel are expected to confine their submissions to the time indicated in their estimates. The Judicial Office should be informed at once of any alteration to the original estimate.

15.4  In all appeals where combined estimates amount to more than 17½ hours (four sitting days), such estimates must be justified by letter to the Head of the Judicial Office and may be referred to an Appeal Committee for a direction.

16. APPELLANTS' AND RESPONDENTS' CASES

16.1  The case is the statement of a party's argument in the appeal.

16.2  The case should be confined to the heads of argument that counsel propose to submit at the hearing and omit material contained in the Statement of facts and issues[42]. The members of the Appeal Committee who gave leave to appeal may not be sitting on the Appellate Committee; and so it cannot be assumed that the members of the Appellate Committee will be familiar with the arguments set out in the petition for leave to appeal.

16.3  Page 1 of the case should set out the title of the party on whose behalf it is lodged.

16.4  If either party is abandoning any point taken in the courts below, this should be made plain in their case. If they intend to apply in the course of the hearing for leave to introduce a new point not taken below, this should also be indicated in their case and the Judicial Office informed. If such a point involves the introduction of fresh evidence, application for leave must be made either in the case or by lodging a petition for leave to adduce the fresh evidence.

16.5  If a party intends to invite the House to depart from one of its own decisions, this intention must be clearly stated in a separate paragraph of their case, to which special attention must be drawn. A respondent who wishes to contend that a decision of the court below should be affirmed on grounds other than those relied on by that court must set out the grounds for that contention in their case.

16.6  In any appeal under the Criminal Appeal Act 1968 in which grounds of appeal have been left undetermined by the Court of Appeal (see direction 12.2), each party should include in their case submissions on the merits of those grounds and on how they would seek to have them disposed of by the House.

16.7  Transcripts of unreported judgments should only be cited when they contain an authoritative statement of a relevant principle of law not to be found in a reported case or when are necessary for the understanding of some other authority.

16.8  All cases must conclude with a numbered summary of the reasons upon which the argument is founded, and must bear the signature of at least one counsel for each party to the appeal who has appeared in the court below or who will be briefed for the hearing before the House[43].

16.9  The lodgment of a case carries the right to be heard by two counsel, one of whom may be leading counsel. The fees of two counsel only for any party are allowed on taxation unless the Appellate Committee orders otherwise on application at the hearing.

Separate cases

16.10  All the appellants must join in one case. All the respondents must also join in one case, unless it can be shown that the interests of one or more of the respondents are distinct from those of the rest. If the respondents' interests are distinct, the agents who first lodge their case must certify in a letter to the Judicial Office as follows:

(a)  'We, as agents for the respondent(s) [name particular parties], certify that opportunity has been offered by us for joining in one case to the respondent(s) [name particular parties] whose interests are, in our opinion, similar to those set out in the case lodged by us.'; or

(b)  'We, as agents for the respondent(s) [name particular parties], certify that the interests represented in the case lodged by us are, in our opinion, distinct from those of the remaining respondent(s).'

16.11  When one of the foregoing certificates has been given, all remaining respondents wishing to lodge a case must respectively petition to do so in respect of each of their separate cases. Such petitions must be consented to by the appellants, and must set out the reasons for separate lodgment.

16.12  Parties whose interests in the appeal are passive (e.g. stakeholders, trustees, executors, etc.) are not required to lodge a separate case but should ensure that their position is explained in one of the cases lodged.

Joint case

16.13  The lodgment of a joint case on behalf of both appellants and respondents may be permitted in certain circumstances.

Lodgment and exchange of cases

16.14  No later than five weeks before the proposed date of the hearing, the appellants must lodge in the Judicial Office eight copies of their case and serve it on the respondents.

16.15   No later than three weeks before the proposed date of the hearing, the respondents must lodge in the Judicial Office eight copies of their case in response, as must any other party lodging a case (for example, an intervener or advocate to the court).

16.16  The number of copies of cases exchanged should be enough to meet the requirements of counsel and agents and should not usually exceed eight. To enable the appellants to lodge the bound volumes, the respondents and any other party who has lodged a case must also provide the appellants with 15 further copies of their case.

16.17  Following the exchange of cases, further arguments by either side may not without leave be submitted in advance of the hearing.

Form of cases

16.18  Cases must be produced on durable quality A4 paper with:

(a)  capital letters down the inside margins;

(b)  numbered paragraphs;

(c)  the signatures of counsel at the end above their printed names

17. BOUND VOLUMES

17.1  As soon as all cases have been exchanged, and no later than two weeks before the proposed date of the hearing, the appellants must lodge (in addition to the documents already lodged on setting down) 15 bound volumes, each containing:

(a)  petition(s) of appeal;

(b)  petition(s) of cross-appeal (if any);

(c)  Statement of facts and issues;

(d)  appellants' and respondents' cases, with cross-references to the Appendix and authorities' volume(s);

(e)  case of the advocate to the court or intervener, if any;

(f)  Part 1 of the Appendix; and

(g)  index to the authorities' volume(s).

Form of bound volumes

17.2  The bound volumes:

(a)  should be bound in the same manner as the Appendix, with plastic comb binding and red card covers;

(b)  must include cut-out indices for each of the documents set out in direction 17.1, tabbed with the name of the document on the front sheet of each;

(c)  must show on the front cover a list of the contents and the names and addresses of the agents for all parties;

(d)  must indicate on a sticker attached to the plastic spine the volume number and the short title of the appeal; and

(e)  should include a few blank pages at either end.

Provision of documents

17.3  To enable the appellants to produce the bound volumes, the respondents must provide the appellants' agents with a further 15 copies of the respondents' case in addition to the cases already exchanged.

17.4  Respondents should arrange with the appellants' agents for the delivery to them of such bound volumes as the respondents' counsel and agents require.

18. AUTHORITIES

18.1  Ten copies of all authorities that may be needed during the hearing must be lodged at the same time as the Bound Volumes[44]. The authorities should be collected together into one or more volumes. The appellants are responsible for producing the authorities' volumes and lodging them in the Judicial Office. To enable the appellants to lodge the volumes, the respondents must provide the appellants with ten copies of any authorities which the respondents require but which the appellants do not, or arrange with the appellants for their photocopying. Respondents should arrange with the appellants for the delivery to them of such authorities' volumes as the respondents' counsel and agents require.

Form and content of authorities' volumes

18.2  The authorities' volumes should:

(a)  be A4 size, comb bound with green card covers;

(b)  have flexible covers;

(c)  separate each authority in the volume by numbered dividers;

(d)  contain an index to that volume; the first volume must also contain an index to all the volumes;

(e)  be numbered consecutively on the cover and spine with numerals at least point 72 in size for swift identification of different volumes during the hearing;

(f)  have printed clearly on the front cover the title of the appeal and the names of the agents for all parties;

(g)  have affixed to the plastic spine a sticker indicating clearly the volume number and short title of the appeal;

(h)  include a few blank pages at either end;

(i)  be not more than 2½cm (1 inch) thick.

The first volume(s) should contain citations from the C and L series of the Official Journal of the European Union; the Law Reports; the All England Reports; the Weekly Law Reports; Session Cases; the Scots Law Times; and the current edition of Halsbury's Laws. Subsequent volumes should contain all other material. In appeals where there is a large number of authorities' volumes, it is helpful to produce an index of indexes, separate from the index contained in the first authorities' volume.

The authorities' volumes should be lodged in the Judicial Office in separate containers from the Bound Volumes.

18.3  Where a case is not reported in the Law Reports or Session Cases, references to other recognised reports may be given (see direction 16.7). In Revenue appeals, Tax Cases may be cited but, wherever possible, references to the case in the Law Reports or Session Cases should also be given.

18.4  In order to produce the authorities' volumes, parties may download text from electronic sources; but the authorities' volumes may only be lodged in paper form.

18.5  In certain circumstances (eg when during the hearing before the Appellate Committee it becomes apparent that a particular authority is needed but is not in the authorities' volume), the House of Lords Library can arrange for copies of authorities to be made available at the hearing[45]. Parties must themselves provide ten copies of any other authority or of unreported cases. They must similarly provide copies of any authority of which notice has not been given.

18.6  The cost of preparing the authorities' volumes falls to the appellants, but is ultimately subject to the decision of the House as to the costs of the appeal.

19. NOTICE OF HEARING

19.1  Once an appeal has been set down, it may be called on at any time, possibly at short notice. However, the Judicial Office lists appeals to meet the convenience of all the parties. The Judicial Office agrees provisional dates with the parties well in advance of the hearing and makes every effort to keep to these dates. Counsel, agents and parties are however advised to hold themselves in readiness during the week before and the week following the provisional date given. Agents receive formal notification shortly before the hearing.

19.2  Parties should inform the Judicial Office as early as possible of the names of counsel they have briefed.

19.3  Appellate Committees usually hear appeals on Mondays from 11am-1pm and from 2-4pm, and on Tuesdays to Thursdays from 10.30am-1pm and 2-4pm. Hearings take place in Committee Rooms 1 and 2 on the Committee Corridor of the Palace of Westminster.

20. COSTS

20.1  If counsel seek an order other than that costs should be awarded to the successful party, they should make submissions on costs at the conclusion of the argument before the Appellate Committee. Oral submissions should be followed up by written submissions within 14 days. If there have been no oral submissions, written submissions on costs may be made with 14 days of the conclusion of the hearing.

Public funding and legal aid

20.2  In appeals involving legal service funding, a successful unassisted party who wishes to apply for costs against the Community Legal Service under s 11 of the Access to Justice Act 1999[46] should make the application at the conclusion of the hearing and also in writing within 14 days. They should inform the Legal Services Commission (the procedure is set out in regulations 9 and 10 of the Community Legal Service (Costs) Regulations 2000 as amended). It is the responsibility of the parties to bring to the attention of the Judicial Office any factor which might affect the making of such an order by the House[47].

Submissions at judgment

20.3  Leave may exceptionally be given to a party to make submissions on costs at the time the House meets to give judgment. Notice must be given in writing to the Judicial Office at least two days before the date of judgment and a copy of the submissions must be sent to the other party or parties to arrive at least two days before the date of judgment.

20.4  In certain circumstances the House may postpone making an order for costs to allow the parties to make written submissions in the light of the result of the appeal, usually within 14 days of the date on which judgment is given.

21. JUDGMENT

Place and time of judgment

21.1  Judgments are given in the Chamber of the House of Lords, usually on Thursdays at 9.45am. Agents are notified of the date. One week's notice is usually given.

Attendance of counsel

21.2  One junior of counsel for each party or group of parties who have lodged a case is required to attend at the Bar of the House when judgment is delivered. Queen's Counsel may attend instead, but only a junior's fee is allowed on taxation. It is the convention that Queen's Counsel wear full-bottomed wigs when appearing at the Bar of the House. Counsel instructed to attend judgment must be familiar with the subject matter of the appeal and with the options for its disposal.

Conditions under which judgments are released in advance

21.3  The opinions of the Law Lords who sat on the Appellate Committee and the questions to be put to the House to dispose of the appeal are available to each party 24 hours before judgment is given, i.e. on a Wednesday morning when judgment is to be given at 9.45am on the Thursday. The documents may be collected from the Judicial Office. In releasing these documents, the House gives permission for their contents to be disclosed to counsel, agents (including solicitors outside London who have appointed London agents) and in-house legal advisers in a client government department. The contents of the documents and the result of the appeal must not be disclosed to the client parties themselves until judgment is given in the House.

21.4  It is the duty of counsel to check that the questions to be put to the House dispose of the appeal in accordance with the opinions of the members of the Appellate Committee. In the case of apparent error or ambiguity in the opinions, counsel are requested to inform the Judicial Office immediately.

21.5  Accredited members of the media may also be supplied in advance of judgment with the Appellate Committee's opinions and the questions to be put to the House to dispose of the appeal. The contents of these documents are subject to a strict embargo, and are not for publication, broadcast or use on club tapes before judgment has been delivered. The documents are issued in advance on the strict understanding that no approach is made to any person or organisation about their contents before judgment is given.

22. ORDER OF THE HOUSE

Draft order

22.1  After the House has given judgment, drafts of the order of the House are sent to all parties who lodged a case. The drafts must be returned to the Judicial Office within one week of the date of receipt (unless otherwise directed), either approved or with suggested amendments. If amendments are proposed, they must be submitted to the agents for the other parties, who should indicate their approval or disagreement both to the agents submitting the proposals and to the Judicial Office. Where the amendments proposed are contrary to the questions put to and agreed by the House, a petition must be lodged.

Final order

22.2  The final order (with any amendments) is sent free of charge to the agents for the successful parties.

22.3  Prints of the final order are sent free of charge to the agents for all parties who have entered appearance.

23. BILLS OF COSTS

23.1  Bills of costs for taxation (assessment of costs) must be lodged within three months from the date of judgment[48] or the date on which a petition of appeal is withdrawn (see direction 42). If an extension of the three month period is desired, application must be made in writing to the Taxing Officer and copies sent to all interested parties. In deciding whether to grant an application for an extension of time made after the expiry of the three month period the Taxing Officer takes into account the circumstances set out in the practice directions applicable to judicial taxations[49].

23.2  The practice directions relating to judicial taxations and forms of bills of costs are available on request from the Judicial Office.

23.3  Fees are payable on taxation of a bill of costs.

24. PREPARATION OF DOCUMENTS

General

24.1  All formal documents to the House of Lords must be produced on durable quality A4 paper, bound on the left like a book and using both sides of the paper.

24.2  Documents which are not legible or which are not produced in the authorised form or which are unsatisfactory for some other similar reason are not accepted.

24.3  Parties may consult the Judicial Office at all stages of preparation of documents and may submit proofs for approval where appropriate.

Number of documents required

24.4  The following table shows the numbers of documents usually required for the hearing of an appeal. The numbers shown are the minimum prescribed in the directions. Actual requirements must be subject to agreement and depend on the number of parties, counsel and agents concerned, and on the special circumstances of each appeal. Copies for the use of the party originating the documents are not included in the numbers indicated.

The appellants must provide:

Document	For Judicial Office	For other side
Petition of appeal	original and 7 on lodgment; 15 in bound volumes	2 on service
Statement of facts and issues	8 on setting down; 15 in bound volumes	as arranged
Appendix Part 1	8 on setting down; 15 in bound volumes	1 in advance otherwise as arranged
Appendix Part 2 and any subsequent Parts	15 on setting down	1 in advance otherwise as arranged
Case	8 no later than 3 weeks before the hearing; 15 in bound volumes	as arranged on exchange
Bound volumes	15 no later than 2 weeks before the hearing	as arranged
Authorities' volumes	10 no later than 2 weeks before the hearing	as arranged
Documents held in readiness at hearing (if any)	15 held at the Bar	at least 3

The respondents (and any interveners) must provide:

Document	For Judicial Office	For other side
Case	8 no later than 3 weeks before the hearing	as arranged on exchange; 15 for bound volumes
Respondents' additional documents (if any)	15 held at the Bar	as arranged

Form of Statement of facts and issues

24.5  See direction 12.3

Form of Appendix

24.6  See direction 13.7.

Form of cases

24.7  See direction 16.18.

Form of bound volumes

24.8  See direction 17.2.

Form of authorities' volumes

24.9  See direction 18.2.

25. DISPOSAL OF documents

25.1  All petitions and supporting documents lodged become the property of the House. If application is made in writing within fourteen days of the determination of an appeal or a petition for leave to appeal, documents other than the originals of those documents on which a fee would have been paid in a civil appeal may, at the direction of the Head of the Judicial Office, be returned to the parties. The originals of documents on which a fee would have been paid in a civil appeal are retained in the parliamentary archives.

25.2  Documents lodged for the use of the Appellate Committee may with the permission of the Committee be inspected by persons who are not a party to the appeal. Such persons must comply with any anonymity orders and data protection requirements.

26. LODGMENT

26.1  'Lodgment' and 'lodging' mean delivery to the Judicial Office or to a member of the Judicial Office staff by post or in person during opening hours. Where the time for lodging a document expires on a Saturday, Sunday, bank holiday, or any other day on which the Judicial Office is closed, the document will be received by the Judicial Office if it is lodged on the first day on which the Office is next open.

26.2  Communications with the Judicial Office may be transmitted by facsimile (fax) only in urgent circumstances. No document which is to be presented to the House or on which a fee is payable may be transmitted by fax.

27. BILLS OF COSTS

27.1  Bills of costs for taxation must be lodged within three months from the date of the final judgment[50], or the date that a petition of appeal is withdrawn in accordance with Direction 42. If an extension of the three month period is desired, application must be made in writing to the Taxing Officer and copies of all such correspondence sent to all interested parties. In deciding whether to grant an application for an extension of time made after the expiry of the three month period the Taxing Officer takes into account the circumstances set out in the practice directions applicable to judicial taxations[51].

27.2  The practice directions relating to judicial taxations and forms of bills of costs are available on request from the Judicial Office. Fees are payable on taxation of a bill of costs.

27.3  In conducting the taxation of bills of costs in criminal appeals the Taxing Officer follows the recommendations of the report of the Appeal Committee agreed to by the House on 14 October 1998[52].

28. BAIL

28.1  The House of Lords does not grant bail. Applications for bail should be made to the court below. Where bail is granted to a party to an appeal to the House, the Judicial Office should be notified.

28.2  The attendance of a party to an appeal who is in custody is not normally required or permitted. Where the attendance of a party in custody is required, his agents will be informed by the Judicial Office in writing.

28.3  It should be noted that where a party was on bail pending the hearing of the appeal, surrender is usually required on the first day of the hearing.

29. CONSOLIDATION AND CONJOINDER

29.1  Where the issues in two or more appeals are similar, it may be appropriate for them to be consolidated or conjoined.

29.2  Consolidation results in the appeals being conducted as a single cause with one set of counsel and one case only on each side and with a single Appendix of documents.

29.3  Conjoinder is a looser linking of two or more appeals, and a number of variations is possible. Commons forms of conjoinder are where: the appellants lodge separate cases with a separate junior for each appellant but a single leader; or the appellants lodge a single case with a single set of counsel but the respondents lodge separate cases and are separately represented.

29.4  The Judicial Office should be consulted on whether consolidation or some form of conjoinder is likely to be appropriate. A principal consideration should be to avoid wherever possible separate representation by counsel, or any duplication in the submissions made or in documents produced for the hearing.

29.5  Applications to consolidate or to conjoin appeals are made by petition[53]. The petition must be signed by the agents for all petitioners and must be submitted to the agents for all the other parties who have entered appearance for the endorsement of their consent. If consent is refused, the petition must be endorsed with a certificate that it has been served on the agents in question.

29.6  If all parties consent to or join in the petition, two copies of the petition should be lodged. The House then makes the appropriate order.

29.7   If any party refuses their consent, six copies of the petition should be lodged. The petition is then referred to an Appeal Committee and may be determined after a hearing[54].

30. DEATH: ABATEMENT THROUGH

30.1  If a party to an appeal dies before the hearing, the appeal abates from the date of death (Standing Order X). Immediate notice of the death must be given in writing to the Judicial Office and to the other parties. The addition of a new party to represent the deceased person's interest cannot proceed until a petition for reviving the appeal has been agreed to by the House.

30.2  The petition for revivor must be lodged within three months of the date of notice of death[55]. It must be accompanied by an affidavit explaining the circumstances in which it is being lodged. It must be endorsed with a certificate of service on the respondents.

30.3  If abatement takes place after the case for the deceased person has been lodged but before the appeal has been heard, the appellants must lodge a supplemental case setting out the orders of the House on reviving the appeal and information about the newly-added parties.

31. DISPUTE BETWEEN PARTIES SETTLED

31.1  It is the duty of counsel and solicitors in any pending appeal, if an event occurs which arguably disposes of the dispute between the parties, either to ensure that the appeal is withdrawn by consent or, if there is no agreement on that course, to bring the facts promptly to the attention of the House, and to seek directions.

32. European Convention on Human Rights

Appeals notified under direction 10.6(a), (b) or (c)

32.1  Where an appeal involves a point notified under direction 10.6(a), 10.6(b) or 10.6(c), the petition of appeal must include the words 'in accordance with the Human Rights Act 1998' at the appropriate place in the prayer of the petition[56]. Details of the Convention right which it is alleged has been infringed and of the infringement must be set out in the Statement of facts and issues and dealt with in a separate paragraph of the cases of all parties to the appeal[57].

Appeals notified under direction 10.6(a)

32.2  The Crown has the right to be joined as a party in any appeal where the House is considering whether to declare that a provision of primary or subordinate legislation is incompatible with a Convention right[58]. In any appeal where the House is considering, or is being asked to consider, whether to make, uphold or reverse such a declaration, whether or not the Crown[59] is already a party to the appeal, the Head of the Judicial Office notifies the appropriate Law Officer(s)[60].

32.3  Where such an issue is raised in respect of a judicial act[61], the Head of the Judicial Office notifies the Crown through the Treasury Solicitor as agent for the Lord Chancellor[62].

32.4  The person notified under direction 32.2 or 32.3 must within 21 days of receiving such notice, or such extended period as the Head of the Judicial Office may allow, serve on the parties and lodge in the Judicial Office a notice stating whether or not the Crown intends to intervene in the appeal; and the identity of the Minister or other person who is to be joined as a party to the appeal[63].

32.5  If a Minister or other person has already been joined to proceedings in the court below in accordance with the provisions of s 5 of the Human Rights Act 1998, the leave of the House is not required for the continued intervention of the Crown.

32.6  Once joined to the appeal, the case for the Minister or other person must be lodged in accordance with direction 16.

32.7  The House may order the postponement or adjournment of the hearing of the appeal for the purpose of giving effect to the provisions of this direction or the requirements of the Act.

Appeals notified under direction 10.6(b) or (c)

32.8  Except as prescribed in direction 32.1, no special steps are required for appeals notified under direction 10.6(b) or 10.6(c).

33. European Court of Justice

33.1  Article 234 of the Treaty establishing the European Community provides:

1.  The Court of Justice shall have jurisdiction to give preliminary rulings concerning:

(a)  the interpretation of this Treaty;

(b)  the validity and interpretation of acts of the institutions of the Community and of the European Central Bank;

(c)  the interpretation of the statutes of bodies established by an act of the Council, where those statutes so provide.

2.  Where such a question is raised before any court or tribunal of a Member State, that court or tribunal may, if it considers that a decision on the question is necessary to enable it to give judgment, request the Court of Justice to give a ruling thereon.

3.  Where any such question is raised in a case pending before a court or tribunal of a Member State against whose decisions there is no judicial remedy under national law, that court or tribunal shall bring the matter before the Court of Justice.

33.2  When the House refuses leave to appeal to a petition which includes a contention that a question of Community law is involved, the House gives additional reasons for its decision not to grant leave to appeal (see direction 5.7). These reasons reflect the decision of the Court of Justice in CILFIT v. Ministry of Health (Case C-283/81) which laid down the categories of case where the Court of Justice considered that no reference should be made to it, namely (a) where the question raised is irrelevant; (b) where the Community provision in question has already been interpreted by the Court of Justice; (c) where the question raised is materially identical with a question which has already been the subject of a preliminary ruling in a similar case; and (d) where the correct application of Community law is so obvious as to leave no scope for any reasonable doubt[64].

33.3  The House may order a reference to the Court of Justice before determining whether to grant leave to appeal. In such circumstances proceedings on the petition for leave to appeal are stayed until the answer is received. The directions below apply as appropriate[65].

33.4  When the House intends to make a reference, the hearing is adjourned and the parties are invited to submit an agreed draft of the question(s) to be referred. A further Statement of facts and issues, for the use of the Court of Justice, may also be appropriate. The House then makes the reference, with or without opinions. At this stage the appeal may also be disposed of in part.

33.5  Within one month of the judgment of the Court of Justice, the parties must make written submissions on whether a further hearing before the Appellate Committee is necessary or on how the appeal is to be disposed of.

33.6  If a further hearing is required, the parties may seek leave to lodge supplemental cases.

33.7  The Court of Justice does not make orders for costs. The costs of the reference are included in the order of the House disposing of the appeal; and, if necessary, are taxed by the House's Taxing Officer.

34. EXHIBITS

34.1  Parties who require exhibits (such as machines in a patent action) to be available for inspection at the hearing must apply to the Judicial Office for permission for the exhibits to be brought to the House before the hearing.

35. INTERVENERS

35.1  Participation in an appeal as an intervener in a court below does not entitle a person to intervene in the House of Lords.

35.2  Application for leave to intervene in an appeal must be made by petition[66]. The petition may only be lodged after the petition of appeal has been presented to the House. The petition must indicate whether leave is sought for oral and written interventions or for written intervention only. The petition should be certified with the consent of the parties in the case. If their consent is refused, the petition must be endorsed with a certificate of service on them. All petitions for leave to intervene, whether or not opposed by the parties, are referred to an Appeal Committee.

35.3  Subject to the discretion of the House, interveners bear the costs of their intervention.

35.4  Subject to the discretion of the House, any additional costs to the appellants and respondents resulting from an intervention are costs in the appeal.

35.5  If the Crown has been joined to proceedings in the court below in accordance with the provisions of s 5 of the Human Rights Act 1998, the leave of the House is not necessary for the continued intervention of the Crown.

36. NEW SUBMISSIONS

36.1  If, after the conclusion of the argument on an appeal, a party wishes to bring to the notice of the House new circumstances which have arisen and which might affect the decision or order of the House, application must be made without delay (by letter to the Head of the Judicial Office) for leave to make new submissions. The application should indicate the circumstances and the submissions it is desired to make, and a copy must be sent to the agents for the other parties to the appeal.

37. OPPOSED INCIDENTAL PETITIONS

37.1  Unless the Head of the Judicial Office directs otherwise, opposed incidental petitions (including any interlocutory petition which relates to any petition of appeal) are referred to an Appeal Committee and decided on the papers or, if the Committee so directs, after an oral hearing.

37.2  Eight copies of the petition must be lodged. The original petition must bear a certificate of service on the other parties and must clearly indicate whether the other parties consent or refuse to consent to the prayer.

37.3  If the Appeal Committee orders an oral hearing, the parties may apply at that time to hand in affidavits and such other documents as they may wish. Eight copies are required. Copies of such documents must be served on the other parties before the oral hearing. Authorities are not normally cited before the Appeal Committee.

38. PUBLIC FUNDING AND LEGAL AID

38.1  The House of Lords does not grant public funding or legal aid. In criminal proceedings, depending on the route of appeal, application should be made to the court appealed from or, in Northern Ireland, to the Legal Aid Committee. Where an application for public funding/legal aid has been made but not determined within the statutory fourteen days set out in direction 3.1 (for petitions for leave to appeal) or the three months stipulated by Standing Order I (for petitions of appeal), then provided the Judicial Office and the respondents to the proposed petition have been informed of the application for funding, the period within which the petition for leave to appeal or petition of appeal (as the case may be) must be lodged is extended to fourteen days from the date of the final determination of the funding application. Such an extension may not be granted to a petitioner under the Extradition Act 2003[67]. Where public funding/legal aid has been applied for after the lodgement of a petition of appeal but not determined, the 6 weeks' period in which the statement of facts and issues must be lodged is automatically extended to one month after the legal aid application has been determined, provided the Judicial Office has been informed of the application.

38.2  A party to whom a funding certificate is issued must immediately lodge the certificate or a copy in the Judicial Office. Any emergency certificate and subsequent amendments, and the authority for leading counsel, must also be lodged.

38.3  Where a funding certificate is granted, the date of issue of the certificate is the date of final determination for the purpose of time limits.

39. SPECIALIST ADVISERS

39.1  Any party to an appeal may apply in writing to the Head of the Judicial Office for Specialist Advisers to attend the hearing[68].

40. STAY OF EXECUTION

40.1  Presentation of a petition of appeal or a petition for leave to appeal does not in itself place a stay of execution on any order appealed from. A party seeking such a stay must apply to the court appealed from, not to the House of Lords.

41. TRANSCRIPTION

41.1  Transcriptions are not made of hearings before the Appellate Committee. Any party may seek permission to arrange for its own transcription of a hearing, by writing to the Head of the Judicial Office. Permission is usually given. The service arranged must be silent. A single copy of the transcript should be lodged in the Judicial Office.

42. WITHDRAWAL OF PETITIONS

Petitions for leave to appeal

42.1  A petition for leave to appeal may be withdrawn by writing to the Head of the Judicial Office, stating that the parties to the petition have agreed how the costs should be settled. The respondents should notify the Judicial Office of their agreement.

Petitions of appeal

42.2  An appeal that has not been set down for hearing may be withdrawn by writing to the Head of the Judicial Office, stating that the parties to the appeal have agreed the costs of the appeal. The nature of the agreement should be indicated. Where appropriate, the letter should also indicate how the money paid into the security fund (if any) should be disposed of. Written notification must also be given to the respondents who must notify the Judicial Office of their agreement to the withdrawal of the appeal and who must confirm that the costs have been agreed.

42.3  An appeal that has been set down for hearing may only be withdrawn by order of the House on petition. Such a petition should include submissions on costs. The petition must be submitted for their consent to those respondents who have entered appearance[69].

2   Criminal Appeal Act 1968 s 33(1) (as amended). Back

3   Courts-Martial (Appeals) Act 1968 s 39(1). Back

4   Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 40(1)(b); Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1980 s 31(1) (as amended). Back

5   Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 41(1)(b). Back

6   Administration of Justice Act 1960 s 1(1)(a) (as amended); Extradition Act 2003 ss 32, 114. Back

7   Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 41(1)(a); Extradition Act 2003 ss 32, 114. Back

8   Administration of Justice Act 1960 s 13; Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 44. Appeals under either section in cases involving civil contempt of court are subject to the Civil Practice Directions (April 2005 edition). Back

9   Criminal Appeal Act 1968 s 33(2); Administration of Justice Act 1960 s 1(2); Extradition Act 2003 ss 32(4), 114(4); Courts-Martial (Appeals) Act 1968 s 39(2); Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 41(2); Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1980 s 31(2); Extradition Act 2003 ss 32, 114. Back

10   Administration of Justice Act 1960 s 15(3) (as amended); Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 45(3). Back

11   Administration of Justice Act 1960 s 13(4); Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 44(4). Back

12   Criminal Appeal Act 1968 s 34(1); Administration of Justice Act 1960 s 2(1); Courts-Martial (Appeals) Act 1968 s 40(1); Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1980 s 32(1); Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 s 41(5), Schedule 1, paragraph 1(1). Back

13   Extradition Act 2003 ss 32, 114. Back

14   See Appeal Committee 13th Report (2000-01): Regina v. Weir (Respondent) (HL Paper 28). Back

15   Criminal Appeal Act 1968 s 34(2); Administration of Justice Act 1960 s 2(3); Courts-Martial (Appeals) Act 1968 s 40(2); Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1980 s 32(2); Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 Schedule 1, paragraph 1(2). Back

16   Extradition Act 2003 ss 32, 114. Back

17   For style see Appendix A, Forms 1, 2. Back

18   See speech of Viscount Simonds in Gelberg v. Miller [1961] 1 All E.R. 618. Back

19   For style see Appendix A, Form 2. Back

20   If the judgment has been published in a report which is ordinarily received in court, copies of the report may be lodged in lieu of transcripts. Transcripts of judgments marked "in draft" are not accepted without certification by the relevant court that the copy is the final version of the judgment. Back

21   Or, in the case of a County Court, of the Judge's Notes. Back

22   See Appeal Committee 38th Report (2002-03): Petitions for leave to appeal: reasons for the refusal of leave (HL Paper 89). Back

23   But see directions 33.2 - 33.3 for practice where a point of European Community law is raised on a petition for leave to appeal. Back

24   See Practice directions applicable to judicial taxations in the House of Lords and forms of bills of costs, available on request from the Judicial Office and on the Internet at www.parliament.uk. Back

25   Ibid. Back

26   Also pursuant to r. 5(2) Community Legal Service (Cost Protection) Regulations 2000 and in accordance with the procedural requirements of rr. 9, 10 Community Legal Service (Costs) Regulations 2000 as amended.  Back

27   Or s 18 Legal Aid Act 1988; or, in Scotland, pursuant to s 19 Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1986 or, in Northern Ireland, pursuant to Article 16 Legal Aid Advice and Assistance (N.I.) Order 1981. Back

28   See Practice directions applicable to judicial taxations in the House of Lords and forms of bills of costs, available on request from the Judicial Office and on the Internet at www.parliament.uk. Back

29   Available on request from the Judicial Office and on the Internet at www.parliament.uk. Back

30   See Direction 5.22. Back

31   The court below may reduce but may not extend the three month period. For extensions of time in publicly funded/legal aid cases, see direction 38. Back

32   Extradition Act 2003 ss 32, 114. Back

33   Human Rights Act 1998, which gives further effect in domestic law to much of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms agreed by the Council of Europe at Rome on 4 November 1950. Back

34   For style see Appendix A, Form 5. Back

35   See penultimate paragraph of Lord Chancellor's speech in R v Mandair [1994] 2 All E.R. 715. Back

36   Standing Order VI(1). For extensions of time in publicly funded/legally aided cases, see direction 38. Back

37   Standing Order VIII. Back

38   See direction 38.1 - 38.3. Back

39   For style see Appendix A, Form 6. Back

40   As the "third sitting day" depends on future sittings of the House, the date of expiry is not fixed. The appellants should contact the Judicial Office from time to time to discover how sittings of the House affect this date. Back

41   For form of application for setting down, see Appendix A, Form 12. Back

42   See Lord Diplock's speech in M.V.Yorke Motors v.Edwards [1982] 1 WLR 444, [1982] 1 All E.R. 1024. Back

43   Standing Order VI(3). Back

44   i.e, no later than two weeks before the proposed date of the hearing. Back

45   See Appendix B for a list of authorities held by the House of Lords Library. Back

46   Also pursuant to r. 5(2) Community Legal Service (Cost Protection) Regulations 2000. Back

47   This direction also applies to unassisted parties who, if successful, would seek an order for costs under Legal Aid Act 1988 s 18; Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1986 s 19; or Legal Aid, Advice and Assistance (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 Article 16; such parties should inform the Scottish Legal Aid Board or the Legal Aid Committee respectively. Back

48   This period is not affected by suspended orders made under Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1986 s 19 or Legal Aid Advice and Assistance (N.I.) Order 1981 Article 16. Back

49   Available on request from the Judicial Office and on Internet at www.parliament.uk. Back

50   This period is not affected by suspended orders made under Article 16 Legal Aid Advice and Assistance (N.I.) Order 1981. Back

51   Available on request from the Judicial Office. Back

52   Report on the Clerk of the Parliaments' reference regarding criminal legal aid taxation, Session 1997-98, HL Paper 145. Back

53   For style, see Appendix A, Form 7. Back

54   See direction 37. Back

55   Standing Order X. For style of petition, adapt Appendix A, Form 8. Back

56   See Appendix A, Form 4. Back

57   See Human Rights Act 1998, which gives further effect in domestic law to much of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms agreed by the Council of Europe at Rome on 4 November 1950. Back

58   Human Rights Act 1998 ss 4, 5. Back

59   Through a Minister, governmental body or other person defined in Human Rights Act 1998 s 5(2). Back

60   The Head of the Judicial Office notifies:

(i) in appeals from England, the Attorney-General;

(ii) in appeals from Scotland, the Advocate General for Scotland and the Lord Advocate;

(iii) in appeals from Wales, if appropriate, the Counsel General of the National Assembly for Wales;

(iv) in appeals from Northern Ireland, the Attorney General for Northern Ireland. Back

61   Human Rights Act 1998 ss 7, 9(3) and 9(4). Back

62   In appeals from Scotland, the Head of the Judicial Office notifies the Solicitor to the Scottish Executive; in appeals from Northern Ireland, he notifies the Crown Solicitor and the Departmental Solicitor. Back

63   Human Rights Act 1998 ss 5(2) and 9(5). Back

64   Appeal Committee, 38th Report (2002-03): Petitions for leave to appeal: reasons for the refusal of leave (HL Paper 89). Back

65   Ibid. Back

66   See Appendix A, Form 8. Back

67   Extradition Act 2003 ss. 32, 114. Back

68   See Standing Order XIV. For Nautical Assessors, see also Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1891 s.3. Back

69   See Appendix A, Form 15. Back