Enforcement in England
The England and Wales law on enforcing Court Orders is more streamlined and coherent than in Ireland. Enforcement is handled by the Courts offices to a greater extent than in Ireland.
The High Court enforcement officers in the High Court and the bailiffs in the County Court are entitled to enforce judgement by seizing the defendant’s/debtor’s goods. If the debt remains unpaid, the goods are sold at public auction and the proceeds are used to pay the debt including the interest costs and enforcement fee.
It is possible for a creditor to apply to intercept money owed by a third party to the debtor/defendant. An application must be made to Court and the order will usually be granted unless it is contested and good reason shown why this should not be done.
A creditor is entitled to apply for a charging order over land or property owned by the debtor. This temporarily charges the land until the matter is referred to Court. The charging order can be registered in the Land Registry. The Court has discretion as to whether to make a charging order although the burden is on the debtor to oppose it. A charging order will not be made if there is a reasonable chance the debt will be paid in the near future or if the debt is relatively small compared with the value of the property concerned. A charging order will not be made if this would give unfair advantage over other creditors.
It the Court makes a final charging order, it will normally be registered in the Land Registry. If the debtor sells the land the proceeds must be paid towards the judgments. There are procedures to force the sale of the land but it is necessary to apply to Court for an order for sale. This involves commencement of separate procedures and would not generally be economic if the value of the debt is small.
It is possible to obtain an attachment of earnings order as in Ireland. Application is made to the County Court. The order directs the defendant’s/debtor’s employer to deduct instalments on a weekly or monthly basis in repayment.
Where ownership of land is involved the Court will issue a writ of possession or warrant of possession. An order for delivery of goods may made when goods are claimed. The order will specifically require delivery of the goods. These orders will allow enforcement of the judgement by a court officer.
Where interests and assets of the defendant cannot be reached by normal enforcement methods, such as when future payments are included, it is possible to apply to Court for the appointment of a receiver who will take the property as it becomes available and distribute it. This is a complex and expensive method of enforcement.
If there is an undisputed debt for £750, it is possible to apply to make the debtor bankrupt.
In England, a court order will usually come to the attention of the credit agencies quickly. It is possible to have a judgement removed if paid within 14 days. If not paid after that date, it is certified as satisfied.
European Union Cross Border Enforcement
European Union law requires every State to recognise and enforce the orders or judgements of courts of other member States. This means that Irish court orders can be enforced against assets, property and persons in England and Wales and that equally court orders issued by England and Wales courts can be enforced in Ireland.
A Court in one state will not generally reopen another Court’s decision given in another EU state, either on the basis of its jurisdiction (i.e. to power to make it) or on the merits.
Where a court order has been obtained in one State and needs to be enforced in the other, it is necessary to make an application to the Court offices of the other state to register it so it can be enforced. Once registered, it will have much the same effect as a judgement in the enforcing country. Notice of registration should be served on the debtor or defendant. This is a simple notice and does not involve formal proceedings.
Recent legislation has allowed for an even more direct method of enforcement of Court Orders of other EU countries such as the UK, without having to be registered by the Irish Court Office. It is now possible to obtain an “European Enforcement Order” (EEO) from the court office who issued the court order. This could include debt collection cases. The UK court or court office can certify a judgement Court order or settlement as a European Enforcement Order. It is then directly enforceable in Ireland as if it was an Irish court order. This means only one court office needs to be involved.
