Catalogue description Lord Chancellor's Office: Committee on the Enforcement of Judgement Debts

The Committee on the Enforcement of Judgment Debts was appointed by the Lord Chancellor in March 1965 under the chairmanship of Sir Reginald Payne, a judge in the Probate Divorce and Admiralty Division of the High Court. It was established, in the words of the terms of reference, to: 'consider whether any changes are desirable in the law and practice in the High Court and the county courts and (in relation to their civil jurisdiction) the magistrates' courts relating to the recovery of debts and the enforcement of orders for the payment of money or the delivery of goods; whether the courts should have the power to postpone the operation of an order for possession of mortgaged property, and to make recommendations.'

The committee reported in February 1969. It proposed that imprisonment under the Debtors Act 1869 be abolished and that responsibility for debt collection should be undertaken by county court enforcement offices with wide powers to ascertain the debtor's means and to order the attachment of any of his assets for the payment of the debt. These recommendations were incorporated in the Administration of Justice Act 1970.