Reino Unido da Grã-Bretanha e Irlanda do Norte - Autoridade Central (Art. 2) e informações práticas
Central Authority(ies):
Senior Master, Foreign Process Section, Royal Courts of Justice
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Contact details: |
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| Address: |
England and Wales: Northern Ireland: |
| Telephone: |
England and Wales: Scotland: Northern Ireland: |
| Fax: | |
| E-mail: |
England and Wales: Scotland: Northern Ireland: |
| General website: | Ministry of Justice |
| Contact person: |
England and Wales: Scotland: Northern Ireland: |
| Languages spoken by staff: | English |
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Practical Information |
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| Blocking statutes: |
Yes, please see: |
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Chapter I |
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| Transmission of Letters of Requests: | Letters of Request are sent directly from a judicial authority in the requesting State to the Central Authority of the requested State to the Central Authority of the requested State. |
| Authority responsible for informing of the time and place of the execution of Letter of Request (Art. 7): |
Central Authority |
| Presence of judicial personnel at the execution of the Letter of Request (Art. 8): | Declaration of applicability |
| Privileges and duties existing under the law of States other than the State of origin and the State of execution (Art. 11): |
No declaration of applicability. |
| Translation requirements Arts 4(2) and 33): |
The UK does not accept Letters of Requests written in French. |
| Costs relating to execution of the Letters of Request (Arts 14(2)(3) and 26): |
The United Kingdom rarely seeks reimbursement of costs under Art. 14(2). An example of such a request is in respect of experts fees, to seek a payment on account. There is currently no policy in the United Kingdom for seeking reimbursement of fees and costs, in connection with the execution of Letters of Request, for the service of process necessary to compel the appearance of a person to give evidence, the costs of attendance of such persons, or the costs of any transcript of the evidence (Art. 26). |
| Time for execution: | For oral and documentary, the time taken to process a request is usually between 6 and 12 months. |
| Pre-trial discovery of documents Art. 23): |
Letter of Request may be executed subject to certain conditions (qualified exclusion). |
| Information about domestic rules on the taking of evidence: | |
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Witness examination under Chapter I |
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| Should Letters of Request include specific questions to be used during witness examination or only a list of matters to be addressed? | Letters of Request should include specific questions. |
| Is it a public or private hearing? | Private hearing. |
| Do the judicial authorities "blue-pencil" Letters of Requests (i.e. rephrase, restructure and / or strike out objectionable questions or offensive wording so that a Letter of Request may be executed under the laws of the requested State)? | Yes. |
| Is the witness provided in advance with a copy of the questions / matters to be addressed as contained in the Letter of Request? | Yes. |
| Are documents produced by the witness authenticated by the court? | Yes. |
| Is an oath generally administered to the witness? | Yes. |
| Can the witness be made subject to further examination and recall? | Yes. First Request may be re-invoked. |
| Are there sanctions for non-appearance of witness? | If a witness is ordered to attend, and such an order is endorsed with a penal notice, then if that witness fails to attend, they are in contempt of court, and may be fined or imprisoned as a result of their non-attendance. |
| Must interpreters who assist with the witness examination be court-certified? | No. |
| How is the testimony transcribed? | Audio recording. |
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Chapter II |
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| Article 15 | Applicable, no prior permissions required. |
| Article 16 |
Applicable, no prior permission required where reciprocal arrangements in place. Otherwise, see competent authority. |
| Article 17 |
Applicable, no prior permission required where reciprocal arrangements in place. Otherwise, see competent authority. |
| Article 18 | Applicable, provided that the Contracting State whose diplomatic officer, consular agent or commissioner makes the application has made a declaration affording reciprocal facilities under Article 18. See competent authority. |
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Taking of evidence by video-links |
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Chapter I |
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| Are there legal obstacles to the use of video links? | |
| Technology used: | |
| Level of interpretation required: | |
| Simultaneous or in sequence interpretation: | |
| Interpretation required in which jurisdiction? | |
| Who pays for the interpretation? | |
| How would a request for evidence be handled if witness not willing? | |
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Chapter II |
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| Are there legal obstacles to the use of video links? | |
| Technology used: | |
| Level of interpretation required: | |
| Simultaneous or in sequence interpretation: | |
| Interpretation required in which jurisdiction? | |
| Who pays for the interpretation? | |
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Other Information |
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| Bilateral or multilateral agreements | To consult bilateral and multilateral treaties to which United Kingdom is a party, click here. |
| Useful links: | https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1975/34/contents |
| Competent authorities (Art. 17) |
Scotland: |
| Additional authorities (Art. 24) | |
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