Explanatory note
This note is not part of the regulations, but is intended to indicate their general effect.
These regulations, which come into force on 1 July 2004, amend the Sheriffs' Fees Regulations 1988 by replacing the fee waiver provisions in the regulations with provisions corresponding to the current fee waiver provisions in relation to the High Court.
Regulation 2A provides that a person who is unable to pay a fee that is required in connection with a proceeding or an intended proceeding may apply to a Registrar for a waiver of the fee. A Registrar may waive the fee payable by the applicant if he or she is satisfied that the applicant is unable to pay the fee, or that the proceeding concerns a matter of genuine public interest and is unlikely to be commenced or continued unless the fee is waived.
Regulation 2B provides that a person who is awaiting the determination of an application for a waiver of a fee, or a review of a Registrar's decision, may apply to a Registrar to have the payment of the fee postponed. A Registrar may postpone the payment of a fee if he or she is satisfied that the applicant would be prejudiced if the matter to which the fee relates did not proceed before the determination.
Regulation 2C provides that if it is determined that a fee is not to be waived, the fee is recoverable as a debt to the Crown. The fee must be paid without delay and no further step may be taken in the proceeding to which the fee relates until the fee is paid.
Regulation 2D provides that a person may apply to the Registrar for a refund of a fee that has already been paid. A Registrar may refund a fee that has already been paid if he or she is satisfied that no application for a waiver of the fee was made and that, had such an application been made, the fee would have been waived. The Registrar must also be satisfied that the criteria that would have justified the waiver still apply at the date of the application for a refund.