Our lawyers are often asked how long is a possession order enforceable.
Under the Limitations Act 1980 (“the Act”), Section 24 provides a period of six years for the enforcement of a possession order from the time that it becomes enforceable. This means that from the date the possession order is made, the landlord has a total of 6 years to enforce it.
This limitation applies to suspended possession orders also; there should therefore be a consideration for this limitation period when considering seeking a suspended possession order based on conditions for the tenant to meet. Can the tenant meet the conditions of the suspended possession order within 6 years? If not, then it may be unwise to seek such order.
Section 25 of the Act specifically refers to the term “judgement”, which is an order of the Court, whether that is a possession order or money judgement order for a debt (County Court Judgement or “CCJ”) for example. In Section 38 of the Act, definitions are provided for keywords in the Act. There is no definition provided for “judgement”; therefore, the term “judgement has to be taken as its ordinary meaning, being any enforceable judgement of a Court.
The policy underlying Section 24 of the Act is that the Claimant has to get on with enforcing the judgement, rather than the judgement hanging over the Defendant indefinitely (see Patel v Singh [2002] EWCA Civ 1938.
A landlord can, however, make an application to the Court seeking permission to enforce a possession order after the 6 years under Civil Procedure Rule (“CPR”) 83.2. This application would be made using the N244 form, and it would always be advisable that a supporting statement accompanies such application.
Court Permission
Obtaining permission is by no means a mere formality; the landlord will have to provide the Court with a valid reason why enforcement of the possession order was not undertaken within the six-year period.
The responsibility for demonstrating good reason and evidence to support their case sits firmly with the landlord, as was expressed by the Court in Patel v Singh [2002] EWCA Civ 1938.
Valid Grounds
Valid grounds to seek the permission of the Court to enforce a possession order outside of the 6 years limitation period may include delays in the administration of justice outside the control of the parties. In the case of National Westminster Bank Plc v Powney [1991] Ch 339 , it took almost three years to determine an application to set aside the Courts judgement. The Court ruled that it would grant permission for a fresh writ to be issued outside the six-year period so the judgement could be enforced.
Permission may also be granted where the circumstances of the case have changed to such an extent that they are now “out of the ordinary”. Patel v Singh [2002] EWCA Civ 1938 is very helpful in relation to how a Court should consider an application for permission to enforce a judgement outside of the statutory time limit.
Before the six-year limit expires
If a landlord has a possession order nearing the six-year limit, one course of action might be to apply to the County Court or High Court for a warrant or writ for possession. This allows the landlord plenty of time for this to be completed, as the warrant or writ for possession will be valid for 12 months once it is has been issued as per CPR 83.3(3). A Court has the power to extend a warrant or writ by a further 12 months under CPR 83.3(4).
Do these principles apply to money judgements?
The Court rules, legislation and case cited above apply equally to money judgement orders (CCJ’s).
If you wish to enforce a judgement out of time, you can contact our lawyers on 020 3909 8399.
Disclaimer:
The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Connaught Law and authors accept no responsibility for loss that may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please don’t hesitate to contact Connaught Law. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Connaught Law.
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