{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/civil-procedure-rules-1998/rule-21.4",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/civil-procedure-rules-1998/rule-21.4.json",
  "legislation": "uksi/1998/3132",
  "legislation_title": "The Civil Procedure Rules 1998",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/civil-procedure-rules-1998",
  "path": "rule/21.4",
  "kind": "rule",
  "number": "21.4",
  "heading": "Who may be a litigation friend without a court order",
  "text": "(1) This rule does not apply if the court has appointed a person to be a litigation friend.\n(2) A deputy appointed by the Court of Protection under the 2005 Act with power to conduct proceedings on the protected party’s behalf is entitled to be the protected party’s litigation friend in any proceedings to which the deputy’s power extends.\n(3) If nobody has been appointed by the court or, in the case of a protected party, ... appointed as a deputy as set out in paragraph (2), a person may act as a litigation friend if they —\n(a) can fairly and competently conduct proceedings on behalf of the child or protected party;\n(b) have no interest adverse to that of the child or protected party; and\n(c) where the child or protected party is a claimant, undertake to pay any costs that the claimant is ordered to pay, subject to any right to be repaid from the assets of the child or protected party.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "Pt. 21 substituted (1.10.2007) by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2007 (S.I. 2007/2204), rule 1, Sch. 2"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F2",
      "text": "Words in rule 21.4(2) substituted (6.4.2023) by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023 (S.I. 2023/105), rules 1(1), 14(5)(a)(i)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F3",
      "text": "Words in rule 21.4(2) substituted (6.4.2023) by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023 (S.I. 2023/105), rules 1(1), 14(5)(a)(ii)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F4",
      "text": "Words in rule 21.4(3) omitted (6.4.2023) by virtue of The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023 (S.I. 2023/105), rules 1(1), 14(5)(b)(i)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F5",
      "text": "Word in rule 21.4(3) substituted (6.4.2023) by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023 (S.I. 2023/105), rules 1(1), 14(5)(b)(ii)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F6",
      "text": "Word in rule 21.4(3)(b) substituted (6.4.2023) by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023 (S.I. 2023/105), rules 1(1), 14(5)(b)(iii)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F7",
      "text": "Rule 21.4(3)(c) substituted (6.4.2023) by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023 (S.I. 2023/105), rules 1(1), 14(5)(b)(iv)"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1998/3132/rule/21.4",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T11:12:59.276840+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}