# Companies Act 1948, Section 441: Production and inspection of books where offence suspected.


(1) If on an application made—
(a) in England, to a judge of the High Court in chambers by the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Board of Trade or a chief officer of police; or
(b) in Scotland, to one of the Lords Commissioners of Justiciary by the Lord Advocate;
there is shown to be reasonable cause to believe that any person has, while an officer of a company, committed an offence in connection with the management of the company's affairs and that evidence of the commission of the offence is to be found in any books or papers of or under the control of the company, an order may be made—
(i) authorising any person named therein to inspect the said books or papers or any of them for the purpose of investigating and obtaining evidence of the offence; or
(ii) requiring the secretary of the company or such other officer thereof as may be named in the order to produce the said books or papers or any of them to a person named in the order at a place so named.
(2) The foregoing subsection shall apply also in relation to any books or papers of a person carrying on the business of banking so far as they relate to the company's affairs, as it applies to any books or papers of or under the control of the company, except that no such order as is referred to in paragraph (ii) thereof shall be made by virtue of this subsection.
(3) The decision of a judge of the High Court or of any of the Lords Commissioners of Justiciary on an application under this section shall not be appealable.
(4) In this section the expression “chief officer of police ” has (subject to the provisions of the 9 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 46.Police Act, 1946 and the 9 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 71.Police (Scotland) Act, 1946) the same meaning as in the 11 & 12 Geo. 5. c. 31.Police Pensions Act, 1921.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo6/11-12/38/section/441 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/companies-act-1948/section-441
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.