# The Magistrates' Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1981, Article 93: Restrictions on power to order immediate committal in default of payment of a sum adjudged to be paid by a conviction

Extent: N.I.

(1) A warrant committing a person to prison in respect of non-payment of a sum adjudged to be paid by a conviction of a magistrates' court shall not be issued at the time of his conviction unless—
(a) he appears to the court to have sufficient means to pay the sum forthwith; or
(b) on being asked by the court whether he wishes to have time for payment he does not ask for time; or
(c) the court is satisfied that he has no fixed abode in Northern Ireland; or
(d) there is some other special circumstance appearing to the court to justify immediate committal;
and if the court does issue a warrant of commitment, the court shall state in the warrant the reasons for not allowing the person committed time to pay.
(2) This Article does not apply where the person is a child.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1981/1675/article/93 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/magistrates-courts-northern-ireland-order-1981/article-93
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.