{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/mental-health-northern-ireland-order-1986/article-38",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/mental-health-northern-ireland-order-1986/article-38.json",
  "legislation": "nisi/1986/595",
  "legislation_title": "The Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/mental-health-northern-ireland-order-1986",
  "path": "article/38",
  "kind": "article",
  "number": "38",
  "heading": "Procedure on application to county court",
  "text": "County court rules which relate to applications authorised by this Part to be made to a county court may make provision—\n(a) for the hearing and determination of such applications otherwise than in open court;\n(b) for the admission on the hearing of such applications of evidence of such descriptions as may be specified in the rules notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any statutory provision or rule of law relating to the admissibility of evidence;\n(c) for the visiting and interviewing of patients in private by or under the directions of the court.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "C",
      "label": "C1",
      "text": "Art. 38 applied (31.3.2013) by Mental Health (Private Hospitals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2013 (S.R. 2013/22), regs. 1, 3(3)(y), 4"
    },
    {
      "type": "C",
      "label": "C2",
      "text": "Art. 38 applied (31.3.2013) by Mental Health (Private Hospitals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012 (S.R. 2012/403), regs. 1, 3(3)(hh), 4"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1986/595/article/38",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T04:48:38.738443+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."
}