Summary Jurisdiction Act, 1848

Where information laid that an offence punishable on summary conviction has been committed, &c. summons.

[1.] In all cases where an information shall be laid before one or more of her Majesty’s justices of the peace for any county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place, within England or Wales, that any person has committed or is suspected to have committed any offence or act within the jurisdiction of such justice or justices for which he is liable by law, upon a summary conviction for the same before a justice or justices of the peace, to be imprisoned or fined, or otherwise punished, and also in all cases where a complaint shall be made to any such justice or justices upon which he or they have or shall have authority by law to make any order for the payment of money or otherwise, then and in every such case it shall be lawful for such justice or justices of the peace to issue his or their summons directed to such person, stating shortly the matter of such information or complaint, and requiring him to appear at a certain time and place before the same justice or justices, or before such other justice or justices of the same county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place as shall then be there, to answer to the said information or complaint, and to be further dealt with according to law; and every such summons shall be served by a constable or other peace officer, or other person to whom the same shall be delivered, upon the person to whom it is so directed, by delivering the same to the party personally, or by leaving the same with some person for him at his last or most usual place of abode; and the constable, peace officer, or person who shall serve the same in manner aforesaid shall attend at the time and place and before the justices in the said summons mentioned, to depose, if necessary, to the service of the said summons: Provided always, that nothing herein mentioned shall oblige any justice or justices of the peace to issue any such summons in any case where the application for any order of justices is by law to be made ex parte: Provided also, that no objection shall be taken or allowed to any information, complaint, or summons, for any alleged defect therein in substance or in form, or for any variance between such information, complaint, or summons and the evidence adduced on the part of the informant or complainant at the hearing of such information or complaint, as herein-after mentioned; but if any such variance shall appear to the justice or justices present and acting at such hearing to be such that the party so summoned and appearing has been thereby deceived or misled, it shall be lawful for such justice or justices, upon such terms as he or they shall think fit, to adjourn the hearing of the case to some future day.