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London Metropolitan Archives

SOUTH WESTERN MAGISTRATES COURT


IDENTITY STATEMENT

Reference code(s): GB 0074 PS/SWE

Held at: London Metropolitan Archives

Title: SOUTH WESTERN MAGISTRATES COURT

Date(s): 1891-1981

Level of description: Collection

Extent: 36.95 linear metres (697 volumes and files).

Name of creator(s): South Western Magistrates Court

CONTEXT

Administrative/Biographical history:

South Western Magistrates Court:
According to the London Post Office Directory of 1950, the South Western Magistrates Court was situated at Daventry House, 217 Balham High Road, SW17. Its jurisdiction covered "the space included within the following boundary ... from a point in the middle of the roadway on Vauxhall bridge, at the middle of the river Thames, south-eastward along the middle of that roadway and of Vauxhall Bridge rd., Harleyford rd., the roadway on the south side of Kennington Oval, Harleyford St., Camberwell New rd., Brixton rd., Brixton hill, Streatham hill, and of Streatham High rd. to the boundary of the County of London; thence southward and westward along the said County boundary, by Lambeth cemetery, Garratt pk. and Beverley brook, then northward and eastward along the said County boundary to the middle of the river Thames west of Fulham palace; thence eastward along the middle of the river Thames to the aforementioned point in the middle of the river Thames to the aforementioned point in the middle of the roadway of Vauxhall bridge".

History of magistrates courts:
An Act of 1792 established seven 'Public Offices' (later Police offices and Police courts) in the central Metropolitan area. The aim was to establish fixed locations where 'fit and able magistrates' would attend at fixed times to deal with an increasing number of criminal offences.

Offices were opened in St Margaret Westminster, St James Westminster, Clerkenwell, Shoreditch, Whitechapel, Shadwell and Southwark. An office in Bow Street, Covent Garden, originally the home of the local magistrate, had been operating for almost 50 years and was largely the model for the new offices.

In 1800 the Marine Police Office or Thames Police Office, opened by 'private enterprise' in 1798, was incorporated into the statutory system. In 1821 an office was opened in Marylebone, apparently replacing the one in Shadwell.

Each office was assigned three Justices of the Peace. They were to receive a salary of £400 per annum. These were the first stipendiary magistrates. Later they were expected to be highly qualified in the law, indeed, to be experienced barristers. This distinguished them from the local lay justices who after the setting up of Police Offices were largely confined, in the Metropolitan area, to the licensing of innkeepers. In addition each office could appoint up to six constables to be attached to it.

The commonly used term of 'Police Court' was found to be misleading. The word 'police' gave the impression that the Metropolitan Police controlled and administered the courts. This was never the case, the word 'police' was being used in its original meaning of 'pertaining to civil administration', 'regulating', etc.

In April 1965 (following the Administration of Justice Act 1964) the London Police Courts with their stipendiary magistrates were integrated with the lay magistrates to form the modern Inner London Magistrates' Courts.

The police courts dealt with a wide range of business coming under the general heading of 'summary jurisdiction', i.e. trial without a jury. The cases heard were largely criminal and of the less serious kind. Over the years statutes created many offences that the courts could deal with in addition to Common Law offences. Examples include: drunk and disorderly conduct, assault, theft, begging, possessing stolen goods, cruelty to animals, desertion from the armed forces, betting, soliciting, loitering with intent, obstructing highways, and motoring offences. Non-criminal matters included small debts concerning income tax and local rates, landlord and tenant matters, matrimonial problems and bastardy.

Offences beyond the powers of the Court would normally be passed to the Sessions of the Peace or Gaol Delivery Sessions in the Old Bailey (from 1835 called the Central Criminal Court). From the late 19th century such cases would be the subject of preliminary hearings or committal proceedings in the magistrates' courts.

Outside the London Police Court Area but within the administrative county of Middlesex lay justices continued to deal with both criminal offences and administrative matters such as the licensing of innkeepers.

The exact area covered by a Court at any particular time can be found in the Kelly's Post Office London Directories, available on microfilm at LMA. The entries are based on the original Orders-in-Council establishing police court districts. A map showing police court districts is kept in the Information Area of LMA with other reference maps. Please ask a member of staff for assistance.

CONTENT

Scope and content/abstract:

Records of the South Western Magistrates Court, 1891-1981, including court registers; probation orders; Married Women Act orders; Guardianship of Infants Act orders; bastardy complaints; matrimonial case registers and indexes; separation and maintenance orders; warrants for desertion; and motoring offences records.

Court registers record the date of the hearing, the name of the informant or complainant (often the police), the name of the defendant, a brief note of the offence and the decision of the magistrate.

Matrimonial cases: a married woman under the provisions of the Summary Jurisdiction (Married Women) Act 1895 and subsequent Acts could go to a magistrates' court and apply for orders which in certain circumstances would enable her to separate from her husband, have custody of any children and receive maintenance from him. Under the Poor Law Amendment Act 1844 a mother expecting a bastard child or who had given birth to one could obtain a maintenance order against the putative father.

ACCESS AND USE

Language/scripts of material: English

System of arrangement:

Court Registers: General Matters (PS/SWE/A);
Justices' Procedure Act (PS/SWE/C);
Domestic Proceedings (PS/SWE/D);
Motoring Offences (PS/SWE/E).

Conditions governing access:

These records are available for public inspection, although records containing personal information are subject to access restrictions under the UK Data Protection Act, 1998.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Copyright to these records rests with the depositor.

Physical characteristics:

Fit

Finding aids:

Please see online catalogues at: http://search.lma.gov.uk/opac_lma/index.htm

ARCHIVAL INFORMATION

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition:

Deposited in April 1986.

ALLIED MATERIALS

DESCRIPTION NOTES Rules or conventions: Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions: November 2009 to February 2010


INDEX ENTRIES
Subjects
Court papers | Court records | Records (documents) | Records and correspondence | Information sources
Courts | Administration of justice
Family law | Civil law | Legal systems | Law
Guardians of minors | People by roles | People
Legal history | Law
Legal procedure | Administration of justice
Magistrates | Legal profession personnel | Personnel | People by occupation | People
Magistrates courts | Legal systems | Law
Probation | Social welfare

Personal names

Corporate names
South Western Magistrates Court

Places
Balham | London | England | UK | Western Europe | Europe
Brixton | London | England | UK | Western Europe | Europe
Camberwell | London | England | UK | Western Europe | Europe
Kennington | London | England | UK | Western Europe | Europe
Lambeth (district) | Lambeth | London | England | UK | Western Europe | Europe
Vauxhall | Surrey | England | UK | Western Europe | Europe
Southwark
Wandsworth