Stay of proceedings
Stay of proceedings
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Stay of proceedings

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Stay of proceedings

A stay of proceedings is a ruling by a court in civil and criminal procedure that halts further legal process in a trial or other legal proceeding. The court can subsequently lift the stay and resume proceedings based on events taking place after the stay is ordered. However, a stay is sometimes used as a device to postpone proceedings indefinitely.

In civil procedure, stays of proceedings are governed by the Civil Procedure Rules. In criminal trials, they are governed by the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985.

Court have the power to stay:

UK courts also maintain an inherent jurisdiction to manage legal proceedings before them, but it is rarely exercised. Stays of proceedings are usually made under case management powers, and may be ordered upon the application by one of the parties or by the court's own motion (the latter being infrequent).

A court may issue a stay in a winding-up upon the creation of an application for rescission, an order being made against a false or mistaken institution, the petition debt being paid in full, the pertaining institution ceasing to exist, or the prior existence of a winding-up order.

In bankruptcy, a case can be stayed if a certification for annulment exists or an individual voluntary arrangement is being negotiated.

When the parties agree to terms of settlement while litigation is on foot, they may file a Tomlin order to stay the proceedings. Once approved by the court, the proceedings are permanently stayed pending an application by one of the parties to enforce the terms of the settlement agreement.

When a stay of proceedings is lifted, the proceedings may continue. There was a discussion about whether lifting a stay allows proceedings to continue "without any party having to go to the trouble and expense of making an application to the Court in order to enable that to happen" in UK Highways A55 Limited v Hyder Consulting (UK) Limited. Allowances are made for interference of the stay with any case management directions (which specify dates which the parties must take steps in the action), so that parties are not time prejudiced by the making or interference caused by the stay.

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