Serving A N39 Order to Attend Court

What’s it for?

An N39 Order to attend, is a court order that the debtor appears in court for Questioning.

This must be served by a Process Server 14 days before the hearing.

Once an application has been made to the court, the judgement debtor is ordered to attend court for questioning.

They will then be questioned on oath. Questions will be about their finances and employment status,
Income and expenditure of the debtor and their dependents shall be questioned.

Failure to obey this order may eventually result in the debtor being sent to prison. The N39 order must be served at least 14 days before the hearing date and a professional process server can ensure speed of personal service.

An order for information is an option available to the creditor once he has been awarded his judgment. It can be a useful method of finding out more about the judgment debtor before deciding what course of enforcement action to follow.

What happens is that the judgment debtor is ordered to come to the court to be questioned, on oath, by a court officer about their:

  • Employment status, details of employer and wages or salary
  • Dependants and outgoings paid from income
  • Any additional income
  • Any property owned (house, car, caravan, etc.), which may have a saleable value
  • Any bank or building society accounts and the balances in them
  • Any other relevant questions you want answered

Need more information on serving a N39 order to attend court? Contact us.

Please note: The above is not meant to constitute legal advice. The law changes regularly and as such we recommend speaking to a legal professional for clarification.