Related documents
- Is amended by Local Courts (Amendment) Act, 2003
- Is amended by Local Courts (Amendment) Act, 2008
Zambia
Local Courts Act, 1966
Chapter 29
- Commenced on 1 October 1966
- [This is the version of this document as it was at 31 December 1996 to 11 December 2003.]
Part I – Preliminary
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Local Courts Act.2. Interpretation
3. Appointment of officers
Part II – Recognition, etc., of local courts
4. Recognition or establishment of local courts
5. Grades of local courts
6. Constitution of local courts and appointment of members
7. Sessions
Local courts shall hold sessions at such times and places as may be necessary for the convenient and speedy despatch of the business of such courts.[As amended by Acts No. 21 of 1976 and Act No. 8 of 1991]Part III – Jurisdiction, etc., of local courts
8. Civil jurisdiction of local courts
Subject to the provisions of this Act, a local court shall have and may exercise, within the territorial limits set out in its court warrant, such jurisdiction as may be prescribed for the grade of court to which it belongs, over the hearing, trial and determination of any civil cause or matter in which the defendant is ordinarily resident within the area of jurisdiction of such court or in which the cause of action has arisen within such area:Provided that civil proceedings relating to real property shall be taken in the local court within the area of jurisdiction in which the property is situate.[As amended by No. 21 of 1976]9. Criminal jurisdiction of local courts
Subject to the provisions of this Act, a local court shall have and may exercise jurisdiction, to such extent as may be prescribed for the grade of court to which it belongs, over the hearing, trial and determination of any criminal charge or matter in which the accused is charged with having wholly or in part within the area of jurisdiction of such court, committed, or been accessory to the commission of an offence.10. Preservation of jurisdiction
No local court shall be precluded from trying an offence under the Local Government Act by reason of the fact that such offence was a breach of a by-law or rule issued or made—11. Cases excluded from jurisdiction
Subject to any express provision of any other written law conferring jurisdiction, no local court shall have jurisdiction to try any case in which a person is charged with an offence in consequence of which death is alleged to have occurred or which is punishable by death.12. Law to be administered
13. Enforcement of specified laws
The Minister may, by statutory order, confer upon all or any local courts jurisdiction to administer all or any of the provisions of any written law specified in such order, and may, subject to the limits referred to in subsection (1) of section five, specify restrictions and limitations on the impositions of penalties by such local courts on persons subject to their jurisdiction who offend against such provisions.Part IV – Procedure, etc., of local courts
14. Practice and procedure
The practice and procedure of local courts shall be regulated in accordance with such rules as may be made in that behalf by the Chief Justice under section sixty-eight.15. Parties to appear in person
No legal practitioner, other than a practitioner who is a party and acting solely on his own behalf, may appear or act before a local court on behalf of any party to any proceedings therein save in respect of a criminal charge under any of the provisions of—(a)by-laws and regulations made under the provisions of the Local Government Act; or[Cap. 281](b)any written law which such court is authorised to administer under section thirteen.16. Copies of records, etc.
17. Issue of summons
18. Warrant of arrest
19. Execution of orders, etc., of other courts
A local court shall carry into execution any decrees or orders of the High Court or of any Subordinate Court, or any local court, directed to such court, and shall execute all warrants and serve all process issued by any such courts as aforesaid and directed to such local court for execution or service, and shall generally give such assistance to any of the aforesaid courts as may be required.20. Disposal of persons arrested
A local court before which a person arrested is brought shall, without unnecessary delay—21. Bail
22. Additional conditions of bail bonds
In addition to the condition mentioned in subsection (2) of section twenty-one, the local court before whom a bail bond is executed may impose such further conditions upon such bond as may seem reasonable and necessary in any particular case.23. Release from custody
24. Amount of bail and deposits
25. Power to order sufficient bail when that first taken is insufficient
If, through mistake, fraud or otherwise, insufficient sureties have been accepted, or if afterwards they become insufficient, the local court may issue a warrant of arrest directing that the person released on bail be brought before it and may order him to find sufficient sureties, and, on his failing so to do, may commit him to prison.26. Discharge of sureties
27. Death of surety
Where a surety to a bail bond dies before the bond is forfeited, his estates shall be discharged from all liability in respect of the bond, but the party who gave the bond may be required to find a new surety.28. Person bound by recognizance absconding may be committed
If it is made to appear to a local court, by information on oath, that any person bound by recognizance is about to leave Zambia, the court may cause him to be arrested, and may commit him to prison until the trial, unless the court shall see fit to admit him to bail upon further recognizance.29. Forfeiture of recognizance
30. Appeal from and revision of orders
All orders passed by a local court under sections twenty-one to twenty-nine inclusive shall be appealable to and may be revised by a Subordinate Court.31. Power to issue search warrant
Where it is proved on oath to the local court that, in fact or according to reasonable suspicion, anything upon, by or in respect of which an offence has been committed or anything which is necessary to the conduct of an investigation into any offence is in any building, vessel, carriage, box, receptacle or place, the local court may, by warrant (called a search warrant), authorise any officer of such local court or other person, not being a member of the local court, named therein, to search such building, vessel, carriage, box, receptacle or place (which shall be named or described in the warrant) for any such thing, and if anything searched for be found, to seize it and carry it before the local court issuing the warrant or some other local court, to be dealt with according to law.32. Execution of search warrant
Every search warrant may be issued and executed on a Sunday and shall be executed between the hours of sunrise and sunset, but a local court may, by the warrant, in its discretion, authorise the person to whom it is addressed to execute it at any hour.33. Persons in charge of closed place to allow ingress thereto and egress therefrom
34. Detention of property seized
35. Awards in civil cases
36. Appointment of administrator and making of orders relating to intestate estates to be administered under Cap. 59 Interstate Succession Act or under African customary law
37. Powers and duties of administrators appointed by local courts
38. Transfer of applications for orders relating to intestate estates to High Court
39. Orders in criminal cases
Subject to the provisions of this Act or of any other written law, and to any limitations imposed by its court warrant, a local court in cases of a criminal nature may—40. Sentences in cases of conviction for several offences at one trial
Where a person is convicted by a local court at one trial of two or more distinct offences, such court may sentence him for such offences to the several punishments prescribed therefor which such court is competent to impose.41. Committal to Subordinate Court for sentence
42. Fines
Amount of fine in penalty unitts | Maximum period of imprisonment in default |
---|---|
Not exceeding 8 | 14 days |
Exceeding 8 but not exceeding 40 | 1 month |
Exceeding 40 but not exceeding 80 | 3 months |
Exceeding 80 but not exceeding 160 | 6 months |
Exceeding 160 | 9 months |
43. Corporal punishment
44. Compensation
45. Suspended sentences
46. Payment of fines and compensation
A local court may order that any fine which it may impose or compensation which it may award shall be paid at such time or times or by such instalments as it shall think fit, and may order that in default of the payment of any instalment the whole of the unpaid balance of such fine or compensation shall become due, and that on the default of the payment of any fine, compensation or instalment thereof when due, the amount of such fine, compensation or instalment, as the case may be, shall, together with the costs of such levy, be levied by the attachment and sale of any property belonging to the person ordered to pay such fine, compensation or instalment:Provided that such levy shall not be made by the sale of the following forms of property without the consent of the owner thereof:Part V – Offences relating to the administration of justice
47. Contempt of court
48. Corrupt influence
Any person who—49. Corrupt practice
Any person who—50. Adjudication without authority
Part VI – Transfer of cases, revision and appeals
51. Interpretation
In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires—"adverse award" means a judgment, order or decision against a party which is not a sentence of fine, imprisonment or corporal punishment;"appellate court" means a court to which an appeal is made under the provisions of this Part;"interested party" means any person subject to the jurisdiction of a local court who has been either a party to a case in such court or concerned otherwise in such a case as a person claiming to have suffered loss or damage from any act or omission alleged in such a case, or against whom an order has been made in such a case;"lower court" means a court whose judgment, order or decision is the subject of an appeal under the provisions of this Part or whose judgment, order or decision is, or is to be, revised;"revised", in relation to any judgment, order or decision, means revised under the provisions of section fifty-four.52. Reports on cases
Every local court shall, when so required by an authorised officer, submit to such authorised officer a report of any cases or classes of cases tried in such court and such report shall be made at such times and in such form, including the submission of case records, as the authorised officer shall direct.53. Transfer of cases
54. Powers of inspection and revision
55. Powers of Director
The Director shall at all times have access to all local courts and to all records thereof and, subject to the provisions of this Act, the Director may exercise all the powers of an authorised officer in relation to any local court.[As amended by Act No. 8 of 1991]56. Appeals
57. ***
[repealed by No. 47 of 1970]58. Powers on appeal
59. Effect of entry of appeal on order, sentence, etc.
60. Procedure in transferred cases
When, under the provisions of section fifty-three, fifty-four, fifty-five or fifty-six or under the provisions of any other written law, a case which has been before a local court is sent for trial or retrial before another local court or a Subordinate Court, the local court from which such case has been sent shall report the proceedings in it to the court to which such case is sent, which shall thereupon proceed to the trial or retrial of such case, in criminal matters as though a complaint of facts constituting the offence had been made to the court, and in civil proceedings as though a complaint therein had been made to the court, and if fees for any purpose of the case have been paid to the court from which the case was sent, such fees shall be refunded to the person by whom they were paid and the said other court shall require the payment to itself of such fees as would be due if the proceedings had been commenced before it in the first instance.61. Use of assessors
62. Decisions to be in accordance substantial justice
No proceedings in a local court, and no warrant, process, order or decree issued or made thereby, shall be varied or declared void on appeal or revision solely by reason of defect of procedure or want of form, but every appellate court or person exercising powers of revision shall decide all matters according to substantial justice without undue regard to technicalities.63. Local court justices to be subject to directions of High Court
Every president or other local court justice and every proceeding before such president or other local court justice shall be subject to the orders and directions of the High Court.Part VII – General
64. Officers of local courts
65. Indemnities
66. Disposal of exhibits
67. Places of imprisonment
68. Rules
69. Detention and imprisonment rules
The Minister responsible for home affairs may, by statutory instrument, make rules providing for the management and government of places authorised under the provisions of section sixty-seven for the detention or imprisonment of persons on remand and of persons convicted and awaiting transmission to other custody and for the custody, detention or imprisonment of such persons therein.70. ***
[Obsolete]71. ***
[Has had its effect]History of this document
26 September 2008 amendment not yet applied
Amended by
Local Courts (Amendment) Act, 2008
12 December 2003 amendment not yet applied
Amended by
Local Courts (Amendment) Act, 2003
31 December 1996 this version
Consolidation
01 October 1966
Commenced
Cited documents 0
Documents citing this one 6
Judgment 6
Subsidiary legislation
Title
|
Date
|
|
---|---|---|
Local Courts (Amendment) Rules, 2001 | Statutory Instrument 7 of 2001 | 26 January 2001 |
Local Courts (Amendment) Rules, 1995 | Statutory Instrument 46 of 1995 | 13 April 1995 |
Local Courts (Amendment) Rules, 1992 | Statutory Instrument 4 of 1992 | 31 December 1992 |