Postal Requisitions

What is a postal requisition or a court summons?

A postal requisition, or a court summons, is when you receive a charge to attend court via the post. It will tell you the date and time you should go to court to answer the charge.

When you attend court, you’ll be asked to enter either a guilty or not guilty plea, so getting legal advice as soon as you receive your court summons is vital.

The postal requisition/court summons can be used for most offences, from driving matters, right up to the most serious types of fraud and money laundering offences. It is most usual that the police, HMRC and NCA will issue you with a summons in this way when they have interviewed you in the past.

In most cases, the postal requisition can arrive months after you were spoken to by the police and come as a complete surprise. If this happens, you should seek legal advice straight away to check the validity of the requisition. Some offences have time limits, which would mean that a postal requisition could be out of time and therefore void.

Can I get free advice?

If you have received a court summons, give us a call right away for a free, confidential, no-obligation chat about your case. We will be able to tell you how we could help you, and whether you are eligible for free representation under legal aid at Magistrates’ Court or Crown Court.

Don’t worry if you’ve had advice from another solicitor in the past, we are here to offer you free, independent help when you need it.

You can call us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on 0116 255 5155. Alternatively, you can drop us an email at info@sahotasahota.co.uk.

What if I ignore the summons?

It is really important that you do not ignore a summons. You must attend court, and if you don’t, a warrant without bail could be issued. That means you are liable to be arrested and remanded in police custody until you attend court.

What if I cannot make the date given on the summons?

Don’t panic! If this is the case, we can make a request for an adjournment on your behalf. To do this, you’ll need to tell us why you can’t attend, for example, you have a pre-booked holiday or you are having difficulty getting time off work.

For some offences, as long as we have full instructions, we can enter a plea on your behalf and the matter can be dealt with in your absence.

What should I do now?

The first thing you should do is get legal advice as soon as you can. We can explain the details of the offence you face and give you advice. We can apply for legal aid for you and then liaise with the prosecution on your behalf. We are then able to have one of our expert solicitors attend court to represent you.

Importantly, we will then start to prepare your case, gathering any evidence available before the first hearing date and discussing your defence and any mitigating circumstances.