Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about matters related to court action about Mr X’s council tax. This is mainly because the law prevents us investigating complaints about such court action.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council:
1. unlawfully got a liability order against him for council tax, despite receiving an application to adjourn as he was seeking further relevant information; and
2. got a court order that he and others should pay costs when those costs were unlawful.
2. He states this caused him to devote time to this matter, he was subject to enforcement action, he had to contact debt collectors and apply to the court to set aside the judgment.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
4. We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)
5. The courts have said that where someone has used their right of appeal, reference or review or remedy by way of proceedings in any court of law, the Ombudsman has no jurisdiction to investigate. This is the case even if the appeal did not or could not provide a complete remedy for all the injustice claimed. (R v The Commissioner for Local Administration ex parte PH (1999) EHCA Civ 916)
6. The courts have said we can decide not to investigate a complaint about any action by a council concerning a matter which is outside our jurisdiction. (R (on the application of M) v Commissioner for Local Administration [2006] EHWCC 2847 (Admin))

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How I considered this complaint

7. I considered information provided by the complainant.
8. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

9. The restriction in paragraph 4 prevents us investigating the commencement or conduct of court action. That includes everything between the Council issuing a summons and the magistrates’ court issuing a liability order. This means we cannot consider whether the Council was wrong to seek the liability order in the circumstances.
10. The same restriction prevents us considering the costs the Council applied for. It was for the court to decide whether the costs were lawful before making an order.
11. Mr X also says he has used his right under section 142 of the Magistrates’ Court Act 1980 to ask the court to set aside the order. So, the restriction in paragraph 4 also prevents us investigating this point.
12. Mr X is also dissatisfied with the Council’s handling of questions, communications and complaints about this matter and how its budget dealt with court costs. It would be disproportionate to investigate these points when the underlying substantive points are outside our jurisdiction. Paragraph 6 above applies here.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the law prevents us from investigating complaints about court action such as this. Mr X has also used his right to take court action to set aside the order. In the circumstances, it would be disproportionate to investigate the Council’s communications, complaint-handling and related matters.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman