Become A Magistrate - GOV.UK

Cookies on GOV.UK

We use some essential cookies to make this website work.

We’d like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services.

We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services.

Accept additional cookies Reject additional cookies View cookies Hide cookie message Skip to main content

1. Home
2. Citizenship and living in the UK
3. Charities, volunteering and honours

Become a magistrate Skip contents

Contents

1. What magistrates do
2. Who can be a magistrate
3. Apply to be a magistrate

What magistrates do

Magistrates are volunteers who hear cases in courts in their community. They can hear cases in the criminal court, the family court, or both.

Each case is usually heard by 3 magistrates, including a magistrate who is trained to act as a chairperson.

A legal adviser in the court gives advice on the law and makes sure the magistrates follow the right procedures.

Criminal cases

Almost all criminal cases begin in a magistrates’ court.

Magistrates pass the most serious crimes (for example murder, rape and robbery) to the Crown Court. Magistrates decide if the defendant should be:

• kept in custody - for example in a police or court cell
• let out on strict conditions - for example to keep away from named places or people

Magistrates deal with crimes like:

• minor assaults
• motoring offences
• theft
• handling stolen goods
• TV licence evasion

Magistrates can give punishments such as:

• fines
• unpaid work in the community
• prison for up to 12 months for one crime

Family cases

Magistrates can also hear cases at a family court.

These magistrates deal with cases about children. They can:

• arrange for a child to be taken into care or put up for adoption
• help separated parents make arrangements for their children
• enforce child maintenance orders
• make court orders to prevent domestic abuse

These magistrates can get advice from the child’s guardian or a family court adviser during the case.

Next:Who can be a magistrate View a printable version of the whole guide

Related content

• Criminal courts
• Volunteer to check standards in prison

Explore the topic

• Charities, volunteering and honours

Is this page useful?

• Yes this page is useful
• No this page is not useful

Thank you for your feedback Report a problem with this page

Help us improve GOV.UK

Don’t include personal or financial information like your National Insurance number or credit card details.

This field is for robots only. Please leave blank What were you doing? What went wrong? Send Cancel

Help us improve GOV.UK

To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today. Please fill in this survey (opens in a new tab).

Cancel