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Section 16M: Powers to set aside a conviction or replace a penalty etc

Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 · 1980 c. 43View on legislation.gov.uk

Part I: Criminal Jurisdiction and Procedure

A magistrates' court may set aside a conviction under section 16H if it appears to the court that the conviction is unjust.

Subsection (1) does not affect the validity of a written charge or a single justice procedure notice.

A magistrates' court carrying out functions under subsection (1) may be composed of a single justice.

But if a magistrates' court composed of a single justice is minded to refuse to set aside a conviction—

the decision must instead be referred to a magistrates' court that is not so composed; and
the parties must be given the opportunity to attend at, and make representations to, the magistrates' court making that decision.

A magistrates' court—

may set aside any penalty imposed on a person under section 16I if it appears to the court that the amount of that penalty is unjust; and
if it does so, may impose any sentence that it could have imposed for that offence if the person had pleaded guilty before it at the earliest opportunity.

The reference in subsection (5)(a) to the amount of a penalty is to be read, in relation to penalty points, as a reference to the number of penalty points imposed.

A magistrates' court may exercise a power conferred by this section—

on an application by the person convicted,
on an application by the relevant prosecutor who initiated the proceedings, or
of its own motion.

In this section—

  • "penalty" and "penalty points" have the meanings given by section 16L(4);

  • "relevant prosecutor" has the same meaning as in section 29 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003.

About this text

This legislation text comes from legislation.gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. These source and reuse terms cover the legislation text, not Remedy's commentary.

Reuse reviewed 21 August 2026 under Open Government Licence v3.0.