Serving A Witness Summons

What’s it for? The official calling of a witness to court issued by the prosecution or the defence of a court case.

When you are served with a witness summons it will either be handed to you in person, or it will be delivered to you at home. A professional process server aims to ensure personal service, to demonstrate beyond reasonably doubt that the summons has been delivered and received.

How to obtain a witness summons

To obtain a witness summons, you need to send two completed witness summonses to the court where the hearing is to be held or proceeding. You should complete form N20, which can be obtained directly from the court or via the Court Service’s website.

Each witness whose attendance at court is requested requires a separate witness summons. If the court is to arrange service on the witness, the party seeking the witness summons should also send an amount of money to the court to be paid or offered to the witness.

The summons will usually detail:

In some cases:

The ‘Witness Charter’ explains how you can expect to be treated if you are asked to give evidence in a criminal court. You can read the ‘Witness Charter’ on GOV.UK.

Need more information on serving a witness summons? Contact us via our website.

Please note: The above is not meant to constitute legal advice. The law changes regularly and as such we recommend speaking to a legal professional for clarification.