Production Orders

Question 1

What is a production order?

Answer 1

Production orders are orders made under section 74 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 requiring a person or organisation (such as a business) to produce documents to enforcement agencies as evidential material of a specified offence.
Production orders are issued by issuing officers. (These are the same people as for search warrants).

Question 2

Production order vs search warrant

Answer 2

You have the choice whether a standard search warrant or production order should be sought for use in any given case. While compliance costs are incurred by a business issued with a production order, these costs are offset against the avoidance of the disruption that would otherwise occur by physical entry and search of the premises under a search warrant. Very often production order powers will be less intrusive and involve less cost, than using search warrants as an alternative.

Question 3

Duration of a production order

Answer 3

A production order is in force for the period specified in the order (not exceeding 30 days after the date on which the order is made). (Section 76

Question 4

Grounds for applying for a production order

Answer 4

You may apply for a production order if you have reasonable grounds to:
• suspect that an offence has been, is being, or will be committed (it must
be an offence for which you could apply for a search warrant), and
• believe that the documents sought by the proposed order:
− constitute evidential material in respect of the offence, and
− are in the possession or under the control of the person against whom
the order is sought, or will come into their possession, or under their control while the order is in force. (Section 72).