The Office of the Accountant of Court

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The Office of the Accountant of Court

The Accountant of Court is an Officer of Court appointed to supervise the actings of individuals appointed by the Courts to manage

estates where there is a disagreement between interested parties
estates which become the property of children under the age of 16 years.

The Judicial Factors Act 1849 and the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 govern these appointments.

The principal purpose of the Accountant and his Staff is to ensure that persons appointed by the Courts manage the estates under their charge in a proper manner. They also provide assistance to appointees in carrying out their duties and give advice and guidance

The Accountant of Court is also authorised to administer Child Trust Fund accounts where there is no person who has parental responsibilities for a child under the age of 16, who is in care and accommodated in Scotland, all in terms of the Child Trust Fund Act 2004.

All Guardianship cases, Whether the appointment was made prior to or after the introduction of the Adult's with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2002 are now dealt with by the Office of the Public Guardian, Hadrian House, Callender Business Park, Falkirk, FK1 1XR, telephone number 01324 678 300.

The website for the Office of the Public Guardian is www.publicguardian-scotland.gov.uk

Structure of the department

Accountant of Court
Deputy Accountant of Court
Judicial Factory Case Officer	Child Unit/Registration team leader
	Child Unit / Registration team

Accountant of Court

Responsible for

Organising and administering the business of the Office to best effect in the Public interest
Dealing with matters related to staffing, finance and organisation
Responding to complaints, Parliamentary questions, correspondence with Ministers and MPs
Considering cases involving questions of policy or special difficulty
Management responsibility for Deputy Accountant and more senior staff members
Signature of formal Court documents
Acting in representational capacity in contacts with professional organisations and all other interested parties
Reorganisation of department and procedures in preparation for proposed introduction of the Incapable Adults (Scotland) Bill

Deputy Accountant of Court

Responsible for

Day to day running of office
Supervision of staff
Consideration and revision of referred cases
Correspondence on matters of legal complexity, precedent, conflict, significant expenditure etc.
Performance against targets - monitoring quality and quantity of work undertaken
Provision of advice to Accountant on matters of policy
Release of Liquidators in terms of Insolvency Act 1986
Applications for Special Powers in terms of Section 7 of Judicial Factors Act 1849

Judicial Factory Auditors

A Judicial Factor is a person appointed by the Court to manage the affairs of another. The affairs under his control are called a Factory.

Responsible for

Supervision of actings of Factors appointed in terms of Judicial Factors Act 1849
Audit accounts lodged and to fix remuneration to Factors for the work carried out
Consideration of appeals against commissions awarded
Examination of Factorial Inventories
Drafting reports required by Court
General supervision of caseload
Process of applications for Judicial Discharge, Schemes of Division etc.

Child Unit / Registration Team Leader

Responsible for

Administration of applications for directions made under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995.
Administration of Child Trust Fund accounts
Supervision and management of the Child Unit/Registration team
Authorisation of uplifts in consigned funds
Providing guidance to customers in respect of applications made under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995

Child unit /Registration Team

Responsible for

Managing the day to day administration in respect of Children (Scotland) Act cases.
Managing the day to day administration in respect of Child Trust accounts.
Providing administrative support to Judicial Factory case officer and Child Unit team leader
Administration of Consignation Register , including lodgements and upliftment

Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000

The Office of the Accountant of Court was expanded to form a new Office of the Public Guardian. Its functions are to maintain and amend public registers of Court Appointments and Orders relating to adults with incapacity; to maintain and amend registers of continuing and welfare powers of attorney; to authorise access to the funds of adults with incapacity for specific purposes; to supervise and monitor the financial powers of guardians and persons appointed under Intervention Orders; and to investigate complaints relating to the management of finances by attorneys, guardians and others.

Further information is available from the web page of the Office of the Public Guardian on this site.

Services provided and contact numbers

Accountant of Court	0132 467 8300
Deputy Accountant Of Court	01324 678 323
Judicial Factory Case Officer	01324 677 743
ChildUnit/Registration Team Leader	01324 677 640
Consignations	01324 677 742
Child Unit/Registration Team	01324 677 742/ 01324 677 741