Search Order
An order requiring the respondent to permit their premises to be searched and documents/articles to be preserved. Formerly known as an Anton Piller order. An extreme remedy granted only in exceptional circumstances.
Independent editorial summary — not the official statute text. Read the official version on legislation.gov.uk.
A search order is one of the interim remedies listed in CPR rule 25.1, defined there as an order ('search order') under section 7 of the Civil Procedure Act 1997 requiring a party to admit another party to premises for the purpose of preserving evidence, among other things. Reflecting the intrusive nature of the remedy, the Rules confine who may grant one: only High Court Judges or other judges duly authorised may grant search orders and freezing injunctions.
Search orders were formerly known as 'Anton Piller' orders. The County Court Remedies Regulations 2014 record that an order allowing one party to search premises for the purpose of obtaining evidence in proceedings was formally known as an 'Anton Piller' order, but is now referred to as a 'search order' in the Civil Procedure Rules 1998. Because of the exceptional nature of the remedy, the CPR builds in specific safeguards for search and imaging orders: an application must be supported by evidence on affidavit or affirmation, and the order is normally served by a 'Supervising Solicitor', defined as a solicitor experienced in the operation of search orders, who is not an employee or member of the applicant's firm of solicitors.
Related terms
Official sources
This explanation is drawn from the official sources below; every substantive statement is verified against them. For advice on a specific matter, see our find help page.