What does giving an undertaking to the court mean?

An undertaking is a legally binding promise to the court.

The promise can be either to complete an action or to prevent an action taking place. For example, in financial remedy proceedings, you may give an undertaking to pay the mortgage payments on the family home. Alternatively, in non-molestation proceedings, the undertaking could be to not harass, pester, contact in any way, or intimidate another person.

A breach of an undertaking is contempt of court and an application can be made for committal to prison.

You should think very carefully before giving an undertaking that you are able to comply with the terms. We would encourage you to seek legal advice prior to make any legally binding promises to the court.

If you have an enquiry, please call 01902 328 355 and you can speak to Aimee Stokes, a family law solicitor in George Green’s dedicated family law team.

You can also complete our online enquiry form and a member of our team will contact you for an initial discussion.

George Green Solicitors have offices based in Wolverhampton and Cradley Heath and serve clients across the West Midlands and Black Country including Stourbridge, Wolverhampton, Halesowen, Birmingham and beyond.