Tomlin order

A way of settling a court claim that puts the deal in a private schedule and the stay in a public order — so the terms stay confidential, but the court can still be asked to enforce them without starting again.

What is the difference between a Tomlin order and an ordinary consent order?

An ordinary consent order is a court order: the terms sit on the face of it, the court has ordered them, and breaching them is a breach of a court order. A Tomlin order stays the claim on agreed terms that sit in a schedule. The schedule is a contract between the parties rather than something the court has ordered, which is why it can contain terms the court could not order and why it can stay confidential.

Can I use a Tomlin order in the small claims track?

Yes. Nothing restricts Tomlin orders to larger claims, and they are commonly used to record instalment settlements in small money claims. The practical question is whether the extra structure is worth it: for a lump sum paid within days, a simple consent order or a withdrawal after payment is often enough.

Does a Tomlin order end my claim?

No. It stays the claim, which means it is paused rather than finished. That is the point. If the other side does not do what the schedule says, you can apply to lift the stay and enforce the schedule terms in the same proceedings instead of starting a fresh claim for breach of the settlement contract.

Do costs go in the order or in the schedule?

Any provision about costs, including a direction for detailed assessment or an agreement that there is no order as to costs, should appear in the body of the order rather than in the schedule. Practice Direction 40B addresses this directly. Money terms about the settlement sum itself can sit in the schedule.

Does the judge read the schedule?

Usually only enough to check the order can properly be made. The schedule is not something the court is ordering, so judges do not scrutinise the commercial bargain the way they would a term they were being asked to impose. That is also why a badly drafted schedule is your problem, not the court's.

What happens if the defendant misses an instalment?

You apply to the court under the liberty to apply provision in the order, asking it to lift the stay and give judgment or make an order to carry the schedule terms into effect. You do not need to issue a new claim. Build the consequence of default into the schedule itself so there is no argument about what happens.

Why the schedule sits outside the order

Settling a claim raises an awkward problem. You want the court involved enough that the agreement has teeth, but not so involved that the whole bargain becomes a public court record, and not so involved that you are limited to things a judge could actually order. A judge in a money claim can order a defendant to pay a sum. A judge cannot easily order them to write an apology, transfer a piece of equipment, take down a review, or pay in twelve monthly instalments with a rebate for early payment.

The Tomlin order solves this by splitting the document in two. The order itself is short and does one thing: it stays the proceedings, with permission for either party to come back to court to enforce the schedule terms. The schedule attached to it holds the real deal, and it takes effect as a contract between the parties rather than as something the court has ordered.

That split has two consequences worth understanding before you sign one. First, the schedule can contain almost anything the parties agree to, including obligations on people who are not parties to the claim and terms that go well beyond what was being claimed. Second, because the court has not ordered those terms, breaching them is not contempt of court — it is a breach of contract, which is why the order keeps the claim alive as the route back in.

Confidentiality is often the deciding factor. A consent order recording that a defendant pays £3,200 is a document on the court file. A Tomlin order recording that the claim is stayed on the terms of a schedule tells the world nothing about the figure. In disputes where either side cares about the number becoming known — a trader worried about setting a precedent with other customers, a claimant who has agreed to accept less than they claimed — that matters.

The most common drafting mistake in an unrepresented settlement is putting the payment obligation only in the schedule and then leaving out the liberty to apply. Without that permission, a party facing a broken schedule may be pushed towards issuing a fresh claim for breach of the settlement agreement — a second claim fee, a second wait, and a second hearing to prove something both sides already agreed.

When it is worth it in a small claim

Tomlin orders are most useful when payment is going to happen over time, when the settlement involves something other than money, or when confidentiality genuinely matters. A defendant who accepts they owe £4,000 but can only pay £250 a month is exactly the situation the device was built for: you get an enforceable structure without a

being registered against them, which is often what persuades them to agree at all.

It is less useful where the defendant is simply going to pay in full in the next fortnight. There, waiting for cleared funds and then filing a

or a short consent order is faster and involves less drafting risk. It is also a poor fit where you doubt the defendant can pay at all: a schedule against someone with no money is worth no more than a judgment against them.

Note the trade-off on the judgment itself. Because the claim is stayed rather than decided, there is no judgment on the register unless and until you go back to court. For the claimant that is a genuine loss of leverage. It is also, for the defendant, the main attraction — and knowing that is useful when you negotiate the figure.

Enforcing a schedule that has been broken

If the other side stops performing, the order’s liberty to apply is your route back. You apply to the same court, in the same claim, asking it to lift the stay and either enter judgment for the outstanding balance or make an order carrying the schedule terms into effect. In practice this is usually done on an

with a short witness statement setting out what was agreed and what was not paid.

A well-drafted schedule makes that application almost mechanical, because it says in advance what default means. A term along the lines of “if any instalment is more than 14 days late, the whole outstanding balance falls due immediately” removes the argument about whether one missed payment entitles you to the lot. Once judgment is entered, the ordinary

A sole trader claims £4,800 for unpaid invoices. The defendant company accepts £3,600 is due but says paying it in one go would sink its cash flow. Both sides want the number kept off a public order.

Agreed settlement in schedule

Acceleration on default

balance due after 14 days late

CCJ registered on signing?

no — claim is stayed

Payments run for seven months and then stop with £1,500 outstanding. The claimant applies under the liberty to apply, exhibits the schedule and the payment record, and asks the court to lift the stay and enter judgment for £1,500. No new claim, no new claim fee on the substantive dispute, and the acceleration clause means there is nothing to argue about on the amount.

Notice of discontinuance

Small Claims Mediation Service

Application notice (N244)

Civil Procedure Rules, Part 40 — judgments and orders

Practice Direction 40B — judgments and orders

Make a court claim for money

Tomlin Order — Small Claims Glossary

What a Tomlin order is, why the settlement terms sit in a schedule rather than the order, how costs are dealt with, and how to enforce a schedule that has been broken.