Undertaking
A solemn promise made to a court or another party that is legally enforceable as if it were a court order.
Definition
An undertaking is a formal promise — made by a party or their solicitor — to do or refrain from doing something. When given to a court, an undertaking carries the same force as a court order: breach is contempt of court and can result in a fine or imprisonment. Undertakings arise in several contexts: (1) in injunction proceedings, a defendant may give an undertaking to the court as an alternative to a formal injunction being granted; (2) a solicitor's undertaking is a personal promise by the solicitor (not just the client) to do something — for example, to pay completion funds in a property transaction — and is enforceable against the solicitor personally; (3) a cross-undertaking in damages is given by a claimant who obtains an interim injunction, promising to compensate the defendant if the injunction turns out to have been wrongly granted. Courts take breach of undertaking extremely seriously, and committal applications are a recognised enforcement mechanism under CPR Part 81.
In practice
If you are offered an undertaking instead of a court order, check it is worded precisely — vague undertakings are hard to enforce. If a solicitor gives you an undertaking (for example, to hold a deposit to your order), that promise is enforceable against the solicitor personally through the SRA and the courts. If someone breaches an undertaking given to the court, apply for a committal order under CPR Part 81. The <a href="/guides/debt/county-court-money-claim" class="body-link">county court money claim guide</a> covers enforcement options when court orders (and undertakings) are ignored.