It has been argued that the introduction of anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) has created a ‘new domain ofprofessional powerand knowledge’ (Brown 2004, p.203).That is, local authorities have become ‘the mainagency of [social]control’ (Brown 2004, p.205). Alternatively, this article considers the effects of subjective legislative terminology, pivotal jurisprudential decisions, the courts’ protection of individual liberties versus the public interest, and the relevance of an over burdened summary criminal justice system, and attempts to locate the position of the judiciary within ASBO cases, not as a supportive or subordinate one, but in fact as a component of elementary importance.