*/
Dispense with lawyers and deal with cases worth up to £25,000 using online courts and case officers, a senior judge has suggested in radical proposals to shake up the civil justice system.
In his interim Civil Courts Structure Review report, Lord Justice Briggs said there is a ‘clear and pressing need’ to create an online court for claims up to £25,000 to give litigants effective access to justice without the ‘disproportionate cost of using lawyers’. Cases will be dealt with in three stages, beginning with a largely automated, interactive online process to identify the issues and lodge documentary evidence, followed by conciliation and case management by case officers, before resolution by a judge.
Responding to the proposals Chairman of the Bar, Chantal-Aimée Doerries QC, accepted that the ‘stranglehold’ of paper ‘needs to be broken’ and agreed that technology has the potential to help reduce the cost and complexity of the court system.
But Doerries warned that removing lawyers from civil proceedings below a certain monetary value might not achieve the desired objectives of the Government’s court reform programme, particularly coming on top of legal aid cuts and increased court fees.
Removing lawyers, she said, ‘effectively means leaving people to fend for themselves, which could result in a denial of justice’, adding that the Bar Council will be examining the proposals very carefully.
The proposals will be considered in a formal consultation, which closes at the end of May, before Briggs’ final review is completed at the beginning of the summer.
Dispense with lawyers and deal with cases worth up to £25,000 using online courts and case officers, a senior judge has suggested in radical proposals to shake up the civil justice system.
In his interim Civil Courts Structure Review report, Lord Justice Briggs said there is a ‘clear and pressing need’ to create an online court for claims up to £25,000 to give litigants effective access to justice without the ‘disproportionate cost of using lawyers’. Cases will be dealt with in three stages, beginning with a largely automated, interactive online process to identify the issues and lodge documentary evidence, followed by conciliation and case management by case officers, before resolution by a judge.
Responding to the proposals Chairman of the Bar, Chantal-Aimée Doerries QC, accepted that the ‘stranglehold’ of paper ‘needs to be broken’ and agreed that technology has the potential to help reduce the cost and complexity of the court system.
But Doerries warned that removing lawyers from civil proceedings below a certain monetary value might not achieve the desired objectives of the Government’s court reform programme, particularly coming on top of legal aid cuts and increased court fees.
Removing lawyers, she said, ‘effectively means leaving people to fend for themselves, which could result in a denial of justice’, adding that the Bar Council will be examining the proposals very carefully.
The proposals will be considered in a formal consultation, which closes at the end of May, before Briggs’ final review is completed at the beginning of the summer.
Chair of the Bar reflects on 2025
Q&A with criminal barrister Nick Murphy, who moved to New Park Court Chambers on the North Eastern Circuit in search of a better work-life balance
Revolt Cycling in Holborn, London’s first sustainable fitness studio, invites barristers to join the revolution – turning pedal power into clean energy
Rachel Davenport, Co-founder and Director at AlphaBiolabs, reflects on how the company’s Giving Back ethos continues to make a difference to communities across the UK
By Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs
AlphaBiolabs has made a £500 donation to Sean’s Place, a men’s mental health charity based in Sefton, as part of its ongoing Giving Back initiative
Little has changed since Burns v Burns . Cohabiting couples deserve better than to be left on the blasted heath with the existing witch’s brew for another four decades, argues Christopher Stirling
Six months of court observation at the Old Bailey: APPEAL’s Dr Nisha Waller and Tehreem Sultan report their findings on prosecution practices under joint enterprise
Despite its prevalence, autism spectrum disorder remains poorly understood in the criminal justice system. Does Alex Henry’s joint enterprise conviction expose the need to audit prisons? asks Dr Felicity Gerry KC
With automation now deeply embedded in the Department for Work Pensions, Alexander McColl and Alexa Thompson review what we know, what we don’t and avenues for legal challenge
Why were some Caribbean nations given such dramatically different constitutional frameworks when they gained independence from the UK? Dr Leonardo Raznovich examines the controversial savings clause
