Category Archives: Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals

Court Modernisation: Court Service spins response to Audit Office report

Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals, ,

After months of debate on the court modernisation programme led by Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS), we now have an authoritative  analysis from the National Audit Office (NAO). HMCTS chief executive, Susan Acland-Hood, professed herself happy. The report is ‘helpful and constructive’. She was pleased that ‘the NAO acknowledges our “early progress”. Her comments … Continue reading Court Modernisation: Court Service spins response to Audit Office report →

The Online Solutions Court: decision trees in the desert

Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals, ODR,

You would not expect Dubai’s bid to become a global judicial decision hub in commercial disputes to have much relevance for the Online Solutions Court for small claims proposed for England and Wales. However, the Dubai International Financial Centre and the Dubai Future Foundation have combined to create a Courts for the Future Forum to … Continue reading The Online Solutions Court: decision trees in the desert →

The Online Solutions Court: Follow the Money

Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals, ODR,

There were two surprises at the Sixth National Forum on Access to Justice for those without Means held in London and organised through the aegis of a committee of the Civil Justice Council concerned with litigants in person. The first was positive: the speakers included some who were not British. The second less so: there … Continue reading The Online Solutions Court: Follow the Money →

Grappling with the ‘billion dollar question’: does ODR affect outcomes?

Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals, ODR,

Recently published research on the criminal justice digitalisation programme (discussed in a previous post) raised what it called ‘the billion dollar question’: ‘do virtual hearings affect outcomes?’ Alas, definitive findings on this crucial issue were understandably beyond the charity, Transform Justice, responsible. It reported that ‘there is no information since 2010 for police station-court links, … Continue reading Grappling with the ‘billion dollar question’: does ODR affect outcomes? →

Her Majesty’s Court Service: trouble ahead for the online criminal court?

Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals, ODR

Halt ‘the expansion of virtual justice (video and telephone) for defendants until we have more research on its impact,’ says a hard-hitting report from the charity Transform Justice (TJ) published yesterday. The Guardian reported a generic defence from the Ministry of Justice: ‘We are investing more than £1bn to transform and modernise our court system. … Continue reading Her Majesty’s Court Service: trouble ahead for the online criminal court? →