Judges move cases to stop delays denying justice
In an effort to address a nationwide backlog of hearings, judges in at least two eastern England crown courts have
transferred cases to nearby counties.
Cambridge is now the new location for cases listed in Ipswich and St Albans, Hertfordshire.
Listings also indicate that proceedings for the crown court are being held in adjacent premises that are typically used
by Peterborough and St Albans magistrates.
According to ministers, hearings are being held in an effort to prevent court delays from depriving people of justice.
Brian Farmer/BBCAccording to a top barrister who wished to remain anonymous, efforts to reduce court waiting lists should be applauded.
“Those at the lower end of the socio-economic scale will likely be the most vulnerable,” he continued.
“If people don’t have cars and have to rely on public transport, then that will take time and mean expense for them.”
He cited the epidemic and “under-investment” in courts as contributing factors to the backlog of hearings.
“Efforts are being made to reduce the backlog of hearings,” said Heidi Alexander, the minister of courts.
According to a Ministry of Justice (MoJ) spokesperson, local presiding judges collaborated with representatives of
HM Courts & Tribunals Service, which is in charge of court administration, to decide which cases to transfer.
According to MoJ authorities, cases from St Albans and Ipswich have been moved to a nearby county, and the
complainants’ needs—including any potential travel challenges—have been taken into account.
An analysis of hearing backlogs was published by the National Audit Office (NAO) in May.
According to the NAO’s study, the backlog grew when attorneys departed or went on strike over wage disputes, and the numbers skyrocketed when courts were closed during the pandemic.
The NAO said
- More than one in four cases were waiting for a year or more to be heard
- The crown court backlog was the highest on record
- An MoJ “ambition” to cut a crown court backlog of 67,573 cases to 53,000 by March 2025 was no “longer achievable”
In August, Baroness Helen Newlove, the victims’ commissioner for England and Wales, launched a survey in a bid to “understand the impact” of court waiting times on crime victims.
Results have yet to be published.
Case delays in Norfolk and Suffolk have drawn criticism.
According to Norfolk’s police and crime commissioner, victims felt “failed” when statistics revealed that
Norwich Crown Court had nearly 1,000 open cases.
According to Sarah Taylor, people’s “hopes of justice” were “on hold” as a result of postponed trials.
Jack Abbott, a Labour MP from Ipswich, recently informed lawmakers that there are over 1,000 cases
still pending at Ipswich Crown Court.
UK Parliamentpending cases.
According to BBC Radio Suffolk, Barrister Simon Spence KC did not perceive a “major problem” with the
transfer of cases from West Suffolk to Cambridge.
He continued: “However, if you start moving cases around the country, the risk of people not being
produced in the right place, at the right time, will go up.”
Inquests and civil courts have also been impacted.
A warning on Essex county court hearing delays was issued by a law firm in May.
Courts in Chelmsford, Colchester, Basildon, Southend, and Ipswich were impacted, according to Central Law CIC.
Four years after the death of a convicted sexual offender in Littlehey Prison, close to Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, an inquest was recently held in Peterborough.
According to a coroner’s office spokesperson, the pandemic was one of several factors contributing to the delay.
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