The Justice Committee has launched a new inquiry to examine the work of the County Court amid persistent concerns over capacity and resources.
MPs on the cross-party Committee chaired by Labour MP Andy Slaughter decided to look afresh at the work of the County Court after its major inquiry begun last year was halted by the July 2024 General Election.
Civil Court Users Association (CCUA) responded to the former Justice Committee’s inquiry into the work of the county court in December 2023 – read our response here – and will be responding to any further inquiries/consultations.
The Committee’s relaunched inquiry comes as the latest official data on the work of the County Court shows the average time taken for small claims and multi/fast track claims to go to trial was 50.6 weeks and 79.3 weeks. Compared to 2019, these measures are 14.0 weeks longer for small claims and 20.2 weeks longer for multi/fast track claims.
In its 2022 report, the predecessor Justice Committee called on the then Government to provide the “resources to ensure that the County Court has the capacity to deal with cases in a timely fashion”. The report also urged Ministers to set out what steps it was taking to reduce delays in the County Court and to improve the judicial, physical, digital and staff capacity of the County Court.
Chair of the Justice Committee Andy Slaughter said:
“Recurrent concerns around delays, resourcing and capacity have persisted for years, affecting the lives of all those who rely on a functioning County Court to deliver timely justice.
“It’s right that the Justice Committee early in this Parliament examines in detail why these issues remain unresolved and takes evidence from those impacted. As the latest claims data shows, the time taken from claim to hearing for multi/fast track claims is still much longer than the pre-covid baseline.
“Improving the effectiveness of the County Court could help with the Government’s mission to strengthen economic growth, as we know that small businesses rely on the County Court to resolve disputes.
“The Committee’s inquiry will look at areas including the condition of the County Court estate, the use of technology and data, plus current staffing levels and judicial capacity to see where possible further reforms are needed across this important sphere of justice.”
