Crown court cases are to be completed within 16 weeks in future, as part of a programme of reform initiated by court staff.
Eight proposals to speed up and simplify services will be put into practice in the courts. Lord Falconer, the Justice Secretary, has held discussions with court staff during the last six months to draw up the programme, known as Breakthrough.
The proposals include resolving child care cases within 40 weeks, and dealing with most guilty pleas in magistrates’ courts at the first hearing.
Breakthrough will also provide incentives to ensure the majority of civil business is initiated online, introduce a presumption that all but the most complex small claims in the county court are dealt with through mediation, and encourage more in-court conciliation and mediation for family issues.
Lord Falconer says: “Breakthrough in the courts is particularly important because the proposals for improvement have come directly from court staff themselves—bottom-up and not top-down reform.”
Many courts are already delivering on the pledges, according to the Ministry of Justice. Care cases are regularly concluded within 40 weeks in Ipswich and Derby, while cases
