Lord Justice Holroyde lamented the lack of progress on the backlog of cases, in the annual review of the Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, published last week
Holroyde LJ, vice-president of the court, wrote in the foreword that many of the cases ‘have already been subject to long delays.
As a result, cases have become more complicated and there has been an increased strain on applicants and victims, and on the resources of the court’.
He said a rise—from one third to 40% of applications—in the number of unrepresented persons seeking to appeal convictions was adding to the strain on resources.