NLJ this week: Open justice goes digital

From January 2026, a two-year pilot under Practice Direction 51ZH will let the public access skeleton arguments, submissions and witness statements used in Commercial Court hearings via CE-File.

Edwards explains that the scheme, inspired by Cape v Dring, answers the senior judiciary's call for a practical process to obtain court materials already in the public domain. It balances openness with confidentiality through clear filing deadlines and a new 'filing modification order' procedure.

While costs and administrative burdens remain, Edwards hails the pilot as a decisive step toward open courts, open reporting and open documents—transforming theory into practice for modern transparency.