The Increasing Cost of Seeking Justice

As the Government continues to impose its austerity measures on the country, there is no more obvious effect than in the administration of justice where parties are being forced to endure Court closures, streamlining of back office tasks making the court staff less accessible, the introduction of fees in Employment Tribunals and the ever increasing levels of fees across the County Court system.   

Unfortunately there is no evidence that this increased fee level is being invested into the system to improve the quality and speed of justice delivery.  In addition, as Courts and Tribunals seek to recover ever greater fee levels from users, the time has come for them to acknowledge that they are a service industry and must be receptive to the needs and demands of their users.  If not, then the opportunity must surely exist for alternative dispute resolution systems which can guarantee a service which is provided at a fair cost but with a flexibility that many of our Courts and Tribunals fail to offer.   

These are interesting times for the legal profession but perhaps the time has come for there to be a greater challenge made of our Civil Court and Tribunal Judges and support staff.