Court Delays in Chaos: A Law Student’s Perspective on Fixing the Backlog

The alarming scale of the backlog crisis within the UK court system is laid bare today in The Independent’s analysis of a bombshell report. As a law student, future lawyer and citizen, these numbers are horrifying: they demand attention – and action – now.

The figures are hard to believe. In 2019, there were just 36 criminal cases that had waited three years for trial. Last year, that number had surged to 1,280. Sexual offence cases delayed two years and counting have hit a new high, forcing victims to endure a prolonged ordeal, again. Devastating.

Perhaps most worryingly, the delays are an incentive for criminals. With trials pushed back for years, why plead guilty? Look at the figures. The portion of guilty pleas slumped as defendants decided to chance it at trial, to see if witnesses drop out, or deteriorate. It’s a chain reaction of delay that risks eroding public faith in the system.

And the consequences spill over into the prison estate. Hundreds of inmates are stuck on remand as the courts dawdle; an ongoing menace. Remanded outside the walls of our jails, thousands more now survive indefinitely with the Sword of Damocles hanging over them. Either way, they fill our overcrowded cells and seethe in their volatile confines.

As a law student, this should be a groundbreaking God-knows-something-has-to-be-done report. Justice delayed is justice denied, and persistent court delays fail victims, defendants, the safety of the public, and the rule of law. This backlog crisis must, above all else, be funded and remedied. Any legal system is worthless if it can’t be accessed in a reasonable time.

The court service is making moves – modernising IT, recruiting more staff, extending sitting hours. But without sustained investment, it will not suffice. Rights will be violated. Further reforms, including legal aid, are essential in order to increase the shockingly small number of criminal defence barristers. The rest will be vast – such as charging decisions, disclosure, and court capacity, to name but a few.

This will not be easy. It will not be quick. But it is essential. Justice is too valuable to be infinitely delayed through bureaucratic inaction. We must commit to wiping out this shameful backlog together. The fundamental credibility of the legal system depends on it.

I have tried to assess this situation and would like to propose the following recommendations to the judiciary as a law student.

  1. £500 Million Emergency Court Funding
    An urgent ring-fenced fund of £500 million over 5 years should be established solely to tackle the backlog crisis. This fund will provide additional financial resources for courts to extend sitting hours, make maximum use of existing unused courtrooms, rapidly upgrade digital infrastructure, and finance intensive recruitment drives of legal professionals. Funding could be drawn from the Court Funds Office reserves, access to justice levy on larger law firms, and redirecting budgets from the slowing MoJ headquarters transformation program.
  2. Expand the Judiciary by 500 through Recruitment and Retention
    An intensive national recruitment campaign is required immediately to expand the judiciary by up to 500 members. This could be achieved by recruiting junior barristers and solicitors on fixed-term contracts as temporary ‘backlog judges’. Additionally, the current mandatory judicial retirement age of 70 should be raised to 75 to retain experienced judges. Greater flexibility around part-time and remote working must be facilitated to attract a wider pool of applicants. Significant efforts are needed to encourage applications from underrepresented groups to improve diversity.
  3. £200 Million Court Modernisation Program
    The court estate urgently requires investment in upgrading antiquated IT infrastructure and implementing efficient digital case management systems. The use of video conferencing, telephone conferencing and digital case file management must become standard practice nationally to facilitate remote participation and speed up administrative processes. Digital recording and transcription services should also be rolled out across all courts to maximise productivity.
  4. Review of CPS Charging Standards
    A comprehensive review of CPS charging guidelines and standards is needed to ensure only cases meeting threshold evidential tests are progressed for charging and prosecution. This would prevent thousands of weakly evidenced cases from entering the system unnecessarily and contributing to the backlog. Prosecutors must apply more rigorous scrutiny when applying the Code for Crown Prosecutors.
  5. Increase Legal Aid Fees by 20% for Criminal Defence
    To retain criminal barristers and ensure cases progress swiftly, legal aid fee rates for criminal defence work must be increased by up to 20%. The long-term savings associated with resolving cases faster significantly outweigh the upfront costs. Spending on legal aid contributes to overall savings by reducing cracked and ineffective trials. Fair defence resourcing is crucial for timely case progression.
  6. Increased Use of Out-of-Court Resolutions
    For more minor routine offences, prosecutors should be encouraged to make greater use of warnings, community resolutions, cautions and deferred prosecution agreements. Where admission of guilt and rehabilitation are the primary goals, diverting cases to mediation or arbitration services could allow swifter and less costly resolution while still providing accountability. This could help avoid fully contested trials.
  7. National Backlog Taskforce for Coordination
    A centralised national backlog task force should be established to provide oversight and coordinate the response across the justice system. Daily dashboard reporting from courts would allow for real-time case tracking and efficient allocation of backlogged cases to less congested court centres nationwide. Real-time data can enhance accountability and resource allocation.
  8. Leveraging Private Sector Project Management and Tech Expertise
    The project management, logistics and technology innovation expertise of leading private sector firms should be utilized. Management consultancies like McKinsey can advise on efficiently directing resources and minimising waste. UK tech firms can bring expertise in data management, workflow optimization and digitisation to support reforms.
  9. Public Engagement Campaign on Civic Duty
    A cohesive PR campaign is required to highlight the critical civic duty of the public in supporting the justice system through jury service and appearing when summoned as witnesses. Driving greater public engagement and awareness around this social responsibility will support faster case progression through increased participation.
  10. Sentencing Law Reform
    A review of overly complex sentencing legislation is recommended to identify areas that can be distilled and simplified without impacting sentencing aims. This would help prevent unnecessary contested hearings on procedural matters – as opposed to substantive sentencing issues – and shorten hearing length.

In Conclusion

The backlog crisis threatens to irreparably damage public confidence and trust in the justice system. As former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption warns, “The breakdown of the criminal justice system ultimately threatens the existence of civilisation as we know it.”

The rationale for urgent action is clear – justice delayed is justice denied. As Martin Luther King Jr poignantly stated, “Justice too long delayed is justice denied.” The human impact of trials delayed for years on victims, defendants and communities cannot be understated.

Solutions to this systemic crisis exist but require political courage and determination. The 19th-century philosopher Edmund Burke wisely stated that “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” We must act decisively and ambitiously if justice is to prevail.

Criminal law scholar William Geldart once wrote that “if delays lead to injustice, it is the fundamental duty of the state to provide the necessary resources to prevent them.” The state can no longer abdicate this responsibility. Sufficient investment and reform must be committed to end this indefensible backlog.

The plan proposed furnishes a practical roadmap toward restoring timely access to justice. However, it requires commitment, collaboration and funding from both the government and the legal sector. The goal is not merely clearing the backlog, but creating a better and more resilient justice system prepared for the challenges ahead.

Former Attorney General Dominic Grieve summed up the situation well – “the criminal justice system is very close to collapse because of underfunding by government over a very long period of time.” Reversing a decade of austerity and neglect will not be easy, but is necessary if the UK’s proud legal institutions are to endure.

The backlog crisis can either be a breaking point, or an opportunity to build back better. But the time for deliberation is over – the solutions are clear. What is needed now is action. We must tackle this backlog with the urgency and resolve it demands. The integrity of British justice depends on it.

**This blog is my own opinion and I welcome any suggestions and am open to discussing or doing a presentation if the UK Ministry of Justice (MoJ) wants. Thank you for reading my Blog- MD Mominul Hamid (M Law Exempt Bar student, Northumbria University Newcastle).**

Leave a Reply