The litigation end game
Date: 11 May 2010
Authors: David Greene
Issue: Online only
Categories: News, Opinion, Blogs, Constitutional law
The litigation process gained a substantial airing during election night. Would-be voters locked out of polling booths cried of conspiracy and a breach of their human rights.
The papers were full of talk of actions being brought by “barred” voters to right the wrong of their exclusion. Elections usually give rise to some litigation as the parties and candidates fight over the way in which the election was conducted in an attempt to overturn the returning officers’ decisions.
This election might give rise to a rise in election litigation, particularly where there are very small majorities and there have been instances of exclusion of voters.
In the longer term, what does a new government promise for the civil justice system? Unfortunately, whatever the colour of the government formed, it is highly likely that civil justice will be the subject of further cuts.
The civil justice process is likely to be a victim of further cuts in public expenditure. Civil justice is the poor cousin of the criminal justice system when it comes to funding. However, the civil justice process not only provides the soundings to commerce but is also the vehicle for the protection of vital human rights whether it be, for instance, in relation to housing, the right to life or the right not to be tortured. It is thus vitally important that we maintain a civil justice process that is reasonably accessible for all citizens. The system needs a champion in government.
While no government will be totally deaf to the needs of the civil justice process, it seems highly likely that whichever party comes into power, the process will face more and more severe cuts. The budget for the Ministry of Justice has already faced substantial cuts over the past three years. In 2008, it was asked to cut £1bn from its budget over three years. This was followed recently by the announcement of “efficiency savings” of £400m. Bearing in mind the likelihood that there will be massive cuts in public expenditure by any new government we may have seen nothing yet in the budget assault on the Ministry of Justice.
What does this mean for civil justice? The president of the Association of District Judges, Monty Trent, recently talked of the lack of resources within the civil courts. How are we going to see the reinvigoration of the process called upon by Lord Justice Jackson?
His proposals, which are put forward as a cohesive package, seek further judicial resource to be given to claims for the purposes of effective management and controlling costs. If the money ain’t there, however, one wonders how this can be achieved. It is difficult to remain optimistic that, for instance, the process will gain the investment in IT for a modern justice system that it needs.
The new government needs to recognise that the civil justice process is a fundamental part of society and needs investment. If citizens cannot secure their rights through the courts, they will use other means and the courts lose the faith that citizens need to place in it. In the Ministry of Justice we need a minister who recognises this and will be the champion for justice.
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