The criminal court backlog ‘is continuing to spiral out of control’, Law Society president Lubna Shuja has warned, with solicitor action akin to that taken by barristers ‘near inevitable’.
Ministry of Justice figures released last week showed the backlog had grown from 359,065 outstanding magistrates’ court cases in August to 366,202 at the end of September. Similarly, the 61,747 backlog in the Crown Court in August rose to 62,517 in September.
Shuja said: ‘Efforts to tackle the huge backlog of cases are being thwarted by a lack of judges, lawyers and the poor state of our courts.’
The government’s final response to the Independent Criminal Legal Aid Review, which recommended a minimum immediate 15% increase in fees, is due this month.
Shuja said it was ‘baffling’ that the government has refused to grant this to solicitors, whose fee offer amounts to a 9% rise, and solicitors are considering what action to take.
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