Select Committee · Justice Committee

Work of the County Court

Status: Closed Opened: 21 Jan 2025 Closed: 22 Apr 2026 13 recommendations 30 conclusions 1 report

This inquiry examines the Work of the County Court amid long-standing concerns over court capacity and resources. It comes as data on the work of the County Court shows the time taken from claim to hearing continues to rise. Read the Call for evidence to find out more about this inquiry .

Reports

1 report

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
4th Report - Work of the County Court	HC 677	21 Jul 2025	43	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

3 items

31 Recommendation 4th Report - Work of the County Court Accepted in Part

Introduce a single integrated case management system providing real-time status updates for all cases

A single case management system must be introduced to provide real time status updates for all cases, integrating both Reform and legacy systems. (Recommendation, Paragraph 130)

Government response. The government accepts the recommendation in principle, stating real-time status updates are available on new digital services and will be introduced as part of possession digitalisation, but does not explicitly commit to a single system integrating all legacy and Reform …

Ministry of Justice

33 Recommendation 4th Report - Work of the County Court Accepted in Part

Issue a single reference number for all claims, integrating paper and digital systems

All claims must be issued a single reference number regardless of the “off-ramps and on-ramps” between paper and digital systems. (Recommendation, Paragraph 137)

Government response. The government accepts in part, stating that HMCTS systems use different case numbers but they are updating Reform systems to ensure users are provided with the correct applicable reference numbers for each case, regardless of system transitions.

Ministry of Justice

38 Conclusion 4th Report - Work of the County Court Accepted in Part

Piecemeal digitisation hinders full adoption of digital court processes and AI capabilities

Despite the bold ambitions of the Ministry of Justice, the piecemeal approach that has been taken to digitisation hampers any intentions of adopting a fully digital court process. Existing systems inhibit the early adoption of AI or a move to digital court bundles despite the innovation occurring in the legal …

Government response. The government accepts in part, detailing the AI Action Plan for Justice published in July 2025 which outlines a responsible approach to AI adoption across the justice system, and highlighting ongoing HMCTS pilots for AI-powered solutions to improve court operations.

Ministry of Justice

Oral evidence sessions

3 sessions

Date	Witnesses
8 Apr 2025	Daniel Flury · HM Courts and Tribunals Service, Jason Latham · HM Courts and Tribunals Service, Sarah Sackman MP · Ministry of Justice, Steven Jarman · Ministry of Justice	View ↗
18 Mar 2025	Lord Justice Colin Birss · Judiciary of England and Wales, Rt Hon Sir Geoffrey Vos · Judiciary of England and Wales	View ↗
7 May 2024	Dr Natalie Byrom · Faculty of Laws, UCL, Elizabeth Gallagher · Temple Garden Chambers, Emily Giles · The Hyde Group, Matthew Maxwell Scott · The Association of Consumer Support Organisations (ACSO)	View ↗

Correspondence

3 letters

Date	Direction	Title
9 Dec 2025	—	Correspondence from Sarah Sackman KC MP, Minister for Courts and Legal Services…
10 Jun 2025	—	Correspondence from Daniel Flury, HMCTS Operations Director, dated 29 May 2025 …
21 May 2025	—	Correspondence from Sarah Sackman KC MP, Minister for Courts and Legal Services…