Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Fifth Report - Open justice: court reporting in the digital age
Justice Committee
HC 339
Published 1 November 2022
Recommendations
18
Rejected
Para 59
Consider expanding digital portal to include all court information, results, and restrictions.
Recommendation
We request further information on when this service will go live and what improvements are planned to the level of information on the lists and the accessibility of the service. We recommend that HMCTS considers whether the proposed digital portal …
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Government Response Summary
The government confirmed the new CATH service is live for SJP lists and will expand to civil, family, and other tribunals throughout 2023, but stated it has no plans to publish results, reporting restrictions, or court documents via this service due to resource implications.
Ministry of Justice
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20
Rejected
Para 72
Establish streamlined digital portal for court document and reporting restriction access.
Recommendation
The Government and HMCTS should establish a streamlined process for accessing court documents, including courts lists, using a digital portal modelled on Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) in the United States. This should also be used to inform …
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Government Response Summary
The government rejected establishing a digital portal for all court documents modelled on PACER due to resource and suitability concerns, but plans to explore access to case files in a call for evidence in 2023.
Ministry of Justice
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25
Rejected
Para 87
Explore AI-powered transcription pilots and review contracts to improve court transcript accessibility
Recommendation
HMCTS should explore whether greater use of technology, such as AI-powered transcription, could be piloted to see whether it can be used to reduce the cost of producing court transcripts. HMCTS should also consider whether the sentencing remarks in the …
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Government Response Summary
The government states it intends to run further pilots for AI-powered transcription, subject to future funding decisions. However, it explicitly considers routine recording and transcription of magistrates’ court hearings to be disproportionate, though it will seek stakeholders' views via a call for evidence in 2023 before making future decisions, and does not address reviewing transcription contracts.
Ministry of Justice
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40
Rejected
Strengthen open justice governance by formalising Data Governance Panel and establishing user group.
Recommendation
The Government should clarify and strengthen the governance structures on open justice. The Senior Data Governance Panel should be formalised and its powers and remit should be defined and published. It is vital that the decisions made by the Panel …
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Government Response Summary
The government has formalized the Senior Data Governance Panel and will publish its terms of reference and work information in early 2023. However, they do not plan to empower the Media Working Group with policy functions or establish a new court information users’ group, but will explore existing engagement mechanisms via a call for evidence.
Ministry of Justice
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Conclusions (4)
3
Conclusion
Rejected
Para 19
Open justice is a common law principle, and it is for the courts to determine its requirements in particular cases. However, responsibility for deciding how the principle should operate should not be left to the courts alone. Deciding the proper limits of open justice can often give rise to significant …
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the need for new legislation, stating that the principle of open justice is amply provided by existing common law, Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (Human Rights Act 1998), and other established statutes.
24
Conclusion
Rejected
Para 87
The current situation on court transcripts is unsatisfactory.
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledged court transcripts are not routinely accessible and rejected routine recording of magistrates' courts hearings as disproportionate due to cost, stating it will seek stakeholders' views via a call for evidence before making future decisions.
44
Conclusion
Rejected
Para 155
We welcome the Transparency Review’s proposal to set a target of every judge publishing 10% of their judgments. If achieved, this would make a significant 56 Open justice: court reporting in the digital age contribution to the transparency of the Family Court and to open justice. It is crucial that …
Government Response Summary
The government states that setting the 10% judgment publication target and resourcing the anonymisation unit would require considerable resources, which must be balanced against existing commitments and priorities, especially reducing the family court backlog. They are exploring other options instead of committing to the proposed resourcing.
45
Conclusion
Rejected
His Majesty’s Court and Tribunal Service should ensure that the requisite resources are provided to enable the establishment of an anonymisation unit that facilitates the publication of at least 10% of Family Court judgments without the risk of identification of the parties involved. (Paragraph 155) Open justice: court reporting in …
Government Response Summary
The government does not commit to establishing an anonymisation unit for Family Court judgments due to significant resource requirements and conflicting priorities, stating its main focus is on reducing the family court backlog. It is exploring other options for increasing transparency.