Recommendation 5

The proportion of hearings that do not take place on the day they are scheduled (ineffective trials) remains far too high, and there are causes of ineffective trials that MoJ and HMCTS could be more active in addressing now. One in four trials do not take place on the day scheduled. There has been a marginal improvement since 2023 (the proportion of ineffective trials was then 27% compared to 25% more recently). While the improvement is welcome, the proportion of ineffective trials remains significantly higher than the pre–pandemic rate, which was consistently around 15%. The number of ineffective trials due to the unavailability of barristers or solicitors remains much higher than before the pandemic, and while the recent increase in the number of criminal barristers is welcome, we are not convinced that recent increases in legal aid fees have completely reversed the downward trend in legal professionals working in criminal law. We heard of other reasons for ineffective trials, some of which would seem to be straightforward to resolve, such as defendants on remand arriving late to court, poor case preparation, and a significant backlog of maintenance across the Crown Court estate. recommendation Alongside its Treasury Minute response, MoJ should write to the Committee to set out: • Its understanding of the causes of ineffective trials and the impact each has. • Whether professional capacity is a significant factor affecting ineffective trials. • What the impact has been on ineffective trial rates of changes it has made, for example, increases in legal aid fees. • What further actions are required and by whom to address the causes of ineffective trials. 7