The Law Society and Bar Council respond to Victims’ Commissioner’s call for urgent action on court backlogs

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The Law Society has commented on the findings of the Victims’ Commissioner’s report, stating that it’s “unacceptable that victims are having to wait so long with their lives in limbo to access justice”, while chair of the Bar Council, Barbara Mills KC, acknowledged the “harrowing impact of excessive court backlogs on victims” as outlined in the report.

The court backlogs have been growing steadily over recent years. At the end of September 2024, 73,105 cases were outstanding and almost a quarter (23%) of these had been outstanding at the crown court for more than a year and 8% had been outstanding for over two years. This is a significant increase from 2020, when only 7% of cases were outstanding and just 2% for over two years.

The Victims’ Commissioner’s report, based on research conducted by the Office of the Victims’ Commissioner in 2024, including interviews with victims and a survey with victim services staff,  found that 48% of victims with a trial date have had this date changed at some point, and 26% have had this date changed more than four times. The research showed that these delays caused a great deal of “debilitating stress and trauma” for victims, and damaged their lives, as some were unable to maintain their daily functioning. The report also highlighted that many victims had to take extended periods off work or school due to adjournments, which had significant financial implications in some cases.

As part of her recommendations, Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales Baroness Newlove called on the government to urgently “restore an independent courts’ inspectorate to ensure accountability, transparency, and a relentless focus on victims’ rights”.  

Law Society President Richard Atkinson stated that the backlog is “undermining the effectiveness of the criminal justice system and lowering victims’ confidence in its ability to deliver justice”.

He added: “Long delays diminish the quality of evidence and result in additional stress for victims, witnesses and defendants alike. At worst, they can lead to victims abandoning cases denying them justice altogether.

“The criminal justice system is a vital public service but one that has been deprived of sufficient resources for decades. It is in need of urgent action and adequate funding to ensure that victims are properly supported and making sure they receive the justice they deserve.

“We welcome the proposed recommendations made by the Victims’ Commissioner and look forward to working with them to ensure the effective running of our justice system.”

In response to the report’s recommendations, Mills commented that lifting the cap of sitting days could alleviate the problem: “The existing restrictions mean that full-time judges – already paid to work, and ready and able to sit on cases – are not sitting, and court rooms are empty. Lifting the sitting days cap is a straightforward practical measure to tackle delays.”

The report outlined 19 recommendations to drive change, which were grouped into the following three overarching aims:

• to improve the victim experience of the criminal justice system;
• to make court processes more transparent and efficient; and
• to ensure victim services can provide support to victims as they wait for the case to get to trial.

Read our guide to the legal profession to find out more about the court backlogs.