UK Edition
Civil and family courts to trial flexible working hours
Civil and family courts are to trial a flexitime system with evening and early morning sittings to make it easier for people to attend outside normal working hours.
The pilot, announced by the government on Friday following feedback from legal professionals, will take place for six months in Manchester and Brentford.
An independent evaluation will then take place before any final decisions are made.
It is hoped that flexible operating hours will be beneficial to those attending court with work or childcare commitments and those representing themselves.
The Ministry of Justice said that extending the hours, better utilised valuable courtroom space.
Lucy Frazer, the justice minister, said: “We want to make our courts and tribunals more accessible to the public. This pilot assesses whether and how we can give people greater flexibility in their busy lives.”
From next Spring, the two courts will introduce a half-day session on certain days lasting from 8am until 10.30am, followed by a handover and a change of judge before a normal court day ensues.
There will then be an evening session from 4.30pm until 7pm, with a separate judge.
The trial will examine the full impact on the wider legal system, including detailed financial implications.
The MoJ acknowledged that the majority of legal professionals had voiced various concerns and as such, flexitime would not be trialled in the criminal court system.
Many warned that flxible operating hours could see criminal cases overrun, causing additional stress and anxiety for victims, witnesses and defendants, and creating more work for an already stretched criminal justice system.
Concerns were also raised about advocates being required in both early and late sessions, especially more junior barristers.
Many noted that working hours already extended far beyond court sitting hours and raised concerns about a negative impact on the diversity of the profession, personal circumstances and financial consequences.
Andrew Walker QC, Chair of the Bar, said they remained concerned about the implications of early starts and late finishes and said there were “many questions still to be answered.”
He added: “Family barristers, in particular, are already working under enormous strain, as are our family courts; and it would be unacceptable and irresponsible to place even greater burdens on them.
“We cannot ignore the wider implications if the pilots lead to more permanent arrangements, even if these are limited and restricted to only a few courts.”
In a document published online, the MoJ sought to allay fears by insisting that it was unlikely the flexible operating hours would become “the new normal” in every courtroom across England and Wales.
“We think that the most likely patterns might include offering more flexible hours in a proportion of courtrooms in certain types of courts (likely to be larger court sites with higher volumes of work),” it said.