Annual Report
We’re pleased to share our latest Annual Report. In the last year, we’ve seen partnerships with universities, launched in the previous financial year, go from strength to strength. Launching our National Online service was particularly significant. Like our National Helpline, Support Through Court Online supports anyone in England and Wales who is unable to access one of our local services. We’re grateful to our amazing volunteers and supporters for enabling thousands of people to access justice.
Reports
We do a variety of work to influence improvements to the court service for litigants in person including submitting policy papers, and conducting regular small-scale ‘spot surveys’ of clients on topical issues:
Whiplash brief – an argument to postpone implementation of reforms
The Government is planning to introduce reforms to ‘whiplash’ claims which will result in an increase in the threshold for small claims and set a fixed tariff compensation that reduces the level of damages that can be claimed. These changes will prevent more injured people from recovering their legal costs, and make it less likely for those in ‘whiplash’ claims to be able to afford legal advice.
Online Courts – a litigant in person’s perspective
The over-riding message is that the main barriers to using online court services are more about the legal system than about online access per se: people find the system complex and are fearful of making mistakes when the outcomes can have a significant impact on their lives. There is a sense that many people could use online court processes, but the vast majority clearly want a back-up mechanism for reassurance before they would feel truly confident.
Legal language and its impact on litigants in person
This report summarises the findings from the 2017 survey on use of language in the court process.
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