N. RESOURCES
| 702. |
If a decision is eventually taken to adopt
some or all of the reforms discussed in this Report, resources will obviously be needed to
prepare and promulgate the necessary new rules (whether as amendments to the HCR or a
largely new set of rules based on the CPR) and to work with all interested parties towards
drafting necessary practice directions and any pre-action protocols to be adopted. When
such efforts have yielded fruit, further resources have to be in place for the practical
implementation of the system. |
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| 703. |
The desired characteristics of a civil justice
system identified at the beginning of this Report, include the requirement that the system
be "effective, adequately resourced and organised". It is obvious that any
changes to the system's rules and prescribed procedures will not achieve their aim unless
the reforms can be intelligently implemented by a sufficient number of properly trained
and equipped judges and judicial staff. |
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| 704. |
This is particularly so since the reforms in
question involve making greater demands on judges and masters in the case management of
cases - requiring of them the judicious exercise of their discretion and a greater mastery
of the main features of proceedings at a relatively early stage. One cannot case manage
effectively without first having invested the time and effort necessary to achieve a sound
grasp of the nature and the scope of a case. Moreover, as pointed out in the foregoing
discussion of judicially set timetables, it is essential that sufficient judicial
resources are available to accommodate the parties when they duly arrive, ready for trial,
at the trial date fixed by the court: Proposal 76. |
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| 705. |
As has been argued above, this is not a
question to be solved simply by appointing more judges since such appointments are
permanent and can only be made if from among suitably qualified candidates willing to
accept appointment. This was also Lord Woolf's view when addressing the resources needed
to support his reforms :- |
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"I would not be in favour of any
additional new appointments to the High Court bench unless this is absolutely necessary,
because of the risk of diluting the quality of the judiciary at that level."
(Note
607) |
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| 706. |
Many of the proposed rule changes are aimed at
cutting down on the number of hearings and other case events required as cases proceed
towards trial. Savings in judicial time (as well as court users' costs) are therefore an
intended result. Accordingly, while it is likely that some additional judicial resources
will be needed, it is not clear to what extent this will be the case or at what level more
judicial officers will be required. An important role may have to be played by deputy
judges appointed on a temporary basis to help cope with any periods of court congestion. |
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| 707. |
It would appear that a discussion of needed
resources ought to focus on four areas :- |
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Resource deployment |
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Training of judges and staff |
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Information technology |
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Establishing base-lines and on-going research |
Notes
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