Could “registrars” save civil justice?

Legal campaign group Justice has proposed a radical new system of dispute resolution.

A Justice working party this week recommended that “lower level” qualified and trained dispute resolution officers (to be known as registrars) be introduced to deal with the bulk of cases in the civil courts and tribunals. The registrar would identify issues, correct procedure and necessary evidence in each case, and resolve many of the disputes at an early stage through neutral evaluation and mediation. Only cases requiring high-level judicial expertise would be referred on to a judge.

Claimants and defendants would be given extra support from an “integrated online and telephone platform” providing legal information and advice.

The radical suggestion is made in Justice’s report, Delivering Justice in an Age of Austerity, which bemoans the fact that cuts to legal aid and law centres has pushed access to legal advice and representation out of reach for most people at exactly the time when demand is increasing due to cuts to welfare benefits and front-line services.

Sir Stanley Burnton, chair of the Justice working party, says: “Our recommendations, if implemented, will ensure that ordinary people do have genuine and real access to justice, and in the medium term will lead to a less costly system of justice in our country.”

However, Justice was keen to emphasise that it does not endorse the cuts to legal aid nor seek to justify further cuts.

Justice director Andrea Coomber says: “Legal aid continues to be critically important in the endeavour to ensure access to justice for all.”