Courts and Tribunals Weekly Operational Update - Coronavirus: week commencing Monday 4 January 2021

HMCTS weekly operational update during coronavirus outbreak

HMCTS operational summary for week commencing Monday 4 January 2021

Next week’s update will be issued on Friday 4 January 2021.

Crime

  • Updated: The Crown Court is hearing all types of applications and cases, including multi-hander trials. Where appropriate, judges continue to deal with a range of work remotely, including sentencing hearings.
  • We’ve installed plexiglass screens into over 400 courtrooms and jury deliberation rooms. Over 260 courtrooms have been assessed as being capable and available to hold jury trials.
  • Magistrates’ courts are now dealing with most business type hearings. Since August 2020, magistrates’ courts have been completing more cases than have been received and the number of sittings are almost at pre-COVID levels. We are working hard to return this to 100%, in a COVID-safe way.
  • The judiciary has published a note of listing in magistrates’ courts during coronavirus outbreak.

Family

  • Family courts continue to prioritise work as agreed with the President of the Family Division. Work levels are slowly returning to pre-COVID levels and we are working hard to return this to 100%, in a COVID-safe way.

Civil

Tribunals

Royal Courts of Justice

Judicial announcements