The lord chancellor has asked former judicial chief for criminal justice Sir Brian Leveson to conduct a ‘once-in-a-generation’ review of the criminal courts after new statistics reveal the Crown court backlog reaching a record high of 73,105 – nearly double the 38,000 seen before the pandemic.

Leveson, former president of the Queen's Bench Division, will explore options to 'speed up justice for victims and keep streets safe'. The options mentioned in today's announcement from the Ministry of Justice would lead to fewer jury trials.

The ministry said the review will consider ‘intermediate courts’, where cases are heard by a judge flanked by magistrates, for cases that are too serious for magistrates’ courts but not serious enough for the Crown court. The idea was first mooted in Lord Justice Auld’s 2001 blueprint for criminal law.

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Restructure courts to tackle backlogs, urges former lord chancellor

Leveson will also consider whether magistrates should be empowered to look at more cases, freeing up capacity in the Crown court to consider the more complex, serious crimes. By reclassifying some offences and extending magistrates’ sentencing powers, certain trials would move to the magistrates’ courts.

Lord chancellor and justice secretary Shabana Mahmood said: ‘The scale of the Crown court crisis inherited by this government is unprecedented. Despite the efforts of judges, lawyers and court staff, we simply cannot continue with the status quo. To deliver the government’s bold Plan for Change and make our streets safer, we require once-in-a-generation reform of a courts system stretched to breaking point.

‘In many cases, victims are waiting years to see their perpetrator put before a judge, and we know for many victims, justice delayed is as good as justice denied. We owe it to victims to find bold, innovative approaches that will speed up justice, deliver safer streets and send a clear message to criminals that they will quickly face the consequences of their actions.’

Lawyers have been waiting several months for new criminal courts data. Statistics covering January to March 2024 were supposed to be published in June but delayed over quality concerns. The ministry said today that the government had conducted an external audit on the data.

Leveson will report back with initial recommendations next spring.