Yes, the long awaited research on LiPs is here. I’ve browsed my way through to page fifty eight of two hundred and summink, so I can’t give you chapter and verse yet, but it IS very interesting and so far paints a picture that I recognise (although I think I am blessed to be in a court where the counter staff and ushers are pretty helpful and proactive and the signposting relatively good).
This is pre-LASPO research, carried out in the first quarter of 2013, before the cuts bit. It is intended to provide some kind of bench mark against which to measure changes in future. So far it seems that we were starting from a bit of a low point as far as access to justice for LiPs is concerned. And it can’t have got better even if courts and judges are adapting somewhat to meet the needs of a changing service user population.
More anon…
Oh. PS Here’s the link to the research : Litigants in Person in Private Family Law Cases (Liz Trinder, Rosemary Hunter, Emma Hitchings, Joanna Miles, Richard Moorhead, Leanne Smith, Mark Sefton, Victoria Hinchly, Kay Bader and Julia Pearce).
I’m surprised you haven’t seen this:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/379764/hearing-length-experimental-stats.pdf
Says the lawyers are the ones clogging up the courts and making hearings longer, or something like that. Who would have guessed?
WHAT a coincidence that there should be an ad hoc statistical release at this time! And an “experimental” one at that. Have you actually read the caveats??
Given the stats are based on the ‘estimated length of hearing’ they are pretty much useless. The parties provide that estimate.
I know as a lawyer I would always rather give a slightly generous estimate than a tight one. I suspect (although I could be wrong) most LiPs wouldn’t have the first idea how long their hearing will need and will underestimate.
The figures compare before and after LASPO using the same statistics. Are you suggesting LiPs and Lawyers both changed the way they were estimating hearing length because of LASPO?
The longest hearing in any case is the final hearing. The duration of that is set by the judge and up to the judge to manage with the rest of their caseload. Are you saying that en-mass they changed their estimates post LASPO?
yes, absolutely. lists that pre laspo had 20 cases with a 30 m time estimate became unmanageable resulting in increased time estimates in many courts and fewer hearings per list. more caution is now exercised with listing cases involving lips because now the majority of cases involves LiPs there is less room for manouevre. the old lists used to work because for every case with 2 LiPs that ran long there was one that took no judicial time at all because it was resolved in the waiting area through lawyers. That doesn’t happen any more. So where courts could routinely overlist with notional time estimates now they cannot.
Sorry the reality is:
“”‘There is some evidence that hearings where both parties are represented
have Increased in duration whilst hearings where neither party is represented have Decreased in duration.”””
Page 5 a.
“””Full hearings have Decreased in
average (mean) duration, Particularly for hearings in which Neither
party were represented.”””
Page 5 b.
Mean (median) duration in weeks of cases (Table A1 page 12) – Shows consistently from 2011 Q1 to 2014 Q2 that:
Where Both Applicant and Respondent are Represented vs cases with both LIPs – The Represented cases took consistently longer to disposal.
Last Quarter (Q2 in 2014) – Represented 24.7 (16.3) weeks vs LIPs 17.9 (10.6) weeks.
Chambers,
Read what they mean when they say “hearing duration” – it ISN’T actual hearing duration. They have NO DATA on actual hearing duration.
Duration of case is rather different – and the reasons for longer / shorter duration are myriad – but unless you are able to compare cases of similar complexity with and without lawyers the fact that unrepresented cases are shorter running tells you nothing. Very probably a bit part of the reason represented cases take longer is that they are the more complex ones.
Also relevant – you might want to take a look at this: http://www.newlawjournal.co.uk/nlj/content/tough-times
Lucy
Hi Lucy,
I did understand before I posted ref “hearing duration”. Nevertheless, the data and points made by the research are still of interest.
Duration of case, well granted cases can vary in complexity of course. No reason to believe that represented cases are more or less complicated than LIP cases, it is access to funds that determines very often whether a case involves lawyers or not.
The data shows that represented cases consistently run longer than LIP cases.