Data covering January to March 2025 shows that a total of 76,957 cases remain unresolved – an 11% increase on the same period last year and up from 74,592 at the end of December.
At its current trajectory, the backlog is set to hit 100,000 cases by autumn 2026.
The latest quarterly data reveals a worsening picture, not only in volume but also in length of time that cases remain unresolved. As of March, 18,093 Crown Court cases had been open for a year or more, and the average age of a case continues to rise.
The knock on effects are also being felt in the magistrates’ courts, where the open caseload has increased to over 310,000 cases.
Chair of the CBA, Mary Prior KC described the situation as an emergency, urging immediate action to restore court capacity and deliver some of the delayed justice.
“Victims of serious crimes want their cases dealt with in months, not years,” said Prior. “People falsely accused want the same. Both want the nightmare to end.”
She also warned that if courtrooms currently sitting empty were not urgently reopened, many individuals may give up on the justice system altogether.
“The traumatised people in the long queue for justice may well have walked away by then, unheard and unseen.”
In responses to these alarming figures, the Minister for Courts and Legal Services, Sarah Sackman KC MP, has claimed that the government recognised the severity and scale of the problem. She said:
“Despite the hard work of people across the criminal justice system, the situation in our Crown Court is reaching a breaking point.
“It is simply unacceptable that any victim has to wait years to see justice done.”
The minister acknowledged that the system is failing to deliver timely outcomes and stressed that the government’s commitment to reform. She confirmed that an independent review of the criminal courts has been commissioned by former senior judge, Sir Brian Leveson, with some recommendations expected to surface within the coming weeks.
Leveson’s review is expected to make proposals that will aim to reduce delay, improve efficiency and expand courtroom capacity. A second phase of findings on court productivity is due later in the year, around autumn.
The legal sector has welcomed the review warmly, but cautioned that without significant investment, even the best recommendations may fail to take root.
Reform must be backed by sufficient resources, according to Richard Atkinson, President of the Law Society. He said:
“The independent review of the criminal courts and sentencing must be supported by sufficient investment – as must the legal aid system which underpins them.
“A fair and functioning justice system is vital not only to the public but to the UK’s standing as a global legal centre. Justice delayed risks becoming justice denied – and that damages everyone.”
The CBA continues to call on the government to take immediate steps to increase capacity – including reopening closed Crown courtrooms – ahead of longer-term reforms.
With pressure mounting and the Leveson review’s publication imminent, the future of the criminal courts may depend not just on policy — but on political will.
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