AddThis SmartLayers

Straw backs publication of court lists online

The ministry of justice has confirmed reports that it is looking into providing the results of all court cases online.

Earlier this year, justice secretary Jack Straw agreed to scrap the fees being levied by magistrates for providing lists of court decisions following pressure by the newspaper industry.

His department has since been looking into how to make the results available to the press at the lowest possible cost.

It has now confirmed that the favoured option under consideration is a website listing the results of all court cases in England and Wales in what would effectively become a huge online resource for local newspapers.

Mr Straw said: “Making sure justice is done and seen to be done is vital if people are to have confidence in the system.

“People have a right to know what happens when an offender is sentenced in our courts and a website with this information on would be one way of doing this.

“Her Majesty’s Court Service is working on proposals to provide information from all criminal courts and is developing what the precise nature of the information will be that is made available.

“The current intention, subject to technological and legal considerations, is to provide the outcome of all cases. We will consult widely before a final technical solution is adopted.”

Comments

David (22/09/2008 09:46:04)
You might be interested in thelawpages.com, which has a free criminal database that allows the public to see justice in action. The popularity of The Law Pages suggests that there is a huge appetite to know more about the way in which justice is meted out in our courts. It also suggests that the government’s drive to bring more ‘Access to Justice’ is sorely needed, but that it has so far been ineffective.