MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
News Release (No:090/07) issued by The Government News Network on 28
June 2007
People going to
court are motivated by getting justice and a final decision,
Government research published today shows.
The research report, What's cost got to do with it?: the
impact of changing court fees on users, carried out in England and
Wales, found that people worried more about how stressful or long
their court case would be than about the potential costs of the case.
Four in ten people said that courts should continue to be funded
as they are; while one in four of those sampled felt that court
users should pay all costs.
When asked about court fees, most people said court users should
only pay for the services used. They would also like to know up
front how much the process would cost them.
Justice Minister Vera Baird QC MP welcomed the findings and said:
"These findings give us an insight into what people take
account of when deciding whether to go to court or not. Getting
justice is, rightly, their paramount motivation, so it is
important to learn what factors - stress, length of case, cost -
they consider, and what weight they attach to them, when deciding
whether or not to pursue a case."
"We have recently consulted on the issue of civil court
fees and the outcome of that public consultation shall be
published shortly."
Other findings show:
* Over half of court users know the court process, and just under
half know about court fees specifically;
* People claiming money back and people wanting to divorce would
prefer to go to court without legal representation, to cut costs;
* In our sample court users who used solicitors were just as
satisfied with the process as those who did not use them.
Notes to Editors
1. In 2005 Her Majesty's Court Service developed a strategy
to ensure that the funding of the civil courts including funding
for their modernisation is sustainable and fair.
2. A consultation paper Civil Court Fees was published on 2 April
2007. The consultation period ended on 25 June 2007. The
consultation is available at http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/cp0507.htm
3. For more information about the research, please visit http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/research.htm
http://www.justice.gov.uk
ENDS