§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what action he will take to ensure that cases, listed for county court hearings on a 71W particular day, are heard on that day; if he will consider a system of compensation in circumstances of failure; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John M. TaylorThe Lord Chancellor has no specific plans to alter the present system of listing cases in the county court. During the last few years, 82 county court trail centres have been established which have concentrated resources and provided better listing systems. Listing officers in those centres are expected to remain in post for at least a year. Listing, however, is reliant on the accuracy of time estimates provided by the parties, the number of door-of-the-court settlements and the priority which must necessarily be given to any urgent applications, particularly in the family area. Notwithstanding these difficulties, the trial centres are continuing their efforts to find more efficient ways of dealing with cases.
Departmental policy on compensation was set out in a parliamentary answer on 28 January 1987, Official Report, column 246, and remains unchanged. The Lord Chancellor is prepared to consider claims for ex-gratia payments if a party has suffered loss as a result of the negligence of court staff. This does not, however, cover the failure of a case to be heard as a result of the listing process which is carried out under judicial direction.