This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Measures to speed up appeals underway
30/10/2003
Measures to help remove the backlog of cases and reduce
the continuing delays in the Appeal Court were announced
today.
Criminal appeal court statistics published today showed
a 10 year low in the number of appeal cases completed.
Justice Minister Cathy Jamieson has confirmed that to help
the Court tackle these problems, she has agreed to a number
of experienced sheriffs being appointed as temporary
judges.
The temporary judges will take on High Court cases,
allowing permanent judges to sit on additional appeal
courts, helping to clear the backlog of cases. The
appointment of the temporary judges will be made in the
next few weeks.
Ms Jamieson said:
"The Scottish Executive is committed to taking action to
create an efficient and effective justice service for all
the people of Scotland. Today's criminal appeal court
statistics are extremely concerning - showing an increasing
problem of backlogs and delay.
"Allowing a small number of sheriffs to be called upon
when needed to act in our high courts will allow our
existing judges additional time to clear the backlog of
cases in the Appeal Court.
"I am taking steps to ensure that the effect on the
Sheriff Courts will be kept to a minimum. The appointments
will only be for a set temporary period. I will also ask
the Judicial Appointments Board to advertise for two
additional sheriff posts which will help provide cover
where necessary in the Sheriff Courts.
"I strongly support the measures taken by the Lord
President, Lord Cullen, to reform the procedures of the
court to improve the efficiency of the appeal process -
measures which should ensure that this backlog is addressed
and does not happen again. I want these appointments to be
a one-off initiative to get the Appeal Court running
effectively and efficiently.
"A number of reforms are currently underway aimed at
improving the justice service across the board.
"Recently High Court trials have required a significant
amount of judicial time to ensure the most serious crimes
in Scotland are dealt with. The Executive has already
introduced legislation (Criminal Procedure (Amendment)
(Scotland) Bill) to reform the working of our High Courts
addressing the problem of delays and adjournments which
result in valuable time being wasted.
"We have also introduced changes to existing legislation
allowing judges to decide whether a full transcript of
trial proceedings should be provided when asked for. Full
transcripts take time to prepare, and add to the delays and
costs incurred by the Court.