Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service
11th November 2011
Magistrates Court Statistics (Provisional Statistics) July to September 2011
Figures published today by the NI Courts and Tribunals Service in the quarterly Magistrates Court Bulletin outline the Magistrates court business received and dealt with from the quarter July to September 2011.
During the quarter;
- There were 1,157 scheduled magistrates’ sittings
- There were 52 additional magistrates’ sittings
- 13,292 new adult criminal defendants were received in court and 13,204 adult defendants were disposed of
- The average waiting time in the adult criminal court from first hearing to disposal was 7 weeks
Ends
Notes for Editors
During Jul –Sept 2011:
- There were 1,157 scheduled magistrates’ sittings of which:
| Criminal |
771 |
| Youth |
138 |
| Family |
248 |
- There were 52 additional magistrates’ sittings of which:
| Criminal |
46 |
| Youth |
0 |
| Family |
6 |
- 13,292 new adult criminal defendants were received in court and 13,204 adult defendants were disposed of during the period. (Figure 1)
Figure 1: Percentage of adults received and disposed of in the court divisions
| |
Adults received |
Adults disposed |
| Craigavon |
10% |
10% |
| Ards |
11% |
11% |
| Armagh |
9% |
10% |
| Fermanagh |
14% |
15% |
| Antrim |
12% |
12% |
| Londonderry |
10% |
9% |
| Belfast |
34% |
32% |
- The majority (80%) of prosecutions disposed of in the adult court were brought by PSNI/ PPS.
- The volume of adult business was highest in the Division of Belfast
- The average waiting time in the adult criminal court from first hearing to disposal was 7 weeks. (Figure 2)
Figure 2: Waiting times in weeks in adult magistrates’ courts (1st hearing to disposal)
| Craigavon |
6.8 |
| Ards |
7.7 |
| Armagh |
7.2 |
| Fermanagh |
6.7 |
| Antrim |
6.1 |
| Londonderry |
6.6 |
| Belfast |
7.5 |
- 712 new defendants were entered in the youth court and 680 youth defendants were disposed of.
- The average waiting time in the youth court from first hearing to disposal was 11 weeks (12 weeks for the same period in 2010).
Important Notes:
Figures are computed from a live database and may change due to late returns and further validations.
Date of disposal is based on the date of sentencing, date of acquittal or date a bill of indictment is not proceeded with.
Waiting times do not exclude recess.
You can view the full Magistrates' Court Bulletin for July to September 2011 here.
If you have any further queries or if you have difficulty viewing the figures please contact:
Press Team
Communications Group
Northern Ireland Court Service
Laganside House
23-27 Oxford Street
Belfast
BT1 3LA
Tel. 028 9041 2284