Judicial Statistics 2010

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Statistics and Research
Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service
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C Darragh        Tel. 028 9072 8927
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M Wilson         Tel. 028 9072 8920

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Introduction

The Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service (NICTS) is an agency within the Department of Justice for Northern Ireland.

The NICTS carries out the court administrative functions previously undertaken by the Northern Ireland Court Service. The Court Service became part of the Department of Justice upon the devolution of policing and justice and its functions transferred to the Department (by virtue of the Northern Ireland Court Service (Abolition and Transfer of Functions) Order (Northern Ireland) 2010 made under section 78 of the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002).

The principal functions of the NICTS are:

• Providing administrative support for Northern Ireland’s courts and tribunals.
• Enforcing civil court judgments through the Enforcement of Judgments Office.
• Providing support for the judiciary.
• Providing advice to the Minister for Justice on matters relating to the operation the courts and tribunals and the Enforcement of Judgments Office.
• Providing advice to the Minister for Justice on the legal aid system in Northern Ireland and acting as sponsor for the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission.
• Providing, managing and maintaining court and tribunal buildings.
• Acting as the Central Authority under certain international Conventions.

This report provides statistical information in relation to the criminal, civil and family business conducted by the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service (NICTS) and the work of some associated offices.

The Court Structure in Northern Ireland

1.       Court Structure in Northern Ireland

This section sets out a brief description of the courts and the criminal, civil and family business conducted by the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service (NICTS) and the work of some associated offices.

Provisional quarterly bulletins on mortgages, the Crown Court, the magistrates’ court, the High Court, the county court and the Children Order have already been published by the NICTS.  The statistics presented in Judicial Statistics are final figures for 2010, and provide some more detailed figures than the quarterly bulletins.

This section also includes key comparable facts for the calendar years 2006 to 2010.  Further comparisons in relation to the main differences between 2009 and 2010 are found in the main body of the report.

The criminal, civil and family justice systems are impartial and the numbers that are processed through the courts and the corresponding time for processing this information are related to a number of factors.  For instance, in relation to criminal cases this may include the seriousness of the offence, the availability of the witnesses and the complexity of individual cases.

For civil cases, this might include external factors such as the state of the economy in relation to mortgage cases received and disposed.  The complexity of individual cases and the nature of individual claims may also be factors here.

The Court of Appeal

The Court of Appeal sits at the Royal Courts of Justice in Belfast. The Judges of the Court of Appeal are the Lord Chief Justice (who is the President of the Court of Appeal) and three Lords Justices of Appeal.  High Court Judges can sit in the Court of Appeal on criminal causes or civil matters. The Court of Appeal hears appeals in criminal matters from the Crown Court and civil matters from the High Court (including Judicial Reviews). It also hears appeals on points of law from the county courts, magistrates’ courts and certain appeal tribunals.

Trend data for the Court of Appeal for the years 2006 to 2010 are outlined in Table 1.

Numbers relating to the Court of Appeal are too small to allow for valid comparisons.  However, it is clear that the numbers are relatively consistent over the 5 year period.

The High Court

The High Court sits at the Royal Courts of Justice in Belfast. It consists of the Lord Chief Justice (who is the President of the High Court), and three Lords Justices of Appeal along with ten High Court Judges (including one vacancy). The High Court hears high value and complex civil cases. The High Court deals with civil cases, hears appeals in criminal cases, and also has the power to review the actions of individuals or organisations to make sure they have acted legally and justly. The High Court comprises three Divisions: the Chancery Division, Queen’s Bench Division and Family Division.

The Chancery Division deals with trusts, contested wills, winding up companies, bankruptcy, mortgages, charities, contested revenue (usually income tax) cases etc.

The Queens Bench Division deals with large and/or complex claims for compensation. It also deals with a limited number of appeals from magistrates' courts or Crown Courts, as well as reviewing the actions of organisations to see whether they have acted legally, and with libel and slander actions.

The Family Division deals with complex defended divorce cases, wardship, adoption, domestic violence and so on. It also deals with appeals from magistrates’ and county courts in matrimonial cases and deals with the affairs of people who are mentally ill and also simple probate matters.

The number of High Court cases received for 2006 to 2010 are set out in Table 2 and the number of High Court cases disposed of are documented in Table 3.

[1] Data include civil partnership petitions.

Chancery - Between 2006 and 2010 the number of chancery cases received increased by 37%.  However, there was a reduction of 14% in the number of chancery cases received between 2009 and 2010.

Bankruptcy - The number of bankruptcy cases received has increased by 4% between 2006 and 2010.   Proportionately, this was an increase of 1% between 2010 and the previous year.

Companies - The number of companies cases received has doubled between 2006 and 2010.  Between 2009 and 2010 there was an increase of 25%.

Queen’s Bench Division writs - There was an increase of 71% in relation to the number of Queen’s Bench Division writs cases received between 2006 and 2010.  There was a 4% increase between 2009 and 2010.

Judicial Reviews - The number of applications for Judicial Review has decreased by 45% between 2006 and 2010.

Probate - There was an 8% increase in the number of probate grants cases received between 2006 to 2010.  Between 2009 and 2010 there was a 2% decrease.

Divorce petitions - There was a 13% decrease on the number of divorce petitions received between 2006 and 2010.  The number of divorces petitions received was similar for 2009 and 2010.

Wardship and adoption - The number of cases received for wardship and adoption decreased by 64% between 2006 and 2010. 

Care and protection orders - The number of care and protection orders received has increased by 24% between 2006 and 2010 and 9% between 2009 and 2010.

Official Solicitor’s Office - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of live patient cases in the Official Solicitor’s Office increased by 14%.  Between 2006 and 2010 the current minors’ cases have decreased by 76%.

Master’s appeals - With the exception of 2006, the number of Master’s appeals has remained fairly consistent over the period.

Bail applications - The number of High Court bail applications decreased by 33% between 2006 and 2010.  However, there was an 11% increase between 2009 and 2010.

[1] In Queens Bench a new direction came into effect 01/04/08 which set out new procedures for setting down an action for trial.  An exercise was carried out in 2008 to dispose of old cases which were withdrawn or settled out of court.

[2] Data include civil partnership dissolutions.

Chancery - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of chancery cases disposed of increased by 76%.  There was an increase of 12% between 2009 and 2010.

Bankruptcy - There was a 6% increase in the number of bankruptcy cases disposed between 2006 and 2010.  The number of cases disposed of was similar between 2009 and 2010.

Companies - The number of companies cases disposed of between 2006 and 2010 has more than doubled with an increase of 103%.  Proportionately, there was a 43% increase between 2009 and 2010.

Judicial Reviews - There was a 33% reduction in the number of Judicial Review cases disposed of between 2006 and 2010.  The number of cases disposed of was similar for 2009 and 2010.

Divorce petitions - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of divorce petitions disposed of increased by 16%.  After a decrease in the number of cases disposed in 2009, there was a 38% increase in 2010.

Wardship and adoption - There was a 52% reduction in the number of wardship and adoption cases disposed of between 2006 and 2010.  The numbers disposed of in 2009 and 2010 were similar.

Official Solictor’s Office - The number of cases relating to minors disposed of in the Official Solicitor’s Office decreased by 73% between 2006 and 2010.  There were similar trends between 2008 and 2010.

Master’s appeals - There was a 31% decrease in the number of Master’s appeals disposed of between 2006 and 2010.  The number of cases disposed of was similar between 2007 and 2010.

Bail applications - The number of High Court bail applications disposed of decreased 40% for the period 2006 to 2010.  Between 2009 and 2010, there was an increase of 9%.

The Crown Court

The Crown Court has exclusive jurisdiction to try offences charged on indictment. Offences tried on indictment are more serious offences. The Lord Chief Justice is President of the Crown Court and the Lords Justices of Appeal, High Court Judges and county court judges all sit in the Crown Court.

Trial on indictment in the Crown Court follows after the accused has been returned for trial at committal proceedings in a magistrates’ court. The Public Prosecution Service is responsible for preparing a formal document called an indictment, stating the charges which the accused will face. The matters are then tried before a judge sitting with a jury.

The Crown Court normally sits at seven different venues throughout Northern Ireland and the trial of non-scheduled offences takes place at the sitting of the Crown Court determined by the District Judge who committed the accused. This is usually the Crown Court acting for the county court division in which the offence is alleged to have been committed.

Appeal from the Crown Court is to the Court of Appeal. If a person wishes to appeal against conviction on a question of fact, the permission of either the Crown Court Judge or the Court of Appeal is required. To appeal against sentence he or she needs the leave of the Court of Appeal.

All persons convicted of a scheduled offence tried on indictment can appeal against conviction to the Court of Appeal on any grounds and without leave. This automatic right of appeal is a safeguard built into the system because in these cases there is no jury.

The prosecution has no right to appeal against the acquittal of a defendant who has been tried on indictment. The Attorney-General can refer a point of law to the Court of Appeal for its opinion, but even if the Court of Appeal considers that the trial judge made an error of law resulting in an acquittal, the acquittal still stands. The reference and subsequent ruling is useful in guiding the prosecution of future trials.

The number of cases and defendants received and disposed of and the average time from committal to start of trial for the years 2006 to 2010 is outlined in Table 4.

[1] Data for the number of defendants received into the Crown Court are only available from 2007 onwards with the introduction of the ICOS system into the criminal courts.

[2] 2007 is the first full year of ICOS for the Crown Court and caution should be made when comparing data from 2006.

Cases received - There was a 16% increase in the number of cases received from 2006 to 2010.  While there have been fluctuations in relation to trends over the 5 year period, there was an 11% increase in the number of cases received between 2009 and 2010.

Cases disposed - The number of cases disposed of in 2010 was similar to the number of cases disposed of in 2006.  There was an increase of 13% in the number of cases disposed of between 2006 and 2007, followed by a fall of 4% in 2008 and a further fall of 10% in 2009.

Defendants committed - Between 2007 and 2010, there was a 4% increase in relation to the number of defendants committed.  This was after a 12% decrease between 2007 and 2008 and an increase of 5% between 2008 and 2009.  Proportionately, there was a 12% increase in the number of defendants received between 2009 and 2010.

Defendants disposed - The number of defendants disposed of was similar in 2006 and 2010.  This was after an increase of 18% in 2007.  Between 2009 and 2010, there was an increase of 2%.

Committal to start of trial - The average time from committal to start of trial in 2010 was a decrease of 15% on the 2006 figure.  The average time was similar for 2009 and 2010.

The County Court

In Northern Ireland, there are seven county court divisions with seventeen county court judges and four district judges. Civil cases are commenced in the county court if the value of the case is less than £15,000. However, for claims concerning matrimonial property or compensation for criminal injuries or criminal damage to property, there is no financial limit. The county court also has jurisdiction to hear applications for adoptions and undefended divorces. Applications for intoxicating liquor licences and certificates of registration for clubs are also made to the county court. In addition to its original civil jurisdiction the county court hears appeals under a number of statutory provisions from the magistrates’ courts or from other tribunals.

County courts can deal with a wide range of cases, but the most common ones are:-

• landlord and tenant disputes, for example, possession (eviction), rent arrears, repairs
• consumer disputes, for example, faulty goods or services
• personal injury claims (injuries caused by negligence), for example, traffic accidents, falling into holes in the pavement, accidents at work
• undefended divorce cases, but only in some county courts
• some domestic violence cases, but these may also be heard in the magistrates court
• race and sex discrimination cases
• debt problems, for example, a creditor seeking payment
• employment problems, for example, wages or salary owing or pay in lieu of notice.

The county court also deals with small claims.  In general, a small claim is one where the value of the claim is not more than £2,000.

The most common types of claim dealt with in the small claims court are:

• compensation for faulty services provided, for example, by builders, dry cleaners and garages
• compensation for faulty goods, for example, televisions or washing machines which go wrong
• disputes between landlords and tenants, for example, rent arrears or compensation for not doing repairs
• wages owed or money in lieu of notice.

All claims arising from regulated credit agreements must be started in the county court, whatever their value.

The number of cases received and disposed in the county court between 2006 and 2010 is documented in Tables 5 and 6 respectively.

[1] County court appeals were recorded on ICOS from 2007 and caution should be taken when comparing with 2006.

Appeals - Between 2007 and 2010, the number of appeals cases received from the magistrates’ courts has increased by 8%.  The corresponding figure between 2009 and 2010 was an increase of 4%.

Criminal damage - In 2010 there was half the number of criminal damage cases compared with 2007.

Licences - The number of licences received is similar for 2006 and 2010.  Nonetheless, there has been a decrease of 44% since 2008.

Civil bills - There has been an increase of 18% in the number of civil bills received between 2006 and 2010.  Proportionately, there was a 1% decrease between 2009 and 2010.

Small claims - There was a 13% increase in the number of small claims received between 2006 and 2010; however, there was a decrease of 5% between 2009 and 2010.

Divorces - The number of decrees nisi received in 2010 was similar to the number received in 2006.  Nonetheless, there was a 20% decrease between 2007 and 2010.

[1] County court appeals were recorded on ICOS from 2007 and caution should be taken when comparing with 2006.

Appeals - The number of appeals cases from the magistrates’ courts disposed of increased by 11% between 2007 and 2010.  There was an increase of 12% between 2009 and 2010.

Criminal damage - The number of criminal damage cases disposed of was similar in 2007 and 2010.

Licences - The number of licences disposed of was similar in 2006 and 2010, although there was a 23% decrease between 2009 and 2010.

Ordinary civil bills - There was a 24% increase in the number of ordinary civil bills disposed of between 2006 and 2010 and a 7% increase between 2009 and 2010.

Ejectment - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of ejectment cases decreased by 16%.  There was a 9% decrease between 2009 and 2010.

Small claims - There was a 24% increase in the number of small claims disposed of between 2006 and 2010; however, there were similar numbers of cases disposed of in 2009 and 2010.

Divorces - The number of decrees absolute issued in 2006 and 2010 were similar; nonetheless, there was a 26% decrease between 2008 and 2009 and a 17% increase between 2009 and 2010.

The Magistrates’ Court

There are twenty-one petty sessions’ districts in Northern Ireland. A magistrates’ court (other than a youth court or family proceedings court) is presided over by a district judge (magistrates’ court) sitting alone. The present complement of district judges (magistrates’ court) is twenty-one. The magistrates’ court hears and determines less serious criminal cases, cases involving youth and some civil and domestic cases including family proceedings.

The vast majority of all criminal offences dealt with in Northern Ireland are tried summarily in a magistrates’ court.  Over half of these offences are offences against Road Traffic Orders, such as the Road Traffic (NI) Order 1995 and the Road Traffic Offenders (NI) Order 1996, sometimes described as the ‘penalty points’ Order.

Magistrates’ courts also deal with offences where the defendant can choose trial by jury but decides to have their case heard in the magistrates' court. If the defendant chooses trial by jury, the case will be passed on to the Crown Court. It is estimated that where the defendant has a choice between summary trial and trial on indictment, approximately three out of four cases are dealt with summarily. This is mainly because this mode of trial is much quicker and the sentencing powers of a District Judge (magistrates’ court) are more restricted than those of a Crown Court Judge - the most serious punishment which a District Judge (magistrates’ court) can impose is 12 months in prison, unless consecutive terms of imprisonment are imposed for more than one offence, when the limit is extended to 18 months.

The youth court deals with young people who have committed criminal offences, and who are aged between 10 and under 18. The youth court is part of the magistrates’ court and cases are generally heard before a panel of three persons, a salaried District Judge (magistrates’ court) and two specially-trained fee-paid lay magistrates.   Although the youth court can deal with the full range criminal offences (save for murder), if a young person is charged with a very serious offence, which in the case of an adult is punishable with 14 years imprisonment or more, the youth court can commit them for trial at the Crown Court.

In addition to hearing criminal proceedings the youth court also hears proceedings relating to the care, protection and control of juveniles.

Magistrates’ courts can deal with a limited number of civil cases as follows:-

• some civil debts, for example, arrears of income tax, national insurance contributions, VAT arrears, rates
• licences, for example, granting, renewing or taking away licences for pubs and clubs
• some matrimonial problems, for example, maintenance and removing a spouse from the matrimonial home
• welfare of children, for example, local authority care or supervision orders, adoption proceedings and residence orders.

Information in relation to adult, youth and civil magistrates’ courts in Northern Ireland for 2006 to 2010 is set out in Table 7.

[1] In 2006, there was a backlog of cases disposed of that related to debt and ejectment.

[2] Information on the average civil and family waiting time is only available from 2007 onwards when this information was recorded on the ICOS system.

[3] 2007 is the first full year of ICOS for the magistrates’ courts and caution should be made when comparing data from 2006.

Adult criminal defendants received - The number of adult defendants received in the magistrates’ court has not been consistent between 2006 and 2010.  While there has been a drop of 7% from 2006 to 2010, there has been an increase of 1% between 2009 and 2010.

Adult criminal defendants disposed - Between 2006 and 2010, there was a decrease of 2% in the number of adult defendants disposed of.  There was a 1% decrease between 2009 and 2010.

Average disposal time for adults - The average processing time between summons/charge and disposal decreased 25% between 2006 and 2010.  There was a 15% decrease between 2009 and 2010.

Youth criminal defendants received - The number of youth defendants received increased by 23% between 2006 and 2010.  Proportionately, there was an increase of 11% between 2009 and 2010.

Youth criminal defendants disposed - There was an 18% increase in relation to the number of defendants disposed of between 2006 and 2010 and 6% between 2009 and 2010.

Average disposal time for youths - Between 2006 and 2010 the average processing time between charge/summons and disposal for youths decreased by 20%.   There was a 14% reduction between 2009 and 2010.

Civil business disposed - There was a 9% reduction in relation to civil business disposed between 2007 and 2010.  Proportionately, there was a 10% decrease between 2009 and 2010.

Average civil and family waiting time – The average civil and family waiting time from first hearing to disposal has increased slightly over the period but it took the same number of weeks on average in 2009 and 2010.

The Children Order

The primary aim of the Children Order is to promote the welfare of children. The Order creates a clear, practical and consistent code of law governing the care, protection and upbringing of children and the provision of services to them and their families. It confers concurrent jurisdiction on all three tiers of the courts (High Court, county courts and magistrates’ courts) so that subject to certain limited exceptions, any court can make any of the orders available under the Order.

Table 8 deals with applications lodged and disposed of, the children involved, the number of orders made and the number of court sitting days relating to the Children Order for 2006 to 2010.

[1] Due to a different counting basis, it is not possible to compare 2006 applications lodged and applications disposed of.  From April 2007, there was a change in measurement for applications per child received and disposed to applications received and disposed.

Applications lodged - The number of applications lodged increased by 26% between 2007 and 2010.  In particular, there was a 22% increase between 2009 and 2010.

Applications disposed - Between 2007 and 2009, the number of applications disposed of increased by 21%.  This proportion was an increase of 30% between 2009 and 2010.

Children involved - The number of children involved in Children Order business in the courts increased by 54% between 2006 and 2010.  Between 2009 and 2010, there was a 27% increase.

Orders - The number of orders made has increased by 128% between 2006 and 2010.  Proportionately, there was a 37% increase between 2009 and 2010.

Court sitting days - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of court sitting days increased by 19%.  The corresponding figure between 2009 and 2010 was an increase of 4%.

Coroners Service for Northern Ireland

The Coroners Service is headed by a High Court Judge.  There is one Senior Coroner and three Coroners (one of which is a fixed term appointment).  They deal with matters relating to deaths that may require further investigation to establish the cause of death.

Coroners in Northern Ireland can either be barristers or solicitors and are appointed by the Lord Chancellor.

Coroners inquire into deaths reported to them that appear to be:

• unexpected or unexplained
• as a result of violence
• an accident
• as a result of negligence
• from any cause other than natural illness or disease, or
• in circumstances that require investigation.

The Coroner will seek to establish the cause of death and will make whatever inquiries are necessary to do this e.g. ordering a postmortem examination, obtaining witness statements and medical records, or holding an inquest.

Table 9 outlines trend data for the Coroners Service for Northern Ireland between 2006 and 2010.

Deaths reported - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of deaths recorded decreased by 10%.  Proportionately, there was a decrease of 6% between 2009 and 2010.

Inquests - The number of inquests held decreased by 27% between 2006 and 2010 and by 19% between 2009 and 2010.

Post-mortems - There was a 20% reduction in the number of post-mortems held between 2009 and 2010.   Between 2009 and 2010, this represented a 7% reduction.

No inquest and no post-mortem - The number of cases with no inquest and no post-mortem increased by 5% between 2006 and 2010.  There was a marginal increase of 2% between 2009 and 2010.

Social Security Commissioners and Child Support Commissioners

Social Security Commissioners hear appeals from Appeal Tribunals in relation to matters arising under the social security system. Child Support Commissioners hear appeals from Child Support Appeal Tribunals.

Information on lodgements and cleared lodgements is outlined in Table 10.

Leave to appeal to Commissioners lodged - The number of cases that had leave to apply to appeal to Social Security and Child Support Commissioners lodged is based on demand.  There was a 25% decrease between 2006 and 2010 with a 39% decrease between 2009 and 2010.

Leave to appeal to Commissioners cleared - The number of cases that had leave to appeal to Social Security and Child Support Commissioners cleared was similar between 2006 and 2010.  There was a 4% increase between 2009 and 2010.

Appeals to Commissioners lodged - The number of appeals to Social Security and Child Support Commissioners lodged increased by 93% between 2006 and 2010.  There was a 42% increase between 2009 and 2010.

Appeals to Commissioners cleared - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of appeals to Social Security and Child Support Commissioners cleared increased by 99%.  There was a 47% increase between 2009 and 2010.

The Enforcement of Judgments Office

The Enforcement of Judgments Office (EJO) is essentially a centralised unit for enforcing judgments of the courts. The EJO’s powers and procedures are contained in the Judgments Enforcement (Northern Ireland) Order 1981, and Judgment Enforcement Rules (Northern Ireland) 1981.  The EJO also enforces other types of civil judgments such as those that are connected with the possession of land and property.

Information on the number of applications received is documented in Table 11.

Intention to enforce lodged - Between 2006 and 2010, the number of notices of intention to enforce lodged increased by 53%.  The percentage increase between 2009 and 2010 was 15%.

Applications to enforce accepted - There was a 62% increase in the number of applications for enforcement accepted between 2006 and 2010.  Proportionately, there was an increase of 14% between 2009 and 2010.

Judge Sitting Days

Table 12 outlines the number of sitting days for judges between 2006 and 2010.

Days are classified on the basis of the majority business undertaken.

A court sitting day is counted as any day where the judiciary sit in court.  It does not include time in chambers or days where the judiciary are sitting in chambers.

High Court Judge – The number of days that High Court Judges sat was similar in 2006 and 2010.  Nevertheless, there was an increase of 11% between 2006 and 2007.

County Court/District Judge – There was a 4% increase in the number of days that a County Court/District Judge sat between 2006 and 2010.  The number of days sat was similar in 2009 and 2010.

District Judge (magistrates’ court) – Between 2006 and 2010, the number of days that District Judge (magistrates’ court) sat increased by 7%.  The number of days sat was similar in 2009 and 2010.

Social Security Commissioners – Social Security Commissioners sat for a small number of days between 2006 and 2010.  Due to small numbers it is not possible to make valid comparisons.

Total Judge sitting days – The total number of days that judges sat increased by 4% between 2006 and 2010.  There was a marginal decrease of 1% between 2009 and 2010 in relation to the total number of judge sitting days.

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2.       Databases

Data from the Integrated Courts Operations System (ICOS) are used for this publication.  Further information on the implementation of data from the ICOS system is documented below.  This system has been chosen as it is the main system within the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service (NICTS).  The data are input to this system on a daily basis.  A download from this system is supplied to the Statistics and Research team on a weekly basis on flat files.  The data are received via ICOS from their secure internal download facility that only specified personnel have access to.  Persons are identified by case number and the names and addresses of personnel are not downloaded to the statistical databases.  Files are held on drives that are only accessible by relevant branch staff.  Files are not transmitted outside the branch.

This information is downloaded via SPSS and validations are produced from this system to ensure that the data are reliable and robust for use.  When downloads are made, the following validation steps are completed:

• checking consistency over time and between variables;
• reliability of data using logic checks;
• checking that variables fall within accepted ranges; and
• checking with the ICOS Support Team in the event of any major discrepancies that have occurred since the last download.

Individual court offices are asked to check any discrepancies that occur as a result of validations, for instance, when wrong dates have been input to the system.  Once these have been checked, a list of any necessary changes is compiled and supplied to the ICOS Support Team who arrange for the information to be amended on ICOS.

Once these amendments have been checked, computer syntax is then used to produce the tables in this report.  Once computed, the figures in the report are checked carefully prior to publication.  The data are broken down by court location as this is the established way of producing and presenting these data.

The statistics in this report are taken from the latest available data that are held on the NICTS systems as of 6 June 2011.  The NICTS statistics and research team check all data that are to be published carefully in order to provide a high level of quality assurance in relation to the data.  However, NICTS does acknowledge that some errors may occur due to the inputting of incorrect data on to the ICOS by a large number of staff.  Most of these errors are detected and corrected by the validations that are computed by the statistics and research team before publication.  Nonetheless, there is scope for error to occur.  There is also scope for error in relation to the report itself.  The information here is manually typed and there is the possibility of transcription errors here.

Other data are also used to compile the information in this report, these refer to the information that is presented in Section G – Miscellaneous.  The Enforcement of Judgments Office use a specially designed system to capture all applications to enforce called the Judgment Enforcement Management System (JEMS).  The information in this report has been extracted from this system.  Manual spreadsheets on Excel are used to record information that relate to the Coroners Service for Northern Ireland and the Social Security and Child Support Commissioners.  These systems are suitable to extract the data for this report.  Like ICOS, the information is recorded on these databases on a daily basis. The information is validated internally by staff in these offices who check that the system and databases hold the correct information.  The statistics and research team within the NICTS check the data that are provided from these systems to ensure that they are robust.  However, the statistics and research team recognise that as the information is input manually that there is the potential for errors to occur.

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3.       Implementation of the ICOS System

In 2005, the Integrated Court Operations System (ICOS) was introduced in the High Court and county court. As regular downloads of information were available from the new system, more detailed information across all court tiers was included in Judicial Statistics. The High Court and county court sections have been completed based on ICOS since 2005 and caution should be taken when comparing Judicial Statistics from reports prior to this.

During 2006, ICOS was introduced in the Crown Court and criminal magistrates’ court.  Caution should be taken when comparing figures prior to this.

During 2007, the civil and family module of ICOS was completed. This affected the information in the civil and family magistrates’ court section and also in the Children Order section from reports prior to this. 

For further advice on the differences between 2010 figures and previous years, please contact the statistics and research team.

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4.       Other useful information

The court structure of Northern Ireland does not equate to the court structures of England and Wales, Scotland or the Republic of Ireland. 

Further information on judicial and court statistics for England and Wales can be found at:
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/judicialandcourtstatistics.htm

Further information on crime and justice statistics in Scotland can be found at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Crime-Justice

Information on court statistics from the Republic of Ireland can be found at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Crime-Justice

The following weblinks contain details of information that relates to other criminal justice agencies in Northern Ireland:

Department of Justice (Northern Ireland)
http://www.dojni.gov.uk/index/statistics-research.htm

Police Service of Northern Ireland
http://www.psni.police.uk/index/updates/updates_statistics.htm

Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland
http://www.ppsni.gov.uk

Youth Justice Agency
http://www.youthjusticeagencyni.gov.uk/

Northern Ireland Prison Service
http://www.niprisonservice.gov.uk/index.cfm/area/information/page/factandfigures

Probation Board for Northern Ireland
http://www.pbni.org.uk

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Part A     Court Of Appeal

The Court of Appeal is divided into civil and criminal. It hears appeals from decisions in the High Court and against convictions and sentences passed by the Crown Court and cases stated from other court tiers. It also hears appeals from tribunals and outside bodies.

Key facts during 2010

• 61 criminal appeals were lodged in the Court of Appeal
• 69 criminal appeals were disposed of in the Court of Appeal
• 21 criminal appeals were successful
• 97 civil appeals were set down in the Court of Appeal
• 80 civil appeals were disposed of in the Court of Appeal

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Section 1: Criminal appeals

The number of criminal appeals lodged in 2010 decreased from 84 in 2009 to 61 in 2010 (Table A.1).

In 2010, there were 39 appeals lodged against sentence only, 12 were against conviction and 10 were against both conviction and sentence.  This compares with 45 appeals lodged against sentence only, 11 against conviction and 28 against both conviction and sentence in 2009.  Of the 61 appeals lodged during 2010, 8 resulted from trials dealing with scheduled offences (Table A.2).

There were 21 successful appeals in 2010 with 1 appeal refused, and 22 appeals abandoned or withdrawn (Table A.3).  Similarly there were 28 successful appeals in 2009, with 7 appeals refused and 11 appeals abandoned or withdrawn.

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Section 2: Civil appeals

There were 97 civil appeals set down in 2010, 14 more than the 2009 total of 83.  As in previous years, the main source of civil appeals was the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court with 42 cases set down. A total of 80 appeals were disposed of during the year (Table A.4) which compares with the 84 appeals disposed of in 2009.

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Section 3: Court sitting times

The number of court sitting days spent on criminal appeals (by majority type of work) increased from 53 days in 2009 to 62 days in 2010. A total of 130 hours were spent in court hearing criminal appeals in 2010 compared with 106 court hours in 2009. There were 93 court sitting days (by majority type of work) spent on civil appeals during 2010 compared with 114 in 2009. A total of 188 hours were spent in court hearing civil appeals in 2010 compared with 203 court hours during 2009 (Figure A.2 & Table B.40).

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Part B     High Court

The High Court is a civil court which consists of the Chancery Division, Queen’s Bench Division and the Family Division.

Key facts during 2010

• 3,390 mortgage applications were entered in Chancery
• 3,265 bankruptcy proceedings were entered
• 2,890 bankruptcy proceedings were disposed of
• 589 companies proceedings were disposed of
• 7,503 writs and originating summonses were received
• judgments by default were entered
• 2,704 divorce petitions were filed in the High Court
• 2,431 applications for bail were received

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Section 1: Chancery

Table B.1 shows that during 2010, a total of 3,919 Chancery writs and originating summonses were issued.  This was a decrease of 14% from 4,567 in 2009.  Mortgage suits accounted for the majority (87%) of writs and originating summonses received in 2010.  The number of mortgages received has decreased by 13% during 2010 (3,906 in 2009 compared with 3,390 in 2010).

There were 4,686 cases and applications disposed of in 2010 compared with 3,928 in 2009, representing a 19% increase.  Mortgages accounted for the majority of disposals with 3,004 cases disposed of (Table B.2).

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Section 2: Bankruptcy

There were 3,265 bankruptcy proceedings issued in 2010 compared with 3,412 in 2009 – a decrease of 4%. In 2010, these included 1,998 bankruptcy petitions, 60% of which were creditor petitions (petition by another person).  Figures for 2009 revealed that there were 1,928 bankruptcy petitions, of which 69% were creditor petitions.  In 2010, other bankruptcy proceedings included 215 originating applications and 872 ordinary applications (Table B.3).  These were 276 and 1,043 respectively in 2009.

The Master dealt with a total of 2,878 bankruptcy proceedings in 2010 compared with 2,952 the previous year, a decrease of 3%. The main area of work disposed of by the Master was bankruptcy petitions, a total of 1,957 in 2010 compared with a similar number of 1,965 in 2009 (Table B.4).

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Section 3: Companies

Table B.5 and B.6 show the companies proceedings entered and disposed of for 2010. There were 721 companies proceedings received and 589 disposed of.   This represented a 23% increase for proceedings received (586) and a 46% increase for proceedings disposed of (404) in 2009.

Table B.7 shows the time interval in weeks for cases and applications in the Chancery Division for the three business areas. A chancery case took on average 30 weeks from date of issue to date of disposal in 2010, the same number of weeks as in 2009.  In 2010, it took on average 10 weeks for a bankruptcy case (11 weeks in 2009) and 12 weeks for a companies’ case (16 weeks in 2009) in 2010.

Due to rounding, individual time intervals may not equal the overall time taken to progress through the courts.

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Section 4: Queen’s Bench Division

There were 11,560 Queen’s Bench cases and applications received during 2010, 65% of these were made up of writs and originating summonses. These were similar to data relating to 2009, when there were 11,164 cases and applications received of which 64% were writs and originating summonses.  There has been a 4% increase in the number of writs received from 7,188 in 2009 to 7,503 in 2010 (Table B.8).

Table B.9 shows the breakdown of the amount claimed in writs and originating summonses in 2010.  The majority of writs and originating summonses were unliquidated in 2010 – 81% in 2010 compared with 84% in 2009.

There were 1,690 Queen’s Bench writs (excluding commercial actions) set down for trial during 2010 (Table B.10) compared with 1,800 the previous year, which represented a decrease of 6%.

There were 2,168 writs dealt with in court and 1,375 writs disposed of as office disposals. Actions set down as negligence constituted 48% of writs disposed of (Table B.11).   In 2009, there were 1,665 writs dealt with in court and 1,384 writs disposed of as office disposals while negligence accounted for 40% of writs disposed.

Excludes commercial actions.
[1] In Queens Bench a new practice direction came into effect 1/4/08 which set out new procedures for setting down an action for trial. An exercise was carried out to dispose of old cases which were withdrawn or settled out of court.

Of the 3,122 writs disposed of in 2010, 33% were for over £15,000 (Table B.12).  The proportion of writs disposed of that were over £15,000 in 2009 was 38% (939).

Excludes commercial actions.

Tables B.13, B.14 and B.15 show the number of commercial actions received, set-down and disposed of.  During 2010, there were 114 cases set-down compared with 62 in 2009.  In 2010, 187 cases were disposed of with 172 of these disposed of by a High Court Judge.  Comparable figures in 2009 were 118 and 107 respectively.

In 2010, the average length of time for a writ from first listing to disposal was 22 weeks (Table B.16).  In 2009, this was 20 weeks.

Excludes default judgements and office disposals.
Due to rounding and not all writs and originating summonses having a set-down date, individual time intervals may not equal the overall time taken to progress through the courts.
[2] The miscellaneous category refers to 19 cases, of which only 5 were set-down.

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Section 5: Judicial Reviews

Tables B.17 to B.19 are in relation to Judicial Reviews.  There were 80 applications for Judicial Review in 2010 compared with 105 in 2009.  There were 63 applications for leave to apply for Judicial Review granted (30%).  The proportion in 2009 for this was 34%.  Of the 92 applications for Judicial Review that were disposed in 2010, 14% were granted.  In 2009, there were 100 applications for Judicial Review and 19% of these were granted.

In 2010, the average length of time from issue to disposal of applications for Judicial Review was 32 weeks (Table B.19) which was a reduction of the 42 weeks in 2009.

Due to rounding and not all applications having a court date, individual time intervals may not equal the overall time taken to progress through the courts.

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Section 6: Probate

The number of grants of probate issued during 2010 decreased by 2% from 6,187 in 2009 to 6,090 in 2010 (Table B.20).

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Section 7: Matrimonial

The number of divorce petitions filed decreased by 2%, from 2,746 in 2009 to 2,704 in 2010 (Table B.21).  39% of the divorce petitions in 2010 were as a result of 2 years separation with consent – the equivalent figure was 41% in 2009.

Data include civil partnership petitions.

There were 1,305 decrees nisi granted in the High Court during 2010, an increase of 38% on the 948 granted during 2009. The most common ground for dissolution continued to be separation (2 years with consent) accounting for 36% of all cases in 2010 (Table B.22), a similar proportion to the 34% in 2009.

Data include civil partnership dissolutions.

Data include civil partnership dissolutions.

During 2010, there were 1,318 matrimonial applications received, a similar number to the 1,308 in 2009.  In total, 47% of applications were for ancillary relief in 2010 (Table B.24) which is a higher proportion than the 39% in 2009.

Of the 1,122 matrimonial applications disposed of during 2010, 534 (48%) were for ancillary relief (Table B.25).  The corresponding number of matrimonial applications disposed of in 2009 was 1,123 of which 495 (44%) were for ancillary relief.

The average time from the issue of a petition to the date the decree was granted was 47 weeks in 2010 (Table B.26) compared with 45 weeks in 2009.

Due to rounding, individual time intervals may not equal the overall time taken to progress through the courts.

During 2010, the average time from issue to disposal of a matrimonial application was 31 weeks which was a reduction on the 47 weeks the previous year. Applications for ancillary relief took on average 61 weeks from date of issue to date of disposal in 2010 (Table B.27) which was more than the 56 weeks in 2009.

Due to rounding, individual time intervals may not equal the overall time taken to progress through the courts.

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Section 8: Wardship and Adoption

During 2010, adoption order applications accounted for 60% of the total applications received (Table B.28) compared with 52% (64) in 2009.

Of the cases disposed in 2010, 94% were disposed of by a High Court Judge. The majority of applications disposed of (68%) were adoption order applications (Table B.29).  In 2009, 95% of cases were disposed by a High Court Judge of which 63% (75) were adoption order applications.

Ex-parte applications for occupation/non-molestation orders accounted for 82% (37) of the total number of Family Homes and Domestic Violence cases and applications received in 2010 (Table B.30).  The number of ex-parte applications was similar in 2009 at 34, but only accounted for 62%.

The Master disposed of 86% (36) of the total number of Family Homes and Domestic Violence cases and applications during 2010 compared with the 76% (48) in 2009. Table B.31 shows that 74% of all cases in 2010 were ex-parte compared with 59% (37) the previous year.

Table B.32 shows the average time in weeks for adoption and Family Homes and Domestic Violence cases and applications during 2010. It took on average 38 weeks for an adoption case from date of issue to date of disposal in 2010.  The corresponding figure for 2009 was 31 weeks.

Due to rounding, individual time intervals may not equal the overall time taken to progress through the courts.

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Section 9: Care and Protection

There were 804 patients referred to the Office of Care and Protection in 2010 for investigation under the Mental Health Order, representing a 1% increase on the 2009 total of 794 patients.  The total live caseload for 2010 was 1,583 (Table B.33) which was an increase of 6% from 1,493 the previous year.

*The office no longer counts incoming post so these two lines have been marked n/a

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Section 10: Official Solicitor’s Office

Tables B.34 and B.35 demonstrate the caseload of the Official Solicitor’s Office. There were 523 live cases relating to patients and 103 cases relating to minors in 2010.  In 2009, there were 550 live cases relating to patients and 227 live cases relating to minors.

[1] This figure is the full caseload at 28 March 2011. Of the 523 live cases – 358 are Full Controller Orders.
[2] The figure for OCP cases – OS instructed is calculated as a rolling total each quarter rather than cumulative. The figures for the 4 quarters are 22, 73, 59 and 54 and represent the full range of OCP cases in which the OS is involved during a quarter. Involvement in an OCP case may last a considerable time and therefore some of the cases may have been reflected in previous quarters and may continue to be reflected in future quarters.

Live case load only include those cases where specific actions are actively being taken to progress matters. These cases are recorded as ‘disposed of’ when the said actions have come to an end.  A minor’s case is closed when he/she reaches the age of 18 yrs.

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Section 11: Masters’ appeals

There were 68 Masters’ appeals received and 61 Masters’ appeals disposed of in 2010 (Tables B.36 and B.37).  This compares with the 56 Masters’ appeals received and the 51 Masters’ appeals disposed of in 2009.

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Section 12: High

Court Bails

There were 2,431 applications for bail in the High Court during 2010, an increase of 11% from 2,195 in 2009. Of the 1,749 applications disposed in court in 2010, 48% were granted (Tables B.38 and B.40).  In 2009, 1,656 applications were disposed in court.  Of these, 47% were granted.

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Section 13: Court sitting days and court sitting times

High Court Judges sat on a total of 2,254 court sitting days, a decrease of 6% on the 2,403 days sat during 2009.  By majority type of work, High Court Judges sat for a total 527 days hearing Queen’s Bench business and 457 in the Crown Court in 2010 (Table B.41).  In 2009, High Court Judges sat for a total of 598 days hearing Queen’s Bench business and 439 in the Crown Court.

Days are classified on the basis of the majority business undertaken.
Total court sitting time is classified on the basis of all court sitting time spent on each business area.
A court sitting day is counted as any day where the judiciary sit in court. It does not include time in chambers or days where the judiciary are sitting in chambers.

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Part C     Crown Court

The Crown Court deals with all cases committed for trial by magistrates’ courts, cases for trial are usually heard before a judge and jury.

Key facts during 2010

• 1,476 Crown Court cases were received
• 1,250 Crown Court cases were disposed of
• 1,894 defendants were committed to the Crown Court
• 1,581 were defendants disposed of
• The average time from committal to start of trial was 119 days (17 weeks)

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Section 1: Cases received and disposed of

Tables C.1 show the number of cases received in 2010.  There were 1,476 cases received in 2010 compared with 1,329 in 2009, an increase of 11%.  In 2010, there were 1,250 cases disposed of (Table C.2), a 1% increase from the 1,236 disposed of in 2009.

[1] Refers to cases to be tried under the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007.

[1] Refers to cases tried under the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007.

[1] Refers to defendants tried under the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007.

In 2010, there were 1,894 defendants committed to the Crown Court.  This was a 12% increase on the 1,686 in 2009 (Table C.3). There was a total of 1,581 defendants disposed of during 2010.  This was an increase of 2% when compared with the 1,556 defendants disposed of in 2009 (Table C.4).

[1] Refers to defendants tried under the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007.

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Section 2: Crown Court waiting times

The average waiting time between committal to start of trial was 119 days (Table C.5).  This was similar to 2009 (118 days).

Excludes defendants who had a bench warrant or deferred sentence.

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Section 3: Defendants disposed of

The majority of defendants were disposed of by a county court judge (97%) (Table C.6).  This was also the case in 2009 when 95% of defendants were disposed of by a county court judge.

In total, 41% (40% in 2009) of defendants made a plea of guilty on all charges and 18% (13% in 2009) were acquitted on all charges (Table C.8).

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Section 4: Crown Court sittings and times

There were 2,520 sittings in the Crown Court in 2010.  This was similar to the number in 2009 (2,457).  The total time spent on Crown Court business has increased by 6% from 2009.

Crown Court sittings refer to a sitting where any Crown Court business is heard.
Total Crown time includes all time spent on Crown business.
High Court Judges & county court judges sit on Crown business.
Due to rounding individual Crown Court Sitting times may not add up to the total time.

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Part D     County Court

The county court deals with civil matters including all monetary claims up to £15,000. In Northern Ireland there are seven County Court Divisions, however the court may sit in more than one venue within the Division. 

Key facts during 2010

• 3,197 appeals were disposed of
• 27 criminal damage cases were received
• 7,666 ordinary civil bill cases had Notice of Intention to Defend
• 11,930 ordinary civil bill cases were disposed of
• 13,185 small claims cases were received
• 12,248 small claims cases were disposed of
• 1,472 decrees nisi were granted

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Section 1: Appeals from magistrates’ courts

There were a total of 3,270 appeals received during 2010 (Table D.1) and 3,197 appeals disposed of in the county court during 2010 (Table D.2).

The number of appeals received in 2010 (3,270) increased from 3,133 in 2009 – an increase of 4%.

The highest number of appeals received was in the Fermanagh and Tyrone division (824) which represented 25% of cases.  In 2009, this division represented 24% of cases.

The number of appeals disposed of in 2010 (3,197) increased from 2,864 in 2009 – an increase of 12%.

The highest number of appeals disposed was in the Fermanagh and Tyrone division (851) which represented 27% of cases.  In 2009, this division represented 23% of cases.

Tables D.3 to D.5 show the result of appeals against conviction and sentence, appeals against sentence only and civil appeals. The vast majority of appeals (98%) dealt with in court in 2010 were criminal cases, and 2% were civil cases, the same proportions as 2009. Of the criminal appeals, 71% were against sentence only and 29% were against conviction and sentence in 2010.   These percentages were similar to the 70% against sentence only and the 30% against conviction and sentence in 2009.

The number of appeals against conviction and sentence increased by 6% from 2009 – 917 compared with 865.

The number of appeals against conviction and sentence in 2010 which resulted in the appeal being allowed and in an Order being varied was 352 – 38% of all appeals against conviction and sentence.  This was the same proportion as in 2009.

The number of appeals against sentence only increased by 12% from 2009 – 2,230 compared with 1,999.

The number of appeals against sentence only in 2010 which resulted in the appeal being allowed and in an Order being varied was 1,097 – 49% of all appeals against sentence only.  In 2009, the corresponding proportion was 50%.

The number of civil appeals in 2010 (50) was similar to the number of civil appeals in 2009 (49).

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Section 2: Criminal damage cases

There were 27 criminal damage cases received during 2010. Belfast accounted for 70% of all cases received. Table D.6 shows that there were 9 criminal damage applications received and Table D.7 shows that there were 44 criminal damage cases disposed of in 2010.  These data correspond to the numbers in 2009 when there were 38 criminal damage cases received and 37 cases disposed of.

Excludes default judgements, non-court disposals, and office disposals.

The average time from issue to disposal for criminal damage cases was 141 weeks in 2010.  The corresponding time interval was 115 weeks in 2009.  Caution needs to be exercised here due to the small number of cases.

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Section 3: Licences

There were 210 licence applications received in the county court in 2010.  This was a decrease of 26% from the 285 licences disposed of in 2009.

In 2010, 213 licence applications were disposed of, a decrease of 23% from the previous year (278).

Belfast division accounted for 35% of licences received and 35% of licences disposed of in 2010.

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Section 4: Ordinary civil bills

There were 14,489 ordinary civil bill cases received in 2010. There were also 5,676 applications received during the same period.  The data here are similar to those of 2009, when there were 14,669 cases received and 5,382 applications received - the number of cases decreased by 1% and the number of applications increased by 5%.

Belfast received 64% of ordinary civil bill cases compared with 5% in Armagh and South Down.

The number of ordinary civil bill cases where Notices of Intention to Defend were received rose from 7,331 in 2009 to 7,666 in 2010, representing a 5% increase in business (Table D.11).

The number of cases disposed of increased by 7%, from 11,101 cases in 2009 compared with 11,930 in 2010. Of the ordinary civil bill cases disposed of in 2010, 24% were default judgements. A further 20% were disposed of at district judge level compared with 31% disposed of at county court judge level (Table D.12).

CCJ and DJ split based on the judicial level assigned to the final sitting date, ie CCJ will include DJ sitting as a DCCJ.

Table D.13 shows the amount awarded for ordinary civil bills during 2010. Just over a quarter of civil bills (26%) were awarded between £1000-2999.  This compares with the 24% in 2009.

Excludes cases that were adjourned generally, withdrawn, dismissed, default judgements or had office disposals.

On average, it took 46 weeks from date of issue to date of disposal for civil bill cases to progress through the county court in 2010 (Table D.14).  This compares with the 47 weeks the previous year.

Excludes default judgements, non-court disposals, office disposals and cases dealt with by the Civil Processing Centre.

Excludes default judgements, non-court disposals, office disposals and cases dealt with by the Civil Processing Centre.

The average time interval in weeks for civil bill applications disposed of in 2010 was 8 weeks, the same length of time for applications disposed of in 2009.

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Section 5: Equity

There were 190 equity cases, a decrease of 14% from 2009 (221 equity cases) and 89 equity applications received during 2010, a decrease of 28% from 2009 (123 equity applications).

Table D.17 shows that there were 209 equity cases disposed of in 2010 which is similar to the 217 cases disposed of in 2009. The majority of equity cases were disposed of in court (89%).   88% of cases were disposed of in court in 2009.

Table D.18 shows the time intervals for equity cases and applications from date of issue to date of disposal for each county court division. On average, for cases disposed of during 2010, it took 81 weeks for an equity case to progress through the county courts.  In 2009, the corresponding figure was 67 weeks.

Excludes default judgements, non-court disposals, and office disposals.

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Section 6: Ejectment

There were 933 ejectment cases received during 2010 compared with 1,026 in 2009 – a decrease of 9% (Table D.19).

41% of ejectment cases were received in Belfast in 2010 compared with 45% the previous year.

In 2010, there were 723 ejectment cases disposed of in the county court compared with 793 the previous year – a decrease of 9% (Table D.20). The majority of ejectment cases were disposed of in court – 94% of cases in 2010 and 97% of cases in 2009.

Table D.21 shows the average time in weeks for ejectment cases to progress through the courts during 2010. On average, it took 18 weeks for a case from date of issue to date of disposal in 2010.  The corresponding time in 2009 was 15 weeks.

Excludes default judgements, non-court disposals, and office disposals.

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Section 7: Small claims

Table D.22 shows that the number of small claims cases received was 13,185 in 2010, a decrease of 5% from 13,839 in 2009.  There were 375 applications received in small claims during 2010 compared with 391 in 2009 – a decrease of 4%.

In 2010, there were 1,884 small claims cases with a Notice of Dispute received which was a decrease of 4% from the previous year (1,962). 

In total, 12,248 small claims cases were disposed of in 2010. This was a small increase of less than 1% on the 12,167 cases disposed of during 2009 (Table D.24).

Table D.25 shows that during 2010, it took on average 44 weeks for a small claims case to progress from date of issue to date of disposal.  The corresponding figure for 2009 was 21 weeks.  Part of this increase can be attributed to the disposal of over 400 cases relating to unfair bank charges.

Excludes default judgements, non-court disposals, office disposals and cases dealt with by the Civil Processing Centre.

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Section 8: Divorce cases

There were 1,472 decrees nisi granted in undefended divorce cases in the county court in 2010 (Table D.26). The number of decrees nisi granted has increased by 12% from 1,315 in 2009.

In 2010, there were 1,481 decrees absolute issued compared with 1,265 the previous year – an increase of 17%.

Tables D.28 and D.29 show that there were 293 matrimonial applications received and 165 disposed of during 2010.   Comparable figures in 2009 were 342 and 228 respectively.

County court divorce petitions took on average 32 weeks from date of issue to the date decree nisi granted in 2010 compared with 35 weeks in 2009. Divorce applications took on average 48 weeks to progress through the county courts during 2010 – the same timeframe as in 2009.

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Section 9: Court sitting days and court sitting times

Table D.32 shows that there were 3,965 court sitting days in 2010.  This is similar to the 3,954 court sitting days in 2009.

55% of the county court judges and district judges sitting time was spent on criminal cases, 33% of time was spent on civil cases and 12% of time was spent on family cases in 2010.  In 2009, the proportion of time spent on each of these court areas was 53%, 37% and 11% respectively.

A court sitting day is counted as any day where the judiciary sit in court. It does not include time in chambers or days where the judiciary are sitting in chambers.

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Part E     Magistrates’ Court

The magistrates’ court hears and determines less serious criminal cases, cases involving youth and some civil and domestic cases including family proceedings.

Key facts during 2010

• 52,513 adult criminal defendants were disposed of
• 3,326 youth criminal defendants were disposed of
• 5,383 civil applications were disposed of
• The average waiting time between 1st hearing and disposal for adult criminal cases was 7 weeks
• The average waiting time between 1st hearing and finding for youth criminal cases was 8 weeks

With effect from 30 August 2005 the jurisdiction of the youth court was extended to include 17 year olds.

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Section 1: Business volumes received in the magistrates’ court

In 2010, there were 54,253 adult defendants received, which represents a 1% increase from the 53,815 received in 2009. In the youth court, there were 3,409 defendants received, an 11% increase from the 3,067 received in 2009 (Table E.1).

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Section 2: Adult criminal business disposed of

There were 52,513 defendants disposed of in 2010, a decrease of 1% from the 52,990 disposed of in 2009.  Belfast accounted for 29% of the business; in contrast, Londonderry division disposed of 10% of adult defendants (Table E.2).  Corresponding figures for 2009 were 27% and 11% respectively.

Due to rounding, percentages may not add up to 100%.

Table E.3 shows the types of charges disposed of in 2010. In total, there were 107,580 charges disposed of, which is a decrease of 1% from 108,496 in 2009.  PSNI/PPS prosecutions accounted for 85% of charges in 2010 compared with 83% (90,067) in 2009.

Figures are based on the number of charges disposed.
The class on ICOS is based on the police classification.  Major & minor motoring charges have been counted in either summary, indictable, indictable triable summarily or hybrid.

Table E.4 shows the outcomes of defendants disposed of in 2010.  39% of defendants pleaded guilty on all charges compared with 37% in 2009.

Figures are based on the number of final orders.

Table E.5 shows there were 145,173 final orders granted in the magistrates’ adult court in 2010, an increase of 2% from 141,792 in 2009.

Figures are based on the number of final orders.

The average waiting time in Northern Ireland for defendants disposed of in 2010 between the date of summons and the date of first hearing was 6 weeks (8 weeks in 2009). The waiting time between the date of first hearing and disposal averaged 7 weeks (Table E.6).  This was the same as in 2009.

Bench warrants, adjourned generally and deferred sentences are excluded.

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Section 3: Youth criminal business disposed of

In 2010, there were 3,326 youth defendants disposed of with 33% in Belfast and 6% in Armagh and South Down (Table E.7).  This represents a 6% increase from 2009 (3,129) when 31% were disposed of in Belfast and 7% in Armagh and South Down.

Due to rounding, percentages may not add up to 100%.

Table E.8 shows the types of charges disposed of in 2010 for youth defendants. In total, there were 6,953 charges disposed of in 2010.  This represents a 2% increase from 7,096 charges disposed in 2009.

Figures are based on the number of charges disposed.

The class on ICOS is based on the police classification.  Major & minor motoring charges have been counted in either summary, indictable, indictable triable summarily or hybrid.

Table E.9 shows the outcomes for youth defendants disposed of in 2010.  40% of youth defendants pleaded guilty on all charges.  This was the same proportion as in 2009.

Figures are based on the number of defendants disposed.

Table E.10 shows there were 8,748 final orders granted in the magistrates’ youth court in 2010.  This represents a 4% increase from 8,418 granted in 2009.

Figures are based on the number of final orders.

Table E.11 shows the average waiting time in Northern Ireland for youth defendants disposed of in the youth courts in 2010.  The average waiting time between the date of summons to the date of first hearing in 2010 was 4 weeks (6 weeks in 2009).  The average waiting time between the date of first hearing and finding was 8 weeks (8 weeks in 2009).   The average waiting time from date of first hearing to date of disposal was 11 weeks (12 weeks in 2009).

Bench warrants, adjourned generally, deferred sentences and youth monitored cases are excluded.

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Section 4: Civil & Family busi

ness disposed of

There were 5,383 applications disposed of during 2010 (Table E.12).  This represents a 10% decrease from 5,962 applications disposed of in 2009.

The average waiting time for Northern Ireland in the civil and family magistrates’ court from the date of issue to first hearing was 2 weeks (same as in 2009). The average waiting time from the date of first hearing to disposal was 6 weeks (Table E.13).  This was also the same as in 2009.

There were 4,802 applications under the Family Homes and Domestic Violence Order disposed of in 2010 (Table E.14), an 8% decrease from the 5,246 disposed of in 2009
 The majority of applications were granted (59%) in 2010.  This proportion was 61% (3,177) the previous year.

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Section 5: Court sittings and court sitting times

Tables E.15 and E.16 show the number of scheduled, additional and special court sittings and court sitting times in the magistrates’ court in 2010.  There were 4,804 scheduled and additional court sittings in the magistrates’ court, an increase of 1% from 4,780 additional court sittings in 2009.  The average court sitting time was 3 hours 41 minutes compared with 3 hours 35 minutes in 2009.  The average court sitting time for special courts was 45 minutes compared with 41 minutes in 2009.

A court sitting day is counted as any day where the judiciary sit in court. It does not include time in chambers or days where the judiciary are sitting in chambers.

A court sitting day is counted as any day where the judiciary sit in court. It does not include time in chambers or days where the judiciary are sitting in chambers.

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Part F     Children Order

Children Order business is conducted before the family proceedings courts, the family care centres and the High Court.

Key facts during 2010

• 5,430 total applications were lodged
• 4,686 total applications were disposed of
• 5,959 children were involved
• 12,252 final orders were made
• 1,855 Children Order court sitting days with an average time of 2hrs 28mins

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Section 1: Applications entered and disposed of

Tables F.1 and F.2 show that a total of 5,430 applications were received in designated courts in 2010.  This was an increase of 22% from 4,452 in 2009.  The majority of business (93%) was lodged in family proceedings courts, with 5% lodged in the High Court and 3% lodged in family care centres.  In 2009, 93% of business was lodged in family proceedings courts, 4% in the High Court and 4% lodged in family care centres.

Of the 4,686 applications disposed of in 2010, the High Court accounted for 5% of all business dealt with, care centres accounted for 8% and family proceedings / magistrates’ court accounted for 86%.  These figures were 5%, 7% and 87% respectively in 2009.  The total number of applications disposed of in 2010 increased 30% compared with 2009 (3,606).

[1]Public law = care, supervision, child assessment, education supervision, emergency protection orders, extensions, contact with children in care, secure accommodation.
[2]Private law = residence, contact, specific issues, prohibited steps, parental responsibility, financial contribution, guardianship, family assistance, non-molestation and occupation orders.