Online Procedure Rules (Specified Proceedings) Regulations 2025

Monday 17th March 2025 Grand Committee

Considered in Grand Committee

17:54

Moved by

[Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede]

That the Grand Committee do consider the Online Procedure Rules (Specified Proceedings) Regulations 2025.

Relevant document: 18th Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede) (Lab)]

My Lords, this instrument will specify proceedings for which the Online Procedure Rule Committee can make rules. The OPRC, established under the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022, aims to modernise the civil, family and tribunal jurisdictions by developing rules governing the practice and procedure for specific types of online court and tribunal proceedings. These rules are intended to be simple, accessible and fair. They will streamline online processes and enhance the overall efficiency of the system. The OPRC cannot make any online procedure rules until the proceedings are specified in regulations.

I shall explain the proceedings for which this SI will allow the OPRC to make rules. In the civil jurisdiction, the OPRC will be able to make online procedure rules for property proceedings. The Ministry of Justice and HM Courts and Tribunal Service are working closely with MHCLG to ensure that the justice system is fully prepared for the implementation of the Renters’ Rights Bill. As part of this, HMCTS will digitise the court process for landlords to regain possession of their property, introducing a digital service for both landlords and tenants. Procedure rules will be required to allow use of this service. Parliamentary approval of the statutory instrument will enable the OPRC to make these rules. The digital service, and the rules, will reflect the renters’ rights measures as and when they are brought into force. The introduction of the digital service, and the rules which underpin it, are not, however, tied to the timelines for bringing the measures in the Renters’ Rights Bill into force. The OPRC will also be able to make online procedure rules for property proceedings in the First-tier and Upper Tribunal. This will allow certain cases currently dealt with by the Property Chamber or the Lands Chamber to be included in online procedure rules as and when HMCTS introduces digital systems that mean that those cases are managed online.

In the family jurisdiction, the OPRC will be able to make rules for financial remedies. This will include contested financial remedies and financial consent orders, for example, following a divorce. Online procedure rules for these proceedings will be designed to support the existing online services provided by HMCTS, which are currently governed by practice directions made by the Family Procedure Rule Committee.

The extent of this instrument is UK-wide. Its territorial application is England and Wales in respect of civil and family proceedings and UK-wide in respect of tribunal proceedings.

We believe that the digitisation of court and tribunal processes requires the development of procedure rules that are suitable for the digital age. They must be concise and straightforward to understand. They must support HMCTS and the judiciary to deliver online processes and keep adapting to advances in technology. These aims will be met by the transfer of these specified proceedings to the OPRC, a cross-jurisdictional rule committee whose members include experts in the law and in the development of user-focused digital services. I beg to move.

[Lord Marks of Henley-on-Thames (LD)]

My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for his helpful introduction to these proposed regulations. We on these Benches support the introduction of digital procedures, certainly where they can be introduced without any adverse impact on the fairness, transparency and user-friendliness of the procedures as a whole. We agree that digital procedures have the potential to streamline court proceedings, cut delay and costs and, to use the Minister’s words, produce a straightforward and concise procedure that will be more accessible. We supported the introduction of online procedures when the Judicial Review and Courts Act was debated in the House in 2022.

We also welcome the introduction of the Online Procedure Rules Committee. It can only be helpful to have a specialist committee to establish rules for online procedures across several fields. There will be scope for cross-fertilisation between different areas utilising the various digital skills that are available for the development of sets of rules in different fields, and that can only be of considerable advantage.

18:00

I have one caveat and one question. The caveat is that, as we made clear in 2022, our support for the development of online procedures was on the basis that access to courts would not be adversely affected for those who are often termed “the digitally disadvantaged”. By that, we mean: first, those who are, for whatever reason, not skilled with computers and working online; secondly, those who simply cannot afford computer equipment or otherwise do not have access to it; and, thirdly, those who still do not have access to fast or effective broadband—far too many people, in our view—and so are unable to access these procedures.

We asked for and obtained assurances from the previous Administration that paper proceedings would still be available where online procedure rules were introduced. I am pleased to note that paragraph 5.4 of the Explanatory Memorandum makes it clear that, in relation to the digital possession service that the Minister mentioned, paper routes will still be available. However, this SI is wider than simply the digital possession service, as the Minister pointed out. It is to apply to First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal property proceedings, when funding and digital developments allow, and will also apply to financial remedies in family proceedings. So we seek an assurance that paper proceedings will still be possible in those other areas when online procedure rules are made specifically for them.

I am bound to say that I take it from the Explanatory Memorandum that that is the case. Paragraphs 5.5 to 5.8 make it clear that the Civil Procedure Rule Committee, the Family Procedure Rule Committee and the Tribunal Procedure Committee will still have power to make rules. I rather infer that the expectation is that they will continue to make rules and that such rules will apply to paper proceedings and will, therefore, enable paper proceedings to be followed by such people as may be digitally disadvantaged in those areas.

Subject to seeking that assurance and that caveat for the future, we support these proposed regulations.

[Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord for his support. I am able to give him the assurances that he is looking for. He is right to say that the OPRC will continue to make rules as the use of digitisation in the court system continues to develop. The point that he made about cross-fertilisation between different areas and different jurisdictions was a good one; the committee will continue to work on that basis.

The noble Lord sought assurance on access to the courts for people who are adversely affected in whatever way. I am happy to give him that assurance, whether it be through paper or through other ways of supporting people to access the court system. This is an issue that I absolutely recognise through my former work in the court system.

I hope that, through my earlier introduction, I have been able to demonstrate the fundamental aim of this instrument, which is primarily to grant the OPRC rule-making powers in civil proceedings in England and Wales relating to property, family proceedings in England and Wales relating to financial remedies and First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal proceedings relating to property. This instrument will define those proceedings, enabling the OPRC to achieve its objective to advance the modernisation of the civil, family and tribunal justice systems.

Motion agreed.