6. What representations has the Counsel General made to the UK Government regarding the impact on Wales of the proposed changes to the civil litigation and small claims courts? OAQ(5)0008(CG)

Thank you for the question. We continue to make representations. The proposed changes to civil litigation and small claims are likely to have serious impacts on people across Wales, and we are continuing to challenge the UK Government on reforms that restrict access to justice.

Thank you for that response. Do you, Counsel General, agree with me that this is a further step in restricting ordinary people’s rights and access to justice through the courts system?

The simple answer to that is ‘yes’. I’ll elaborate on it to the extent that we continue to make representations to the Ministry of Justice about its raft of reforms to the justice system to ensure that access to justice is available for everyone in society, including the most vulnerable. We have serious concerns about the quality of the evidence provided by the Ministry of Justice in support of its proposals to reform the process for soft tissue injury whiplash claims, which it is currently consulting on. Of course, last week, ‘The Law Society Gazette’ reported that data in the consultation paper was, in fact, out of date and could be potentially open to judicial review. So, we are pressing the UK Government to emphasise to it the importance of ensuring that the rights of all people are protected.

One of our concerns is that the proposal to increase the small claims limit from £1,000 to £5,000 would prevent many people who have suffered injury, losing the right to free legal advice. We are concerned about how robust the supporting evidence is. We’re also concerned about the basis on which this is pressing ahead, because one of the objectives with regard to the whiplash soft tissue injury aspect is to provide a cap on damages of £450, which is well below the existing small claims limit. So, if that was the objective, one would ask why this is actually taking place. Well, you have to look at it to see a more general direction that’s being taken, and that is to increase the small claims limit. One would ask why that is taking place and for whose benefit. What seemed to me to be very clear is that the insurance industry lobby is extremely powerful and is effectively promoting a series of reforms. The UK Government is consulting on those reforms. I would have to say that this is a battle that has been going on for a number of decades. Every reform that takes place results in injured people receiving less access to justice and the insurance industry increasing their profits. I have not yet seen a situation where there has been a reform that has reduced damages and has actually led to any reductions in insurance industry premiums. I think that is a concern if that is the potential outcome of these reforms. So, as I say, there is a consultation under way. The Welsh Government will be responding and we will be giving considerable thought to the content of that response to the consultation process.