A response by FOIL to the DOJ’s consultation on increasing the general civil jurisdiction of the county courts in Northern Ireland

• FOIL
• FOIL Northern Ireland

FOIL is fully supportive of reform to the current civil justice system in Northern Ireland. It is vital that the system is keep under review and its processes changed to reflect learning from the current system and from other jurisdictions; the needs of society; and technological developments. This is more important than ever in the light of the pandemic, which has provided both an insight into the potential for reform and created significant challenges arising from the need to ensure a safe environment for court users and, in the longer term, from inevitable budget constraints within the public sector.