Her Majesty's Courts Service (HMCS) was an
executive agency
An executive agency is a part of a government department that is treated as managerially and budgetarily separate, to carry out some part of the executive functions of the United Kingdom government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government or No ...
of the
Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and was responsible for the
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people.
** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...
of the civil, family and criminal courts in
England and Wales
England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...
.
It was created by the amalgamation of the Magistrates' Courts Service and the Court Service as a result of the Unified Courts Administration Programme. It came into being on 1 April 2005, bringing together the Magistrates' Courts Service and the Courts Service into a single organisation. On 1 April 2011 it merged with the
Tribunals Service to form
Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (from 8 September 2022 His Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service).
HMCS structure
Her Majesty's Courts Service carried out the administration and support for the
Court of Appeal
An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...
, the
High Court, the
Crown Court
The Crown Court is the criminal trial court, court of first instance in England and Wales responsible for hearing all indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals of the decisions of magistrates' courts. It is ...
, the
magistrates' court
A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several Jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings.
Courts
* Magistrates' court (England and Wales) ...
s, the
County Court and the Probate Service in
England and Wales
England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...
.
When established court services were administered by seven regions responsible for 42 local areas. In 2007 this structure was re-organised by reducing the number of areas to 24. The areas are managed by area directors, responsible for the delivery of local services. They work in partnership with
courts boards to ensure that the Agency is focussed on its customers and is meeting local needs.
Unified Courts Administration Programme
The Government
White Paper
A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. Since the 199 ...
"Justice for all", published in 2002, recommended that a single agency should be developed to support the delivery of justice in all courts in
England and Wales
England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...
, instead of the magistrates' courts and the Court Service being administered separately.
The Courts Act 2003 created the legal framework required to make the changes. The focus of the programme was to devise a system which would offer improved and consistent services to court users by providing:
* A single national agency solely responsible for the delivery of court services with improved and more consistent level of service to court users
* More resources available to support the delivery of justice
* Greater flexibility in the use of court buildings.
On 31 March 2005, responsibility for the 42 existing
magistrates' courts committees and Court Service passed to Her Majesty’s Courts Service.
See also
*
Departments of the United Kingdom Government
The Government of the United Kingdom is divided into departments that each have responsibility, according to the government, for putting government policy into practice. There are currently 24 ministerial departments, 20 non-ministerial departm ...
*
Courts of England and Wales
*
List of Courts in England and Wales
*
Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service
*
Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service
The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) () is an independent Public bodies of the Scottish Government, public body which is responsible for the administration of the Courts of Scotland, courts and tribunals of Scotland. The Service is ...
External links
HM Courts and Tribunals Service (England and Wales)
{{Authority control
Defunct executive agencies of the United Kingdom government
Legal organisations based in England and Wales
2005 establishments in the United Kingdom
Government agencies disestablished in 2011
Court administration