Courts service accused of taking “several years” to react to IT bug that caused evidence to go missing

According to the BBC, sources within the courts service say that as a result, judges in civil, family and tribunal courts will have made rulings on cases when “evidence was incomplete”.

However, HMTCS has said an internal investigation found “no evidence” that any case outcomes were affected as a result of the technical issues.

The internal report, leaked to the BBC, said HMCTS did not know the full extent of the data corruption, including whether or how it had impacted cases, as it had not undertaken a “comprehensive” investigation.

The report also found judges and lawyers had not been informed, as HMCTS management decided it would be "more likely to cause more harm than good".

The IT bug was found in case-management software used by HMCTS, the Ministry of Justice agency which administers many courts in England and Wales, and tribunals across the UK.

The software - known as ‘Judicial Case Manager’, ‘MyHMCTS’ or ‘CCD’ - is used to manage evidence and track cases before the courts.

However, documents seen by the BBC suggest it caused data to be obscured from view, meaning medical records, contact details and other evidence were sometimes not visible as part of case files used in court.

The BBC reported that in the family courts, a different IT flaw caused thousands of documents to go missing.

In one instance, it was claimed a fault caused more than 4,000 documents to go missing from hundreds of public family law cases - including child protection cases.

HMCTS declined to comment further on this.

Responding to the leaked report, Bar Council Chair Barbara Mills KC said: “We’re alarmed by the news that this bug may have caused miscarriages of justice. We need an urgent and comprehensive investigation to establish any potential impact on case outcomes and particularly whether emergency child protection cases have been affected.

“This is just the latest in a series of issues with the courts’ IT systems which it’s now apparent are affecting the entire justice sector due to lack of investment.

“[…] The Ministry of Justice should undertake an audit of all its IT systems so that any problems can be proactively identified and addressed rather sticking plasters being used as and when these issues come to light.”

She added: “If there was a bug in an NHS system which resulted in people being given incorrect diagnoses or in the education system meaning people received the wrong exam results, it would be fixed immediately. Justice is a vital public service and the decisions made in the system can have just as significant an impact on people’s lives. Our IT systems must be fit for purpose before they are implemented.”

A HMCTS spokesperson said: “The digitisation of our systems is vital to bring courts and tribunals into the modern era and provide quicker, simpler access to justice for all those who use our services. We will continue to press ahead with our important modernisation."

Lottie Winson