Justice Secretary (): The Government is pleased to
support a judiciary-led initiative to modernise the structure of
the High Court through the establishment of a new Business and
Property Division. This historic modernisation will ensure the UK
remains a global hub for corporate litigation.
It will bring together the current Business and Property Courts
into a single division, which will replace the Chancery Division.
The Business and Property Courts are a collection of specialist
civil courts which deal with high-value, complex disputes,
including commercial, business, property, technology and
intellectual property cases. These courts play a significant role
in supporting the UK's legal services sector and wider economy,
with a substantial proportion of cases involving international
parties.
At present, these courts are situated across both the Chancery
Division and the King's Bench Division. This arrangement can
create challenges for users in navigating the system and leads to
overlapping governance responsibilities.
Relevant Business and Property Courts will be transferred into
the Chancery Division, which will be renamed the Business and
Property Division. Leadership of the new Division will rest with
the current Chancellor of the High Court, who will assume the
title of President of the Business and Property Division.
The new Business and Property Division will stand alongside the
King's Bench and Family Divisions of the High Court. The
individual courts and lists that make up the new Division will
continue their work as they do now, keeping their existing
jurisdictions, identities and areas of expertise.
This reform is intended to deliver a number of benefits:
- Supporting economic growth by strengthening the international
profile and accessibility of these courts, thereby reinforcing
the UK's position as a leading global dispute resolution centre;
- Improving access to justice through clearer structures and a
more intuitive framework for domestic and international court
users; and
- Strengthening judicial governance by providing a single point
of leadership
Changes will be made through an Order in Council which will be
laid in Parliament in due course, alongside updates to the Civil
Procedure Rules, Practice Directions, and associated court
materials.
Further updates will be provided to the House as this work
progresses.
