The Commercial Court is under pressure because of the number of judges needed to hear criminal cases - and terrorist trials in particular.


The court's annual report, published last week, revealed that it has been managing on fewer judges than it needs. A review of judicial resources by Lord Justice May had previously concluded that a case could be made for the court needing ten High Court judges but having fewer than nine would be 'plainly too few'.



However, the report said, 'the demands of other work, in particular crime both at first instance and on appeal, have resulted in the court having to survive with only eight judges from time to time'.



Mr Justice Steel, judge in charge of the Commercial Court, told the Gazette that this picture looks unlikely to change. The court has managed to keep lead times down to a satisfactory level, he said, but that it has not been easy.



The judge said those in charge of the Commercial Court 'are making it plain that we need to have nine'. The court will also need new recruits at the end of 2007, he said.



The situation is not helped by an increase in claim forms in 2006, up nearly 30%, nor by a continuous increase in the number of cases lasting longer than four weeks - up from four in 2003 to 11 in 2006, out of 75 trials.



The report also attacked comments last summer by the governor of the Bank of England, who blamed the court for the high cost of the BCCI case. 'Despite the criticism, it was a source of satisfaction to the court that both claims had in fact been struck out at first instance by a judge of this court and only restored on appeal [after which the claim was discontinued].'



Rupert White