A new ERCS briefing dismantles arguments made against establishing a Scottish Environment Court on the ground of costs, showing how a dedicated environmental court or tribunal could deliver efficiency savings by reducing fragmentation, providing simpler and faster routes to remedy, and improving administrative efficiencies.
It highlights the opportunities of offering innovative Alternative Dispute Resolution such as mediation and negotiation, and of reducing the likelihood that unresolved minor disputes end up as lengthy judicial review challenges and delay permissible development.
While recognising the difficulties of providing an exact cost of establishing an environmental court, the briefing draws on existing comparable courts and tribunals to provide a benchmark for calculating the financial implications of a new dedicated institution.
Freedom of Information data obtained by ERCS shows how other recently established or planned specialist courts in Scotland, such as the Personal Injuries Court and proposed Sexual Offences Court, have incurred costs that are modest in relation to the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service 2023/4 budget of £197.5m.
Header image: Court of Session in Edinburgh by Magnus Hagdorn, licenced under CC BY-SA 2.0, edited.
