Independent report

Civil court users survey: feasibility study report

A Government Social Research (GSR) report for a feasibility study of a civil court users survey.

• From: Ministry of Justice
• Published: 22 January 2026

Applies to England and Wales

Documents

Civil court user survey feasibility study

PDF, 2.06 MB, 151 pages

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Details

In December 2024, MOJ commissioned Ipsos to conduct a feasibility study for a survey of civil court users. The aim of this feasibility study was to assess whether a full-scale survey of county court users could be developed to collect important data on the monetary and non-monetary impacts of having a civil legal problem. This study involved a literature review of relevant surveys, exploration of management information held within HMCTS, a small number of cognitive interviews with civil court users and a small-scale test survey.

Overall, the study findings indicated that a full-scale survey of county court users was feasible with some modifications to the feasibility study design.

The report sets out recommendations for how to design such a survey to best fill evidence gaps around civil court users.

Published 22 January 2026