9.Court boundaries for the county courts and the magistrates’ courts have historically been based upon local government districts. Under the current court boundaries model, there are limitations on the ability to manage the distribution of court business and so provide the best service to court users and ensure the most efficient use of judicial time and court resources.
10.Part 1 of the Act creates a single territorial jurisdiction in Northern Ireland for the county courts and magistrates’ courts, similar to that which already exists for the High Court, Crown Court and Coroners Service, to allow greater flexibility in the distribution of court business by allowing cases to be listed in, or transferred to, an alternative court division where there is good reason for doing so.