Creation Of New Business And Property Division Of The High Court Announced

The new Division will replace the Chancery Division and include the Commercial Court and other key business courts.

The Lady Chief Justice and the Lord Chancellor have today announced that a new Business and Property Division will be created, with the aim of modernising the structure of the High Court. The new Division will be led by the current Chancellor of the High Court, Sir Colin Birss, who will assume the title of President of the Business and Property Division.

Currently, the Business and Property Courts comprise the Chancery Division as well as the Commercial Court and the Technology and Construction Court, which form part of the King's Bench Division, and the Financial List, which is jointly operated by the two Divisions. All of the Business and Property Courts will become part of the new Business and Property Division.

The reforms are aimed at strengthening the international reputation of the Business and Property Courts, making it easier for court users to understand where to bring their cases, simplifying governance arrangements and supporting flexible judicial deployment. 

The announcement states, however, that 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. We will have to wait and see to what extent existing procedures are streamlined, including for example whether the separate court guides will be further aligned or amalgamated.

The intended reforms were trailed back in April in press reports based on draft documents but are now official, subject to the making of an Order in Council. It is intended that the new Division will be established early in the next legal year, which begins on 1 October 2026.

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