The UK legal landscape is undergoing a profound transformation, and the Online Procedure Rule Committee (OPRC) is a major part of it. Established under the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022, the OPRC's mandate is to create rules for online court and tribunal proceedings across the civil, family, and tribunal jurisdictions.
The OPRC aims to enhance the experience for online users by promoting an integrated digital system, alongside the strategic use of artificial intelligence. The potential for AI to improve the justice system, leading to swifter, fairer and more accessible opportunities is huge. A particular benefit is the potential to reduce court backlogs. According to Gov UK’s Justice in Numbers pocketbook, in the three months to March 2025, there were 344,994 magistrates' court disposals and 27,950 Crown Court disposals, with just 30% of Crown Court trials labelled as ‘cracked trials’ (Ministry of Justice: Justice in numbers pocketbook). Further, at the end of March 2025, the prison population was approximately 87,919. These numbers demonstrate the immense volume of cases that the justice system must handle. The move to a more efficient digital system is not a luxury; it's a necessity to manage this workload effectively.
However, the changes are not just about digitising existing processes; it's about fundamentally reshaping the way justice is accessed and administered. The OPRC's review, particularly its recent ‘Inclusion framework and pre-action model’, signals a new era for legal practice. For lawyers, this presents a significant challenge and an unprecedented opportunity.
The OPRC's mandate and vision
The OPRC's vision is to build an integrated digital justice system that is "accessible to everyone, easier for everyone to use, capable of delivering justice more quickly, and, of course, transparent and trusted” (Legal futures: OPRC consults on inclusion framework and pre-action model). This goal is being pursued through two key initiatives: an inclusion framework and a pre-action model.
The inclusion framework sets out design principles and standards to ensure all users, especially those at risk of exclusion, can engage with digital justice services. It focuses on user-centered design, plain language, and robust data collection to measure inclusion outcomes. For lawyers, this means a new focus on accessibility. It's no longer enough to simply file a document online; the process itself must be understandable and navigable for a diverse range of clients, including those with limited digital literacy or disabilities. This will require law firms to re-evaluate their client communication strategies and potentially invest in new tools and training to ensure their services align with these new standards.
The pre-action model, on the other hand, aims to standardise the landscape of online pre-court dispute resolution services. It “encourages providers to adopt and follow principles and standards in the pre-action space that are consistent with those applied to online court-based dispute resolution” (Legal futures: OPRC consults on inclusion framework and pre-action model). It outlines guidance for online legal information, advice, and dispute-resolution services to promote early, fair, and efficient resolution of disputes outside of court.
The OPRC’s goal is to create a seamless, end-to-end digital journey, where data can be easily transferred from a pre-court online service into the court system if a dispute is not resolved. This shift places a new emphasis on the pre-action space. Lawyers will need to become experts in a new ecosystem of online dispute resolution platforms and services. Moving forward, they will be required to understand the rules and data standards that govern these platforms and be able to effectively guide clients through them.
What does this mean for legal practice?
The OPRC's work will have a multi-faceted impact on how lawyers practice law. The changes will affect everything from case management and client interaction to business models and professional development. We delve into some of the key implications and changes that lawyers need to be aware of in our analysis below.
Navigating a new digital landscape
The most immediate impact for lawyers is the need to understand and adapt to a new digital ecosystem. The OPRC is developing rules and guidance that will govern how online proceedings are conducted, so it will be essential for lawyers to be proactive in understanding these new rules. This will be “the first time the OPRC would set out the basic rules which would, in time, apply to all online proceedings” (Online Procedure Rule Committee: Minutes from May 12 2025 meeting).
This is not just about using new software, it’s about embracing a new philosophy of justice delivery. A 2025 Ministry of Justice report highlighted the success of early digital adoption, with millions of digital transactions completed through various apps. These trends indicate that a significant portion of legal work is already moving online, and lawyers who resist this shift will be left behind. The report further noted that over 4.1 million cases have been processed digitally since April 2019, demonstrating the scale of the change.
The rise of the "Pre-Action" specialist
The OPRC's focus on the pre-action space presents a unique opportunity for lawyers to develop new skills and solutions. With the goal of resolving disputes before they reach the courts, lawyers who can effectively navigate online dispute resolution (ODR) platforms and guide clients through pre-action protocols will have a distinct competitive advantage. This could lead to a rise in a new type of legal specialist: the digital dispute resolution practitioner. These lawyers would not only have expertise in a specific area of law but also in new technology and ODR processes.
Rethinking the client relationship
The OPRC's inclusion framework places a strong emphasis on user-centered design and accessibility. This means that lawyers must reconsider how they communicate with and serve their clients. With the days of legal jargon and complex paperwork numbered, the new digital justice system further promotes the use of plain language and the use of intuitive interfaces. Lawyers who can adapt their communication styles and provide clear, accessible guidance will be better positioned to serve a wider client base and build stronger relationships. This shift also presents an opportunity to streamline processes, automate routine tasks, and focus on higher-value advisory work.
The role of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The OPRC's work is closely linked to the broader adoption of AI in the justice system. The government's ‘AI action plan for justice’ policy published in July 2025, details the plan to embed AI across justice services. The plan, developed in collaboration with the OPRC, aims to use AI to "[reduce] administrative burden with secure AI productivity tools including search, speech and document processing” and “[support] better decisions through predictive and risk-assessment models” (Gov.UK: AI action plan for justice).
While the plan emphasises that the human element remains critical in all judicial work, lawyers should expect to see AI tools becoming more commonplace in their practice. These tools could automate document review, case summarisation, and other routine tasks, freeing up lawyers to focus on strategic and client-facing activities. Lawyers who embrace these technologies will be more efficient and productive, while those who resist are likely to find themselves at a disadvantage.
The OPRC's work represents a pivotal movement for the legal profession. Its focus on an inclusive and integrated digital justice system will fundamentally alter the way lawyers operate. For law firms, this means a need to adapt and evolve, embracing new technologies and business models, and for lawyers a requirement to become proficient in a new, end-to-end digital ecosystem. The challenges are real, but the opportunities for those who are willing to innovate are even greater. The future of law is digital, and the OPRC is setting the rules for the road ahead.
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