by Nick Holmes on November 29, 2012 On 20 November Lord
Neuberger, President of the Supreme Court, delivered the First
Annual BAILII Lecture, entitled No Judgment – No Justice (PDF)
in which he dealt with three important aspects of improving
access to justice through improved access to judgments: their
clarity, free dissemination and enhancement. Judgments are the
means through which the judges address the litigants and the
public at large, and explain their reasons for reaching their
conclusions. Judges are required to exercise judgement – and it
is clear that without such judgement we would not have a justice
system worthy of the name – and they give their individual
judgement expression through their Judgments. Without judgement
there would be no justice. And without Judgments there would be
no justice, because judicial decisions, at least in civil and
family law, without reasons are certainly not justice: indeed,
they are scarcely decisions at all. It is therefore an absolute
necessity that Judgments are