Assessing the Court System's Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Eviction Cases

2019冠状病毒病大流行对家庭债务产生了深远影响，部分原因是租金和抵押贷款拖欠大幅增加（Brady， 2020年；Wilson等人，2021年）。作为回应，英格兰和威尔士的驱逐现象发生了根本性的变化。贷款人、房东、监管机构和法院系统都出台了旨在减轻疫情对家庭影响的改革措施，以帮助他们暂时保住住房（见Wilson等人，2021年）。在2020年9月20日之前，所有关于驱逐的法律诉讼都已停止，法律诉讼已在一个名为“总体安排”的新制度下恢复，该制度将于2020年9月20日至2021年7月30日期间实施。此外，一项新的“居屋调解试验计划”将于2021年2月1日开始实施，为期六个月。这些倡议的目的是增加当事方达成协议的机会，避免需要进行实质性法庭听证，从而减少驱逐的次数，减轻已经负担过重的法院系统的压力。鉴于这些计划的临时性，必须在2021年7月底之前对其有效性进行评估。该项目将通过从受到驱逐威胁的占领者和在驱逐案件前线的法律从业人员等处收集数据来实现这一目标。对这些数据的分析将使人们对COVID-19大流行对家庭债务和房屋损失的影响、占用者如何应对和参与拖欠流程以及处理占有案件的新举措的有效性有一个独特的见解。该项目的研究成果将为包括法律、商业、经济学和心理学在内的一系列学科贡献新的知识。通过与主要利益攸关方（包括住房供应商、法律从业人员和司法部）密切合作，还将促进知识交流和产生影响。它将特别为关于驱逐进程的当前和未来发展的紧急政策决定提供信息，从而帮助一些家庭努力避免失去家园。

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on household debt evidenced in part by a significant increase in rent and mortgage arrears (Brady, 2020 and Wilson et al, 2021). In response, the landscape of eviction in England and Wales has changed fundamentally. Lenders, landlords, regulators and the court system have all introduced changes designed to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on households in an effort to assist them in keeping their homes, for now (see Wilson et al, 2021). With all legal claims for eviction halted until 20 September 2020, the resumption of legal proceedings has taken place under a new system known as the 'Overall Arrangements' which will operate from 20 September 2020 until 30 July 2021. In addition, a new 'Housing Possession Mediation Pilot Scheme', intended to run for six months, began on 1 February 2021. These initiatives are designed to increase opportunities for the parties to reach agreement and avoid the need for a substantive court hearing, thereby reducing the number of evictions and relieving pressure on the already overburdened court system. Given the temporary nature of these schemes, it is imperative that an assessment of their effectiveness is undertaken before the end of July 2021. This project will achieve that aim by collecting data from, among others, occupiers threatened with eviction and legal practitioners on the frontline of eviction cases. An analysis of that data will offer a unique insight into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on household debt and home loss, how occupiers respond to and engage in the arrears process and the effectiveness of the new initiatives on handling possession cases. The findings of this project will contribute new knowledge to a range of academic disciplines including law, business, economics, and psychology. By working closely with key stakeholders, including housing providers, legal practitioners and the Ministry of Justice, it will also give rise to knowledge exchange and impact. It will, in particular, inform urgent policy decisions regarding both the current and future development of the eviction process and thereby assist some households in their attempts to avoid losing their home.