Sheffield Crown Court is out of commission after a ‘catastrophic’ burst pipe flooded all floors of the court building including the cells, the Gazette has learned. Until the pipe is fixed and the court building cleaned, the court will be closed.
Meanwhile in the High Court, cases to be heard at London’s flagship Rolls Building were this morning being diverted to the Royal Courts of Justice because of a power outage. ‘The Rolls Building is likely to remain closed this week while we work with the landlord to resolve an unexpected power issue,’ an HM Courts & Tribunals Service spokesperson said. ‘Alternative arrangements have been made to ensure hearings are able to go ahead.’ The purpose-built venue for the business and property courts was opened in 2011.
The Ministry of Justice confirmed that all hearings at Sheffield Crown court have been adjourned, with the exception of two urgent cases. For hearings today and tomorrow, parties will be informed if an alternative venue has been arranged or their case is adjourned. County court and tribunal hearings have not been impacted by the flooding, with the exception of one civil hearing.
The flooding is the latest of several closures caused by the condition of the courts estate. Sheffield magistrate court flooded last Christmas, the Law Society said, and members reported colleagues having to ‘paddle out’ of the building. Nearby Doncaster magistrates court was closed in October last year due to the discovery of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
Mike Jones, a member of the Law Society’s criminal law committee who is based in the area, said: ‘It will be impossible for Sheffield Crown Court to utilise the old Doncaster Crown Court, which has only one courtroom, as the Doncaster magistrates have been sitting there for a few months – their building is due to take 9-12 months to fix.
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