Court cuts risk shredding muscle, not just fat: some cases are so rushed that defendants can’t follow what is going on

Summary justice proceedings before magistrates are often messy for court users and staff alike. Government-sponsored reports over the past 30 years have continuously called for greater efficiency to deal with case backlogs and the view that the cost of running the courts is too high. How is it, then, that these courts can be described as overly efficient?