Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of changing the name of the Chancery Division to the Business & Property Division.

The Business and Property Division was launched on 1 October 2026, bringing together the current Business and Property Courts into a single division, replacing the Chancery Division.

The Government was pleased to support this judiciary-led initiative to modernise the structure of the High Court. This historic modernisation will help ensure the UK remains attractive as a global hub for corporate litigation.

The officials of the Ministry of Justice (including legal advisers), Judicial Office and HM Courts and Tribunals Service undertook this work as part of their normal duties in creating the Business and Property Division.

The Ministry of Justice paid £518 excluding VAT for the publication of the Order in Council titled “Senior Courts Order 2026”.

HMCTS incurred additional costs of approximately £98,000. This comprised approximately £97,000 for IT and reporting changes delivered through Thomson Reuters and approximately £1,000 in staff overtime costs (28 hours) required to support implementation activity.