The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2026 (S.I. 2026/97) were made on 2 February 2026 and laid before Parliament on 5 February 2026. Most provisions commence on 6 April 2026. The instrument updates the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) to reflect the Online Procedure regime, introduces a targeted non‑party document mechanism, aligns procurement judicial review time limits with primary legislation, brings interim serious crime prevention orders into Part 77, and refines closed material procedure practice.
The commencement is staggered. Rules 1, 2, 4 to 6 and 8 take effect on 6 April 2026. Rule 3 (the Online Procedure carve‑out) commences on the date paragraph 2 of Schedule 4 to the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022 is brought fully into force. Rule 7 (interim serious crime prevention orders) commences on the date section 56 of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 is commenced for all purposes. Practitioners should check commencement orders before relying on these two limbs.
Part 2 is amended to disapply the CPR where proceedings are governed by Online Procedure Rules (OPR), except to the extent permitted by the OPR themselves, by practice directions issued under Schedule 3 to the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022, or by regulations under section 21 of that Act. A definition of “Online Procedure Rules” is inserted in rule 2.3. This mirrors the statutory framework requiring standard rules to give way where OPR govern a case. (legislation.gov.uk)
The Online Procedure framework in the 2022 Act requires rules to secure accessibility and fairness, to be simply expressed, and to support digital progression of cases, with safeguards for unrepresented users to proceed by non‑electronic means when necessary. Case teams should therefore confirm at issue stage whether a claim type is OPR‑governed and, if so, follow OPR and any Schedule 3 practice directions rather than default CPR provisions. (legislation.gov.uk)
Disclosure is adjusted by inserting new rule 31.12A. The court may order a party to request any person to produce documents for disclosure and inspection where they may support or adversely affect any party’s case. This complements existing tools-specific disclosure against a party under rule 31.12 and non‑party disclosure orders under rule 31.17-by creating a lighter‑touch route before, or instead of, contested third‑party applications. (justice.gov.uk)
Two fixed‑costs tidies are made: a cross‑reference correction in rule 45.7(1)(b), and an update in rule 45.58 to reflect the Motor Insurers’ Bureau migration of the Motor Insurance Database to its cloud platform “Navigate (Motor Insurance Policy Database)”. The re‑platforming has been publicly trailed by MIB and market notices since April 2024 and further expanded in late 2025. (mib.org.uk)
Part 54 is amended so that where a judicial review concerns a decision to which the Procurement Act 2023 applies, the claim form must be filed within the time limit in section 106(1) and (2) of that Act. In practice, this aligns procurement JR filing with the primary‑law regime: 30 days from when the claimant knew or ought to have known of the circumstances, with a six‑month long‑stop for specified set‑aside proceedings. (legislation.gov.uk)
Section 106 also allows the court to extend the 30‑day period for good reason, but not beyond three months from the date of knowledge, and never beyond the six‑month long‑stop for specified set‑aside cases. Claimants and contracting authorities should adjust pre‑action templates and internal triage so that “date of knowledge” triggers are recorded and diarised. (legislation.gov.uk)
Part 77 is expanded to accommodate interim serious crime prevention orders (ISCPOs) once section 56 of the 2025 Act is in force. New rule 77.2A signposts applications to Part 23 as modified by Part 77 and records the statutory scheme: the court may make an interim order where the main SCPO application is pending; without‑notice applications are permitted in defined circumstances; and the subject must be notified promptly under section 10A. (legislation.gov.uk)
A consequential procedural point is made for challenges to without‑notice ISCPOs: rule 23.10(2)’s usual seven‑day limit for set‑aside or variation does not apply. Courts retain flexibility to hear representations “as soon as reasonably practicable” under section 5F(2)(a) of the 2007 Act as inserted. Case teams should ensure urgent hearing slots and service arrangements reflect the statutory notice regime. (justice.gov.uk)
Closed material procedure is refined by inserting rule 82.26A, enabling a special advocate to file a narrowly‑scoped position statement after the court permits withholding of sensitive material. The statement may supplement but not contradict the open case, is confined to issues arising substantially from closed material, is typically filed within 28 days, and is disclosed only to the court, the relevant person, and (if a party) the Secretary of State. The rules also disapply supply‑from‑records provisions and statements of truth to such documents, and add a signpost in rule 82.23 to existing document‑supply restrictions. For context, these changes sit within the established Part 82 framework under the Justice and Security Act 2013. (justice.gov.uk)
Operationally, civil teams should: update case‑opening checks for OPR coverage; refresh disclosure playbooks to incorporate the new 31.12A step before escalating to 31.17; revise procurement JR calendars and templates to capture section 106 limits; and prepare interim‑order bundles and listings processes for ISCPOs in anticipation of commencement. For national security cases, special advocate protocols and document handling notes should be updated to reflect rule 82.26A’s filing and non‑disclosure parameters.
The Ministry of Justice confirms Sarah Sackman, Minister of State, allowed the Rules on 2 February 2026. With most provisions biting on 6 April 2026 and two elements tied to separate commencement orders, organisations should ready internal guidance now and verify commencement for OPR and ISCPO provisions before live deployment.