The Online Advertising Taskforce (OAT) has published its progress report, covering activities undertaken in 2025 and objectives for 2026. The report summarises work across several industry-led working groups focused on: (1) age assurance; (2) artificial intelligence (AI); (3) gold standard certification (which will conclude its activities in 2026); (4) influencer marketing; (5) information sharing; (6) intermediary and platform principles and (7) ad fraud and standards (established in November 2025).

This Practice Note considers CPR PD 51R, which establishes a pilot scheme to test an online claims process for specified money claims in the County Court called the Online Civil Money Claims (OCMC) pilot (CPR PD 51R, para 2.1). The pilot is available for use by unrepresented parties (‘litigants in person’) and represented parties, subject to financial limits. The pilot scheme commenced on 7 August 2017 and runs until 6 April 2027 (CPR PD 51R, para 2.1(1)). This pilot scheme is part of a wider HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) reform initiative, more information on which can be found on GOV.UK—Modernising courts and tribunals: benefits of digital services. The OCMC provides a digital service for dealing with eligible County Court specified money claims. Also see the following Practice Notes: • Damages claims pilot scheme—CPR PD 51ZB—for information on the Damages Claims Portal (DCP), which provides an online service for dealing with County Court damages claims under CPR PD 51ZB • Online County Court money claims—key features—which provides a high-level

HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) has updated its guidance for users of the Online Civil Money Claims Pilot (OCMC) under CPR PD 51R. The updates include new guidance on the procedure to be adopted if a claim is issued in the wrong online claims portal, and include small changes to the ‘notice of change’ procedure for notifying the court of a change in legal representation.

This Practice Note provides a high-level overview of the online claims services operating in the County Court—the Damages claims portal (DCP) under CPR PD 51ZB and the Online Civil Money Claims pilot (OCMC) under CPR PD 51R. It considers the types of claim that can be issued and managed under these services and the key eligibility requirements. It summarises the key requirements for using the services as set out in the CPR and the various guidance documents provided by HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS). For full details of the operation of the DCP and OCMC and the eligibility requirements, this Practice Note should be read in conjunction with Practice Notes: • Damages claims pilot scheme—CPR PD 51ZB • Online Civil Money Claims pilot scheme—CPR PD 51R For a summary of the key resources available for using the online claims services, also see Practice Note: Online County Court money claims—key resources and contact details. This Practice Note does not deal with issuing and managing claims using the Money Claim Online (MCOL) service.

This Practice Note sets out the key resources available for using the County Court online claims services—the Damages claims portal (DCP) under CPR PD 51ZB and the Online Civil Money Claims pilot (OCMC) under CPR PD 51R. It includes links to Lexis+® UK practical guidance on the online claims services, guidance provided by HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS), relevant contact details for the online claims services and information on accessing the services. It should be read in conjunction with Practice Notes: • Damages claims pilot scheme—CPR PD 51ZB • Online Civil Money Claims pilot scheme—CPR PD 51R • Online County Court money claims—key features Damages claims portal—CPR PD 51ZB Lexis+® UK practical guidance Practice Note: Damages claims pilot scheme—CPR PD 51ZB HMCTS guidance • guidance for claimants: GOV.UK—MyHMCTS: How to make a damages claim online. This links to further guidance: GOV.UK—Issue an online claim for damages as a legal professional • guidance for claimants and defendants: • guidance for making an ‘other remedy’ claim (on which, see Practice Note: Damages

The Online Procedure Rule Committee (OPRC) has announced the launch of its sub-committee, which includes experts from across the civil, family and tribunals justice sector as well as members of the judiciary. The OPRC has noted that members of the sub-committee were appointed following an ‘Expression of Interest’ exercise in November 2023.

The Online Procedure Rule Committee (OPRC), established under the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022 (JRACA 2022), creates rules governing the practice and procedure for specific types of online court and tribunal proceedings across the Civil, Family and Tribunal jurisdictions (CFT). The OPRC holds regular meetings, for which the minutes are published. This News Analysis summarises the key developments in 2024 and looks forward to potential future developments.

The Online Procedure Rule Committee (OPRC) has published the first rules under the powers conferred by Chapter 2 of Part 2 of the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022, marking a significant step in the government’s programme to digitise court and tribunal processes. The Online Procedure (Rules and Practice Directions) Rules 2026, SI 2026/696 will come into force on 7 September 2026.

The Online Procedure Rule Committee (OPRC) has launched a webpage detailing the committee’s responsibilities, membership and meeting minutes. The OPRC is responsible for creating rules which govern the practice and procedure of online court proceedings and is chaired by Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls. Three sets of minutes have been published from June 2023, July 2023 and October 2023.

This Practice Note explains the framework established by the Online Procedure (Rules and Practice Directions) Rules 2026, SI 2026/696 (OP Rules 2026), which contain the Online Procedure Rules 2026 (OPR). The OPR govern certain online proceedings in England and Wales. In this Practice Note, a reference to a rule in the OPR is written as, for example, OPR 1. The OPR are available on GOV.UK—see here. To see all materials published under the OPR framework (including rules, practice directions and related publications), click here. Commencement and application The OP Rules 2026, including the OPR, came into force on 7 September 2026. The OPR govern specific types of online proceedings as set out in the OP Rules 2026, SI 2026/696, r 2(3). With effect from 7 September 2026, the OPR apply to certain types of possession proceedings (OP Rules 2026, SI 2026/696, r 2(3))—for more information, see Practice Note: Online Procedure Rules for possession proceedings—the Possession Claims service. The OPR do not govern all civil proceedings conducted online. Separate County Court pilot schemes operate under the CPR for issuing

This Practice Note explains the online procedure for possession claims known as the ‘Possession Claims Service’ governed by the Online Procedure Rules 2026 and the Practice Direction: Online Procedure Rules for Possession Proceedings. It focuses on the claims which are within its scope, claims which are excluded from scope, the information required to start an online possession claim and the initial steps in the claim. What is the purpose and status of the Online Possession Practice Direction? The Online Possession Practice Direction sets out the procedure for online County Court possession proceedings and supplements the OPR. It must be read in conjunction with the OPR. If there is any inconsistency between the two, the OPR will take precedence (Online Possession Practice Direction, para 1). The OPR are set out in the schedule to the Online Procedure (Rules and Practice Directions) Rules, SI 2026/696 and are in force from 7 September 2026. The Online Possession Practice Direction applies to covered claims started on or after 15 September 2026 (Online Possession Practice

MLex: Implementation of the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is going to plan, a government minister stated on 25 June 2025, while reiterating that online platforms could see further measures to plug any gaps that are found, notably over the protection of children. Feryal Clark responded to MPs' concerns that the government was prioritising legal defensibility over keeping children safe online. Platforms are bracing for additional child-protection duties under OSA 2023 to kick in on 25 July 2025.