Court system 'in a shambles' after transcription service goes bust

There are concerns court cases around the country may be impacted due to the winding down of VIQ Solutions Australia. (ABC News: Millie Roberts, Patrick Thomas)

There are fears mass redundancies at Australia's main transcription service could leave court cases around the country in limbo after it was revealed VIQ Solutions would be wound down.

The ABC understands all VIQ Solutions court transcribers are expected to be made redundant and no further orders for transcripts will be accepted through its portal.

However, the Federal Court said contingency plans were being worked on.

VIQ Solutions was embroiled in controversy earlier this year after the ABC revealed sensitive court files were being transcribed in India in breach of the company's multi-million-dollar government contract.

Litigants in at least 146 court matters were potentially involved in a data breach that is now the subject of a formal complaint with the privacy commissioner in Canada, Senate estimates has been told.

Administrators McGrathNicol were called in on March 16 to urgently assess the company's viability, four weeks after the breach was made public.

VIQ Solutions was responsible for transcription services for the family and federal courts, the South Australian Employment Tribunal, as well as the courts and tribunals in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia.

A spokesperson for the Federal Court of Australia said it was taking "all necessary steps" to ensure control of court data and recordings.

"The contingency arrangements involve a panel of on-shore transcript service providers, and a panel of transcriptionists managed in-house," the spokesperson said.

Highly sensitive Australian court files have been accessed offshore in breach of the privacy act and Commonwealth contractual obligations, an ABC investigation has revealed, raising concerns of a national security risk.

"Longer-term arrangements will be focused on a low-cost model for transcript services for all litigants, including those most disadvantaged or at risk, at the core of its design."

However, one VIQ transcriber, who wished to remain anonymous, said staff at VIQ Solutions were left in the dark about what the future held.

"We have had no renewed contracts or reassurances from the courts … that work will continue. Nothing has been extended. The only opportunities we are coming across to date are those we are chasing ourselves," the transcriber said.

They said staff were told at a weekly briefing that orders for transcripts would cease as of today and staff would finish up from Friday June