A record number of crime victims refused to support prosecutions as they are losing confidence in the ability of the police to solve crimes. Home office figures showed that investigations into 25.3% of crimes were cancelled after the victims said they would not support the police- nearly treble the proportion in 2014-15. The disclosure follows […]
Quarter of crime victims withdraw support for prosecutions Read More »
Potter Derby Solicitors are acting for Defendants charged with various serious offences based on information received following the well-publicised Encrochat Hack. We are amongst those challenging the admission of that evidence in its entirety, the complex legal arguments are expected to take some time to resolve. The National Crime Agency has revealed that between April
Legal Challenge to ‘Encrochat Hack’ Read More »
The Ministry of Justice is drawing up plans to reduce the number of people sitting on a jury from 12 to nine in order to help social distancing in courtrooms. Criminal courts face enormous waiting lists after having to pause all but their most urgent cases for three months since the start of lockdown. The backlog has led
Magistrates’ courts face a backlog of over 480,000 cases, according to new figures laying bare the devastating impact of coronavirus on criminal justice. The figures were released as ministers prepare to announce the first emergency \’Blackstone courts\’ where cases can be held observing social distancing rules. According to preliminary government data, the number of outstanding
Magistrates’ court backlog reaches 484,000 Read More »
The lord chief justice has said that ministers should consider limiting the availability of jury trials if court delays become unmanageable. Lord Burnett of Maldon expected no change to the way that serious charges — such as rape and murder — were tried in England and Wales. The least serious offences would continue to be
Limits on jury trials may be needed says LCJ Read More »
The fraud agency said that following a “detailed review of the available evidence” it had concluded that “this case did not meet the relevant test for prosecution as defined in the code for crown prosecutors”. De La Rue, one of the oldest listed companies on the London stock market, issued a separate statement saying that
Serious Fraud Office ends 11 month investigation into banknote printer De La Rue Read More »
The criminal court system will need to run at more than twice its normal capacity over the next three years to deal with the coronavirus backlog and workload created by a growing police force, the Criminal Bar Association has predicted. Citing figures from the Institute for Government, the CBA said if there are 20,000 more
Courts must double capacity to stay afloat, warns Criminal Bar Read More »
The police were using the power to detain too freely and detainees’ lawyers were failing to challenge its use, according to a report by Transform Justice. The group calls for increased scrutiny around detention to not just focus on detainee’s health and welfare, but to question the rationale for detaining at all. Transform Justice argue that
Police Station lawyers failing to challenge detention Read More »
The criminal justice system in England and Wales is facing a backlog of 40,000 criminal cases, which will not be solved even if all crown courts are brought into service under physical distancing rules, the Criminal Bar Association has warned. Even before the pandemic, some criminal cases were being listed more than a year ahead
England and Wales face backlog of 40,000 criminal cases due to Coronavirus Read More »
Most of the people wrongly charged under the Coronavirus Act were probably not legally represented, the director of public prosecutions has said. Max Hill QC told the House of Commons justice select committee today that 44 cases were incorrectly charged under the act, of which 31 were noted and stopped at the first hearing. Hill
Most wrongly charged under Coronavirus Act were unrepresented, admits DPP Read More »
