“Victims of domestic violence will be given greater access to legal aid to fund civil cases against abusive partners, Kenneth Clarke announced on Tuesday as the government made a U-turn on some of its controversial reforms. The justice secretary described the amendments to the legal aid, sentencing and punishment of offenders bill as ‘fairly formidable’.”
The Guardian, 17th April 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“A look at the continuing cuts to CPS fees and the effect on the criminal Bar; and a call for
support from within the Bar itself in dealing with the challenges now facing it.”
Full story (PDF)
Chairman of the Bar Council, April 2012
Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk
“A proposal to establish a women’s criminal justice policy unit within the Ministry of Justice foundered yesterday after a vote on an amendment to the Legal Aid Sentencing and Criminal Justice Bill was tied.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 21st March 2012
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
“Until this week, reaction to the Government’s green paper on ‘Justice and Security’ has been muted. It has taken the form of detailed and reasoned submissions and has tended to come mainly from organisations and individuals with a legal background. Writing on the UK Human Rights Blog, barrister Adam Wagner, somewhat despairingly, referred to the ‘sound of tumbleweed greeting secret civil trials proposals’.”
Legal Week, 13th March 2012
Source: www.legalweek.com
“Justice Minister Lord McNally today visited the Hammersmith-based women’s community centre, Minerva, to see first-hand how significant investment has helped bring about changes in the way women are dealt with in the criminal justice system.”
Ministry of Justice, 13th March 2012
Source: www.justice.gov.uk
“A new BBC documentary starts today, exploring criminality over the past 60 years and featuring a number of prisons in England and Wales.”
Ministry of Justice, 12th March 2012
Source: www.justice.gov.uk
“The justice secretary, Ken Clarke, has admitted to being ‘unsettled’ by criticism from lawyers about his plans for extending secret courts.”
The Guardian, 6th March 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Crispin Blunt speaks at the Policing and Justice Conference 2012.”
Ministry of Justice, 22nd March 2012
Source: www.justice.gov.uk
“The UK’s reputation as a ‘free and fair democracy’ could be damaged by excessive use of secret court procedures that the government aims to introduce, Northamptonshire police has warned.”
The Guardian, 16th February 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Thousands of women will be sent to jail needlessly if new criminal justice legislation is allowed into law in its current form, a group of cross-party peers warn this weekend ahead of a vote in the House of Lords.”
The Independent, 15th January 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
“A new set of court statistics published today supports the case for a comprehensive reform programme across the justice system.”
Ministry of Justice, 12th January 2012
Source: www.justice.gov.uk
“The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge, has issued a warning of the need to preserve the integrity of jury trial and the jury system. The warning came in the Court of Appeal Criminal Division’s Annual Review of the Legal Year 2010/11published today (Friday 9 December).”
Judiciary of England and Wales, 9th December 2011
Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk
“Judges, jurors and barristers are set to replace their traditional bundles of papers with iPad-style devices in an attempt to create paperless courts. Prosecutors will be given tablet devices that will contain all the evidence and documentation needed to conduct court hearings.”
The Guardian, 2nd December 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“The criminal justice system of England and Wales sentenced over two million people in the twelve months to June this year. So, what happened to them in the courts? Thanks to the huge Ministry of Justice data releases of last week, we can now show how many people go through each leg of the system, from first appearance in magistrates’ court to sentencing in Crown court. This is the solar system of criminal justice. Click the circles below to see how it works.”
The Guardian, 28th November 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“The 1.2m records released this week are an unprecedented exercise in open data, especially for a courts system long accused of operating a Victorian method of closed information.”
The Guardian, 25th November 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“As Stephen Levinson’s recent post has reminded us, we are not living in a golden age of legislative drafting. In the field of criminal law, some particularly ghastly examples of bamboozling legislation can be found in various provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 – described by no less an authority than Rose LJ as ‘at best, obscure and, at worst, impenetrable’ (R v Campell [2006] EWCA Crim 726, [2006] 2 Cr App R (S) 626 at [1]).”
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 2nd November 2011
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
“Victims’ Commissioner publishes findings from research with victims of crime about their experiences of court and sentencing.”
Victims’ Commissioner, 20th October 2011
Source: www.justice.gov.uk
“The Guardian’s efforts to win the right to see a set of key documents in a controversial extradition case continued today (11 October) at the court of appeal, where judges indicated they were minded to allow the paper an opportunity to appeal a High Court decision.”
The Guardian, 11th October 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Some 90% of prisoners in England and Wales suffer from mental health problems and upon release are up to 36 times more likely to kill themselves than the general population, a report has revealed.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 6th October 2011
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
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