Category: juries

The end of the jury trial as we know it? – 6KBW College Hill

Posted July 10th, 2020 in chambers articles, coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, juries, Ministry of Justice, news, trial without jury, trials by sally

‘The Secretary of State for Justice recently confirmed that the government is considering whether to introduce primary legislation to suspend jury trials for offences triable either way as a way to address the backlog of criminal cases arising from the public health crisis. This development has caused alarm amongst practitioners who might be hoping that Humphreys J was right when he said: “I cannot bring myself to believe that there are any persons other than the inmates of a lunatic asylum who would vote in favour of the abolition of trial by jury in serious criminal cases” (Do We Need a Jury? [1954] Crim LR 457).’

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6 KBW College Hill, 30th June 2020

Source: blog.6kbw.com

Proposal To Scrap Juries ‘Shocking’ Amid Black Lives Matter Movement – Each Other

Posted July 10th, 2020 in coronavirus, criminal justice, delay, equality, juries, news, race discrimination, trial without jury, trials by sally

‘Proposals to scrap juries for some trials to reduce court backlogs would remove the “only part of the criminal justice process” proven not to discriminate against minority ethnic groups, a legal expert has warned.’

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Each Other, 9th July 2020

Source: eachother.org.uk

MoJ favours ‘Nightingale’ crown courts to tackle huge backlog of cases – Thomas More Chambers

Posted July 8th, 2020 in chambers articles, coronavirus, courts, delay, juries, Ministry of Justice, news, trials by sally

‘So reports Owen Bowcott, the legal affairs correspondent for The Guardian today. “Nightingale” courts being venues which have been identified as suitable for trials utilising public spaces such a civic centres or university moot halls; apparently to be renamed Blackstone Courts.’

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Thomas More Chambers, 3rd July 2020

Source: www.thomasmore.co.uk

How Judges Make their Decisions – is witness demeanour a myth? – Family Law Week

Posted July 2nd, 2020 in judiciary, juries, news, remote hearings, witnesses by tracey

‘Madeleine Whelan, barrister of Fourteen, considers how much weight judges might give to witnesses’ demeanour when evaluating their evidence in the light of a recent judgment by Mrs Justice Lieven.’

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Family Law Week, 29th June 2020

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Criminal cases backlog could take a decade to clear, watchdog warns – The Guardian

Posted July 1st, 2020 in coronavirus, criminal justice, Crown Prosecution Service, delay, juries, news, ombudsmen, statistics, trial without jury, trials by sally

‘The backlog of untried cases in the criminal justice system – which has ballooned during lockdown – could take a decade to clear, an official watchdog has warned.’

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The Guardian, 30th June 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Virtual hearings with physical jury hubs hailed a success – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted June 19th, 2020 in coronavirus, courts, juries, news, remote hearings, trials by sally

‘Virtual trials with physical jury hubs could be an effective way of clearing the significant Crown court backlog caused by Covid-19, academics evaluating the latest experiment from a legal thinktank have said.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 19th June 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Drop juries for less serious crimes in England and Wales, judges say – The Guardian

Posted June 17th, 2020 in coronavirus, criminal justice, Crown Court, delay, juries, news, trials by sally

‘Less serious crimes should be tried in crown courts before a judge without a jury in order to tackle the thousands of cases building up during the pandemic crisis, judges have suggested.’

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The Guardian, 16th June 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Resumption of jury trials: an open justice “toolkit” – Doughty Street Chambers

Posted June 8th, 2020 in chambers articles, codes of practice, coronavirus, courts, health, health & safety, juries, live link evidence, media, news, trials by sally

‘For seven weeks Covid-19 shut the doors of jury trials in England and Wales. On 11th May 2020, the Lord Chief Justice and Lord Chancellor announced the resumption of new jury trials in “certain courtrooms under certain conditions” from 18th May 2020. In the interim, two guinea pig trials resumed at the Old Bailey.’

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Doughty Street Chambers, 18th May 2020

Source: insights.doughtystreet.co.uk

Has coronavirus changed the UK justice system for ever? – The Guardian

Posted May 27th, 2020 in bankruptcy, civil justice, coronavirus, criminal justice, juries, legal profession, news, remote hearings by sally

‘The pandemic has led to big changes in trials, many of of which are likely to be permanent.’

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The Guardian, 24th May 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

How court trials are coping with coronavirus – BBC News

Posted May 19th, 2020 in coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, juries, news, pilot schemes by sally

‘A pilot scheme has begun to restart jury trials in the UK after they were halted due to the coronavirus pandemic.’

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BBC News, 18th May 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Murder trial resumes with counsel and jury swapping seats – Legal Futures

Posted May 13th, 2020 in barristers, coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, health, health & safety, juries, murder, news, trials by sally

‘A jury trial resumed at the Old Bailey yesterday, with barristers in the jury and press boxes, and jurors socially distancing in counsel’s rows after being told there were no face masks for them.’

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Legal Futures, 12th May 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Juries and Covid-19: protecting the right to a fair trial – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted May 12th, 2020 in coronavirus, human rights, juries, news by sally

‘With Covid-19 having driven jury-trials to a grinding halt, it is no overstatement to suggest that justice itself has been suspended.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 7th May 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Jury trials to resume in England and Wales with physical distancing – The Guardian

Posted May 12th, 2020 in coronavirus, Crown Court, juries, news by sally

‘Jury trials will resume under physical distancing restrictions in a limited number of crown courts in England and Wales from 18 May, the lord chief justice has announced.’

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The Guardian, 11th May 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Old Bailey jury trials to resume this week – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 11th, 2020 in coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, Crown Court, juries, news, trials by sally

‘Two jury trials will resume at the Old Bailey this week as first steps toward Crown court cases restarting around the country. However, the criminal bar warned that a resumption of normal service “remains many weeks off”.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 10th May 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

The impact of Coronavirus, part 7: the possible next steps for the jury system – 6KBW College Hill

Posted May 7th, 2020 in coronavirus, criminal justice, juries, news by sally

‘In a series of Blog posts, members of 6KBW have identified a number of ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has led to change in the administration of criminal justice, namely in relation to jury trials as presently conducted, the extension of audio/visual links and virtual hearings, through the offences created by the Coronavirus Act 2020 and in the context of extradition. As the country enters its second 3 week period of lockdown, this post seeks to look ahead to consider the possible next steps that the continued risk of infection by the virus may force on the administration of criminal justice in that most important but least socially detached component of the criminal justice system, the jury.’

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6KBW College Hill, 27th April 2020

Source: blog.6kbw.com

Coronavirus: Courts must resume to deal with ‘backlog of cases’ – BBC News

Posted May 4th, 2020 in barristers, coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, delay, juries, Ministry of Justice, news, statistics, trials by sally

‘Victims are being left in “distressing limbo” due to a growing backlog of cases during the coronavirus pandemic, a top Cardiff barrister has warned.’

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BBC News, 3rd May 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Coronavirus: Jury trials face ‘biggest change since WW2’ – BBC News

Posted May 1st, 2020 in barristers, coronavirus, courts, health, health & safety, judges, juries, legal profession, news, solicitors, statistics, trials by sally

‘Coronavirus could prompt the biggest changes to jury trials since World War Two, the head of judiciary in England and Wales has told the BBC.’

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BBC News, 30th April 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Non-jury trials could help clear coronavirus backlog, says QC – The Guardian

Posted April 27th, 2020 in coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, delay, juries, news, trials by sally

‘Defendants should be allowed to opt for trial by judge rather than in front of a jury, a prominent human rights lawyer has proposed, as a means of partially restarting the criminal justice system.’

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The Guardian, 26th April 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Judiciary sets up working party to bring back jury trials – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted April 24th, 2020 in coronavirus, courts, health, health & safety, judiciary, juries, news, trials by sally

‘The prospect of jury trials restarting has come closer with news that the judiciary has set up a working party to consider how they can be brought back as soon as it is safe to do so. The news comes shortly after lord chancellor Robert Buckland said he wanted jury trials back up and running as quickly as possible.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 24th April 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

“Justice in the time of Coronavirus”: Considering Diplock Courts and Majority Verdicts in light of COVID-19 – Thomas More Chambers

Posted April 20th, 2020 in chambers articles, coronavirus, courts, juries, news, trials by sally

‘The coronavirus (COVID-19) and the government “lockdown” has bought about interesting times and the Coronavirus Act 20201, in particular ss.53-57 (with Schedules 23-27).’

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Thomas More Chambers, 15th April 2020

Source: www.thomasmore.co.uk