Issue 165  24th October 2020

HMCTS Covid Update

Further to announcements on regions in local COVID Alert Levels in England, the national fire-break in Wales and restrictions in Scotland, courts and tribunals will continue to operate within COVID-secure guidelines. As an essential public service, the work of the courts and tribunals continues and there are currently no plans to change scheduled hearings. We are following public health advice and are experienced in managing COVID-secure ways of working with a range of mitigating measures in place.

More Nightingale Courts and Portakabin Jury Rooms

Two new ‘Nightingale Courts’ in Bristol and Chester will begin hearing cases this week as part of a government move to tackle the impact of coronavirus on the justice system...

Meanwhile, portable jury rooms have been installed at courts across Yorkshire to unlock even more capacity. The Portakabin® buildings erected at Bradford, Hull, and Leeds Crown Courts will be used for jurors to deliberate and will allow eight courtrooms to resume hearing trials.

CPS Covid Caseload Data

COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the Criminal Justice System (CJS). For context, ‘lockdown’ measures were announced in the Prime Minister’s 23 March statement on COVID-19, priority courts were put in place from 30 March, the CPS issued its Interim Charging Protocol on 1 April, and guidance on the application of the Public Interest test was issued on 14 April to manage demand on the CJS, requiring prosecutors to consider the impact of the pandemic when deciding whether charges are in the public interest...

Magistrates’ Court finalisations fell by over two thirds. In Q1 20/21 there were just under 33,000 finalisations, compared to an average of 96,000 across the last three quarters of 19/20. Finalisations in the Crown Court decreased significantly, from 14,609 in Q4 19/20 to 8,609 in Q1 20/21. Very few jury trials took place in Q1, which means that the majority of finalisations were sentencing or guilty pleas.

The total live caseload at the end of Q1 20/21 stood at just over 170,000 outstanding cases. The live caseload in the Magistrates’ Court has more than doubled over the past quarter, from 64,201 in Q4 19/20 to 123,287 in Q1 20/21, demonstrating that a backlog is developing in the Magistrates’ Court.

Sentencing Code Granted Royal Assent

Presently, some 1,300 pages of complicated and convoluted law exist on sentencing – often making it difficult for judges to identify and apply the law and sometimes leading to mistakes being made. The Sentencing Code will consolidate this, slashing the law on sentencing procedure by more than half to ensure greater clarity, reduce the risk of errors and improve the efficiency of sentencing hearings...

The Code will come into force on a date specified by a commencement regulation, which will be made in due course.

'Rape case prosecutors must discount sext messages'

Prosecutors in rape cases in England and Wales need to be aware of changing sexual behaviour in the digital age, when deciding if a case should go to court, new guidance says. Naked selfies, dating apps and casual sex are covered in a wide-ranging Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) review. The CPS says prosecutors must understand that many teenagers believe sexting is part of "everyday life". It follows criticism over record-low rape convictions in England and Wales. There has also been a big drop in cases being taken to court. The CPS says it has worked with victim support groups to produce this new guidance aimed at challenging long-held rape myths and stereotypes.

The guidance can be found here.

Government Backing for Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill

The Government is backing legislation for tougher prison times for those who cruelly mistreat animals, as plans to introduce more stringent sentences move a step closer today (Friday 23 October).

The Bill, introduced in Parliament by Chris Loder MP in February, will see the most serious perpetrators of animal cruelty face up to five years in prison, up from the current maximum of six months. Today, the Bill will have its Second Reading in the House of Commons, backed by the Government.

Review of Parole System

A Root-and-Branch review of the parole system in England and Wales has been launched today (20 October 2020) by Justice Minister, Lucy Frazer QC, to help improve public trust and victim confidence.

The review will build on recent reforms to improve the transparency of the Parole Board’s work but will also look at more fundamental changes. This will include providing recommendations on immediate changes but also on whether the current model – the Parole Board - is the most effective and efficient system for deciding whether prisoners should continue to be detained... The Root-and-Branch review’s terms of reference have been published online and it will aim to report to the Lord Chancellor in Summer 2021.

SFO Guidance on DPAs

The SFO has today published a chapter from its handbook which offers comprehensive guidance on how we approach Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs), and how we engage with companies where a DPA is a prospective outcome.

The chapter can be found here.