Issue 261  1st October 2022

'Government makes revised offer to end bar strike'

Criminal barristers are to vote on whether to end strike action after the government put forward a revised offer on legal aid funding... The government's offer does not mark the immediate end of the criminal bar's action, which began in April. The CBA will now ballot members on the new deal.

'Solicitors will take ‘appropriate action’ without pay deal, group warns'

Criminal defence solicitors ‘will not hesitate to take appropriate action’ without an improved pay deal, the London Criminal Courts Solicitors' Association (LCCSA) has warned after the government announced a revised offer to end the bar strike. Lord chancellor Brandon Lewis said yesterday that he was offering a package of reforms that represent a further £54m investment in the criminal bar and solicitors...

But the Law Society accused the government of being ‘short-sighted’ for not providing equal pay to solicitors, saying it is proposing ‘only a 9% rate increase for solicitors, 40% less than the 15% being offered to barristers, and far less than the bare minimum the Bellamy report concluded was needed for criminal defence solicitors’ firms to remain economically viable’...

'Government has two months to stop barristers’ strike or defendants must be released from prison, High Court rules'

People awaiting delayed trials for violent and serious crimes must be released from custody unless the government resolves the barristers’ strike by the end of November, the High Court has ruled. Several judges have refused applications to extend custody time limits - which govern how long defendants can be held in prison before trial - on the basis that lengthy delays caused by court backlogs and the Criminal Bar Association’s industrial action are not a lawful reason to keep people in jail...

The High Court ruled that judges in two cases, in Manchester and Bristol, had made “errors of law” in releasing alleged violent offenders on bail. Dame Victoria Sharp KC, president of the King’s Bench Division, and Mr Justice Chamberlain found that trial days currently caused by the barristers’ strike can constitute a “good and sufficient cause” for extending custody time limits for short periods not above three months. But they warned that following a months-long dispute over legal aid payments to defence barristers that escalated into an all-out strike in August, “this will not remain the position for long”...

'Pre-recording of cross examination evidence in Leeds Youth Court'

Eligible witnesses at Leeds Youth Court are now able to pre-record their cross-examination evidence for the first time, as part of a wider test on using this special measure within the youth court. This means advocates can now apply for witnesses and victims at Leeds Youth Court to pre-record evidence...

Criminal justice partners have developed a protocol for managing cases using this special measure. The protocol will be regularly reviewed by the partners, as it’s applied to live cases. Our Local Implementation Team - which includes criminal justice partners - will closely monitor the test. We’ll work together to understand what we need to do to successfully support vulnerable witnesses to use this measure.

'Pre-recorded evidence for rape victims available nationwide'

The Government has today (26 September) delivered on its pledge to ensure this vital measure is available nationwide to boost rape convictions and ensure better support for victims. The tool allows victims and witnesses of crimes such as rape and modern slavery to have their cross-examination video-recorded and played later during trial. This is subject to a successful application to the court. The recording takes place as close to the time of the offence as possible, while memories remain fresh, and helps victims avoid the stress of giving evidence under full glare of a live trial setting, which many find traumatic.

From today, the measure will be available at a final 20 Crown Courts in Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, East Anglia, Essex, London and the South East, and marks the completion of national rollout...

'Prosecutors urged to consider power to compel defendants to attend court'

Defendants who refuse to leave their cells for court hearings could be compelled to attend – in handcuffs if necessary – as prosecutors are reminded of the court’s powers in new updated legal guidance. The guidance, which has been drawn up by the Crown Prosecution Service, asks lawyers to consider whether a defendant should be forced to attend for both the welfare of victims and to keep the justice process running smoothly...

The guidance asks prosecutors to gather as much information as possible from the court, the prison and defence lawyers, on the circumstances and reasons of the non-attendance, whether the defendant knows the case may proceed in their absence, and whether there is any other way of getting them to court. Decisions on if a prisoner needs to attend will be taken by the court, and a prison will then decide what reasonable steps should be taken to secure attendance, taking into account the defendant’s conduct and behaviour. Cases may also proceed via video link.

The guidance can be found here.