The courts are provided with guidelines to assist in determining the appropriate sentence for a wide, and ever-expanding, range of offences. The guidelines p...

Expert evidence is used to provide information to the court, which is likely to be outside of the knowledge of the magistrates, judge or jury. Opinion eviden...

The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020 imposes several restrictions. Over the last week, the police have been keen to e...

At 2 pm on Saturday 21 March 2020, a law came into force which forced the closure of some businesses. This law was enacted by virtue of The Health Protection...

The Forensic Science Regulator regulates forensic scientists in England and Wales. The Regulator ensures that the provision of forensic science evidence acro...

If you ask most people how many people are selected to sit on a jury hearing a criminal case, the answer from most if not all will be 12. It can, therefore, ...

The Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Regulations 2019 came in to force on 10 January 2020, with the effect of implementing Fifth Money La...

In 2015 Emily Hunt complained to the police that she had been raped in a hotel room. She had also been filmed, naked and asleep, without her consent. Althoug...

The government has announced further funding to strengthen security measures at several prisons. The funding will go towards advanced body scan technology, a...

The Sentencing Council is responsible for issuing guidelines on sentencing for the courts to follow. Guidelines must be followed unless it is in the interest...

In 1998 a 22-year-old insurance clerk called Helen McCourt was murdered and Ian Simms was convicted of that murder. The Parole Board recently directed Simms'...

It has long been a criminal offence to take photographs or make recordings in court; even sketch artists have to sketch from memory rather than while in cour...

The plight of a 19-year-old British lady hit the news last week, culminating in reports of her being sentenced by a Cypriot court for making what was said to...

A large number of people are subject to notification requirements under Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, many for an indeterminate period. The notific...

Many people face court proceedings who do not necessarily have a detailed grasp of the English language. A defendant mustn't be a mere observer of legal proc...

In legislative terms 2019 was a pretty quiet year with parliament being so heavily occupied with Brexit, there was little time for anything else. 2020 promis...

Immigration is a very political issue at the present time, and the hurdles facing those wishing to settle in the UK are getting harder to surmount, tempting ...

Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate has published a new report in relation to the investigation and prosecution of rape cases. The significa...

In some cases, a court must order a pre-sentence report (s 156 Criminal Justice Act 2003), and a report will be appropriate in many instances when it is not ...

Section 34 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 states that a court may make an order disqualifying a defendant from keeping animals. When can the order be made? T...