Essential Magistrates' Courts Law

Howard Riddle

Description

In this concise and valuable book the authors distil their vast expertise for the benefit of all those needing quick and targeted points of reference on key aspects of magistrates' court law, whether as newcomers, justices, legal advisers, or criminal practitioners. Hugely informed and presented in an accessible format, it explains the central law, practice and procedure of these courts.The framework of summary justice has changed comprehensively in the past decade in terms of evidence, procedure, guidelines, sentencing, training and the fair but efficient expedition of cases. This book sets out these developments as well as inescapable aspects of case management.Gathers core information in one place.Sets out key processes in a manageable and readable way.

Sujets

• Droit et juridique
• Inglaterra
• Wales
• England

Informations

• Publié par: Waterside Press
• Date de parution: 09 septembre 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• EAN13: 9781910979815
• Langue: English

Extrait

Essential Magistrates’ Courts Law
Howard Riddle CBE and Judge Robert Zara
Copyright and publication details
Essential Magistrates’ Courts Law
Howard Riddle CBE and Judge Robert Zara
ISBN 978-1-909976-68-9 (Paperback)
ISBN 978-1-910979-81-5 (Epub E-book)
ISBN 978-1-910979-82-2 (Adobe E-book)
Copyright © 2019 This work is the copyright of Howard Riddle and Robert Zara. All intellectual property and associated rights are hereby asserted and reserved by the authors in full compliance with UK, European and international law. No part of this book may be copied, reproduced, stored in any retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, including in hard copy or via the internet, without the prior written permission of the publishers to whom all such rights have been assigned worldwide.
Cover design © 2019 Waterside Press by www.gibgob.com
Main UK distributor Gardners Books, 1 Whittle Drive, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN23 6QH Tel: [phone]; [e-mail] ; www.gardners.com
North American distribution Ingram Book Company, One Ingram Blvd, La Vergne, TN 37086, USA. Tel: [phone]; [e-mail]
Cataloguing-In-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book can be obtained from the British Library.
e-book Essential Magistrates’ Courts Law is available as an ebook and also to subscribers of Ebrary, Ebsco, Myilibrary and Dawsonera.
Published 2019 by
Waterside Press Ltd
Sherfield Gables
Sherfield on Loddon, Hook
Hampshire RG27 0JG.
Telephone [phone]
Online catalogue WatersidePress.co.uk
Email [e-mail]
Table of Contents
Copyright and publication details ii
About the authors viii
Acknowledgements ix
Preface 11
Introduction 13 History of Justices of the Peace in England and Wales 15 A Brief Overview 19 Applications 23
Search warrants 23
Warrants for arrest 25
Mental Health Act 26
Witness summonses and warrants 26
Issue of summons to institute proceedings 27
Utility warrants 28
Noise nuisance 29
Statutory declaration 29
Extension of police bail 30
Applications relating to hearsay and bad character 30
Criminal behaviour orders 31
Closure orders 32
Domestic violence protection orders 33 The First Appearance 35
Open justice 36
The information or written charge 37
Paperwork 38
Absence of defendant 40
Presence through lawyer 43
Defendant present 43
Either-way offences 44
Summary offences 47
No indication 47
The allocation decision 48
Youths in an adult magistrates’ court 49
Mental disorder 50
Perceived advantages and disadvantages of summary trial 54
Sending to the Crown Court 57
Managing for trial 61
Disclosure 64
Bail 67
The dock 70
Firearms in court 72
Costs at first hearing 72 Youths, Vulnerable Witnesses and Defendants 75
Introduction 75
Eligibility 75
Applications 76
Special measures 77 The Trial 83
The overriding objective 83
Abuse of process arguments 83
Application to adjourn on day of trial 86
Additional editorial comment on disclosure not provided by the day of trial 87
Consequences if a trial proceeds in the absence of the defendant or prosecution witness 89
Procedure 90
Evidence 91
Excluding evidence 93
Competence 93
Hearsay 94
Confession 103
Expert evidence 104
Good character 106
Bad character 107
Identification 110
Inferences from silence 113
A defendant’s lies 116
A word about CCTV 116
Taking the oath or making an affirmation 117
Memory refreshing 117
Leading questions 118
No case to answer 119
Burden and standard of proof, verdict and reasons 120
Co-defendants 120 Common Offences 123
Fail to surrender to bail 123
Assault 125
Drink Drive 130
Theft and related offences 137
Public order offences 142
Knives and offensive weapons 148
Drive while disqualified 153 Common defences 155
Introduction 155
Self-defence 155
Prevention of Crime 158
Reasonableness and lawful excuse 159
Duress 160
Human rights 161
Intoxication 162
Execution of duty 163
Misbehaviour in court 164 Sentencing 167
The purposes of sentencing 167
General principles 168
Using the guidelines 168
Does prison work? 171
Imprisonment 173
Sending to the Crown Court for sentence 176
Indications of sentence and implied promises 177
Suspended Sentences 177
Community penalties 179
Fines 182
Absolute and Conditional Discharges 183
Prevalence 183
Previous convictions 184
Reduction in sentence for a guilty plea 184
Deferred sentence 186
Compensation, victim surcharge, prosecution costs and ancillary orders 186
Newton hearings 189
Role of the defence advocate 189
Role of the prosecutor 189
Duty to give reasons for sentence and credit for remand in custody or electronically monitored bail 190
Reopening sentence 191
A Sentencing Code 191 Twenty-first Century Developments 193
Technology 193
Constitutional changes and the independence of the judiciary 195
Procedural changes 196
Unrepresented defendants 208
Austerity 210
Criminal Justice Terms and Abbreviations 215 A typical domestic violence case 230 Adjournments: The Lord Chief Justice’s Practice Direction, April 2019 237
Index 247
About the authors
The authors are leading exponents of law, procedure and practice in the magistrates’ courts of England and Wales, with unparalleled practical experience and involvement in the system of summary justice.
Howard Riddle was Senior District Judge (Chief Magistrate) for England and Wales from 2010–2016 and is a law tutor and former practitioner in a legal aid firm of solicitors in East London. He was awarded the CBE in 2018 for services to the administration of justice.
Judge Robert Zara is a former solicitor who also worked in a law centre in Coventry before setting-up his own high street legal aid practice. From 2006–2009 he was the designated judge in charge of the Community Justice Court in Birmingham; and among other related involvements has also served for some years as a tutor for the Judicial College.
Acknowledgements
We are fortunate in our former colleagues, and would like to thank those judges and magistrates who have given encouragement as we prepared this book.
The chief magistrate, Senior District Judge Emma Arbuthnot; the chairman of the Magistrates’ Leadership Executive, Duncan Webster JP; judges Debbie Wright and Margot Coleman; as well as Simon Clements and Barry Hughes from the Crown Prosecution Service, offered not only encouragement but practical support and helpful suggestions on the text.
Particular thanks must go to Nadia Manzoor, a former legal adviser with Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service and researcher for the chief magistrate; Sian Jones, a former justices’ clerk whose knowledge of magisterial law is second to none; Alexia Fetherstonhaugh JP, and John Bache JP, chairman of the Magistrates Association. Despite many other commitments these four waded through all or much of our transcript, making invaluable comments. The improvements are theirs: the mistakes are ours alone.
We acknowledge the role played by the Judicial College in legal training. We were fortunate enough to be Judicial College course tutors and lecturers when many of the changes to the law covered by this book were introduced. This gave us the opportunity to discuss and debate the significance of those changes with colleagues. They were stimulating times. More recently, law students at BPP University have demonstrated that there is no shortage of talent and commitment among the next generation of lawyers. The challenge is to steer at least some of those new lawyers into criminal defence work, when legal aid funding is inadequate. Proper remuneration is urgently required.
We are fortunate in our publisher. Bryan Gibson of Waterside Press brings decades of experience of magistrates’ courts and publishing. He too has improved the book.
Howard Riddle CBE
Robert Zara
September 2019
Preface
Howard Riddle CBE and Robert Zara, in this remarkably concise work, have effectively produced a must-read for any judge, magistrate or lawyer practising in the magistrates’ courts. This book will become the reference book to carry to court, with footnotes adding personal details to the narrative.
The book can be read on any number of levels. It has a brief history of the magistrates’ courts and the magistracy. It follows the chronology of a case going through the court including the commencement of proceedings (whether by requisition or arrest), bail, the all-important case management at the first hearing, the relevant Criminal Procedure Rules, right through the trial to sentence if convicted. This is followed by a review of the current reforms, the worrying loss of magistrates and the increased emphasis of Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) on video-link hearings.
The detail is such that even those experienced in the law and procedure of the magistrates’ courts will discover something that they do not know. Whether it is that there is no rule that every defendant in the magistrates’ courts has two bail applications by right or the complicated rules for sending summary matters to the Crown Court, experts or the less experienced have a lot to learn from this excellent book.
In his time as Senior District Judge (Chief Magistrate) Howard Riddle, now an academic, was involved in or led all the developments in the magistrates’ courts. He had spent almost 20 years as a criminal lawyer before his appointment as a Metropolitan stipendiary magistrate. Robert Zara also had a successful career in private practice and his encyclopaedic knowledge of the law led to his nickname of ‘The Professor’ during his time on the bench. Both are exceptional lawyers.
We thoroughly recommend this book to all new judges, deputies and magistrates.
Emma Arbuthnot, Senior District Judge (Chief Magistrate) for England and Wales
John Bache, Chairman, Magistrates Associat