Justice Matters

Too many cases, too few resources and no room for complacency – John Curtis reports on the Criminal Cases Review Commission state of play.  

21 November 2014 marked the 40th anniversary of the Birmingham Pub Bombings: a chain of events that led to the deaths of 21 people, 182 serious woundings, the incarceration of the Birmingham Six, their release from prison some 19 years later and the recognition that miscarriages of justice were a reality of Britain’s justice system. 

The Human Rights Act should not be viewed as a burden, but promoted as an instrument of social cohesion and public purpose, argues Keir Starmer QC.  

The Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) is a very simple statute. 

With commemorations of the First World War under way it seems fitting to remember a remarkable pacifist, barrister and feminist, Chrystal Macmillan.   

Celia Pilkington and Harini Iyengar explain. 

In February 2015 the Global Law Summit to celebrate 800 years since Magna Carta takes place in London.   

Chairman-Elect of the Bar Council Alistair MacDonald QC explains. 

Emily Henderson looks at the cross-examining of vulnerable witnesses and asks whether this supposed jewel in the adversarial crown is being successfully reformed by the courts.  

Conventionally, cross-examination is regarded as the jewel in the adversarial crown. However, 30 years of empirical research has shown it to be highly unreliable as a means of investigating the evidence of vulnerable people in particular. 

Regaining the art of co-operation: Andrew Ritchie QC on the case for arbitration for personal injury and clinical negligence claims.  

Many shipping, building and commercial disputes are resolved by arbitration. So why is arbitration not used to resolve personal injury and clinical negligence claims? 

Of politics, schoolmasters and judges: Paul Marshall reflects upon the recent Court of Appeal decision in Denton v T H White and the fallout from the decision in Mitchell v News Group.  

If one settling a pillow by her head,  Should say, “That is not what I meant at all  That is not it, at all”  

T S Eliot, Prufrock 

The Independent Parliamentarians’ Inquiry into the Operation and Effectiveness of the Youth Court reported in June. Lord Carlile, who chaired the inquiry, explains its findings to Counsel.  

June 2014 saw the publication of a far reaching All Party Parliamentarians’ report on Youth Justice. 

Nathalie Lieven QC explains the Council of the Inns of Court’s first six funding scheme.  

As readers will know this is a very hard time for chambers that rely on publicly funded work, particularly those doing crime. One of the worst consequences of the extreme financial pressure that many chambers find themselves under has been a dramatic fall in the number of pupillages available, again particularly in criminal sets reliant on public funding. Although the reduction in pupillages is wholly understandable, it makes even worse the disparity between the number of people who complete their academic training but are unable to get a pupillage, and must place in jeopardy the future of the criminal Bar. 

Chris McWatters weighs up the pros and cons of a Law Commission proposal to make prenuptial agreements binding in court.  

Most fiancés would find the prospect of making a prenuptial agreement before their big day in church about as much in the joyful spirit of things as cold wet weather on the wedding morning. How can you make a holy vow to remain together for eternity, while at the same time calculating how the marital spoils should be divided if you separate?