The legislative framework Section 41 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA 2003) and CJA 2003, Sch 3 significantly amended the procedure to be followed by a magistrates'...
Procedure for either-way offences not sent forthwith to the Crown Court for trial: plea before venue and allocation Where the court decides that a case should be tried at...
The Code for Crown Prosecutors states that when making a decision to prosecute, consideration should be given to alternatives to prosecution. The two main alternatives to...
Any informal request or formal application for the return of property seized by an investigating authority during a criminal investigation will depend on the authority...
There are two kinds of burden: • the legal burden, and • the evidential burden The legal burden A party has the legal (sometimes called ‘the persuasive’) burden where the...
Coronavirus (COVID-19): This Practice Note contains guidance impacted by the Coronavirus Act 2020 (CA 2020). CA 2020, among other measures, makes provision for the...
The Crown Prosecution Service is the public prosecutor in the UK. It is led by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who reports to the Attorney General (AG). The...
Civil recovery of property, which represents criminal property derived from unlawful conduct Civil recovery is the name given to the powers under Part 5 of the Proceeds...
Civil recovery—enforcement abroad prior to the Crime and Courts Act 2013 Before the commencement of the Crime and Courts Act 2013, Schedule 18, Part 2 (CCA 2013) on the...
All criminal cases begin in the magistrates' court however serious the offence. There are a number of ways of commencing criminal proceedings in England and Wales: • the...
All criminal cases begin in the magistrates' court regardless of the seriousness of the offence. There are, however, a number of ways of commencing criminal proceedings...
The magistrates' court has wide-ranging powers to commit a defendant to the Crown Court for sentence. The magistrates' primary powers to commit apply if: • the court has...
Involvement of prosecutors in conditional cautions Conditional cautions were implemented by sections 22–27 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA 2003). They were intended...
Guidelines which apply when considering a charge The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) undertook to produce the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) Guidelines...
In both the magistrates’ court and the Crown Court, proceeding with a trial in the absence of the defendant is a last resort and is one which the courts will try to avoid...
What is a deferred prosecution agreement? A deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) is an agreement between an organisation and a designated prosecutor to enable the latter...
Initial details of the prosecution case (IDPC) The requirements for service and contents of the initial details of the prosecution case (IDPC) are governed by the...
This Practice Note summarises the Deferred Prosecution Agreement Code of Practice published by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on the...
Legal requirements of an information There are a number of ways of commencing criminal proceedings in England and Wales: • charge at the police station following arrest...
What amounts to the conclusion of criminal proceedings? A typical criminal case concludes with either an acquittal at the end of a trial, or a conviction and sentence...
Bench warrants The Bail Act 1976 (BA 1976) provides that if a defendant fails to appear at court to answer his bail, the court may issue a warrant for his arrest. This is...
Immunity under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 Since 1 April 2006 there has been a statutory framework for giving immunity. It was not intended that the...
Judicial review is the process by which the lawfulness of the decisions, acts or omissions of public bodies are challenged in the High Court. Judicial review is not...
What is a fixed penalty notice? The Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 (CJPA 2001) makes provision for fixed penalty notices in respect of specified disorderly...
Sections 444 and 445 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA 2002), provide the power to implement secondary legislation for the purposes of giving effect to requests...
STOP PRESS: The Private Prosecutors Association (PPA) has published the first edition of the Code for Private Prosecutors. The Code of Practice is voluntary but members...