Category Archives: News

The Sentencing Council has published a significantly revised version of the Imposition of community and custodial sentences guideline.  It’s application may result in few people going to prison straight away.

This, in reality, new guideline sets out the guidance that magistrates and judges must follow when imposing community orders and custodial sentences, including deciding whether a custodial sentence can be suspended. Is is not isIt has been developed through public consultation and comes into effect on 1 April 2025.

The Guideline reminds courts that sentencers must have regard to the five purposes of sentencing when determining sentence.  These are:

• The punishment of offenders
• The reduction of crime (including its reduction by deterrence)
• The reform and rehabilitation of offenders
• The protection of the public
• The making of reparation by offenders to persons affected by their offences

Sentencers are reminded that ‘the weight each purpose should be given will vary from case to case. Both community and custodial sentences can achieve all the purposes of sentencing.’

Although a restriction on liberty will sometimes be necessary to safeguard victims and/or the public.   The Guideline stresses that ‘a restriction on liberty can be achieved by a community or a custodial sentence.’

The Guideline talks about the importance of pre-sentence report in helping the court make the correct decision on sentence.  It appears to stress that any sentencing decision should be tailored to the individual.

This could signal a more flexible approach that results in fewer people going to prison.  The Guideline stresses this:

“Passing the custody threshold does not mean that a custodial sentence (whether immediate or suspended) is inevitable. Custody should not be imposed where the purposes of sentencing could be achieved by a community order or where circumstances exist which may make a custodial sentence disproportionate to achieving the purposes of sentencing (for example, where there would be an impact on dependants, including on unborn children where the offender is pregnant.)”

The Guideline also reminds sentencers of their power of deferment and when this might be most appropriate:

“A deferment order is available to a magistrates’ court or the Crown Court. It delays the passing of a sentence until a date specified by the court which must be within 6 months. The court may impose deferment requirements as to the offender’s conduct during the period of deferment.

Deferring sentencing may be particularly appropriate for young adults (typically 18-25 years of age) or those who are in transitional life circumstances.”

We will be reviewing in detail the potential effect of these guidelines on the approach to sentence.

Category Archives: News

False Imprisonment

“Stupid and white”

Were the police really distressed?

The lessons of the case are that when one is speaking to the police it is essential to mind your exact words. If you are a taxi driver, the best advice is to call the police and wait for them to arrive rather than taking your passengers to the police station.

All people should be careful not to use racist or offensive words in all circumstances not just for social and political reasons, but also to avoid having brushes with the law.

Category Archives: News

A new Crime and Policing Bill is due before Parliament for the first time on 25 February 2025.    The Government claim that “the new bill will help tackle the crimes that matter most to communities but have been ignored for too long.”  

The governments sets out the background to the measures – “the year ending September 2024, police recorded one million incidents of antisocial behaviour. In the same period, they recorded over 490,000 shop theft offences, an increase of 23 percent over the previous 12-month period. Instances of theft from a person increased by 22 percent, while there were also over 55,000 recorded offences involving a knife or sharp instrument.”

It is proposed under new warrantless powers of entry  that police will be able to enter premises where stolen phone locations can be identified through a ‘find my phone’ app, WiFi access points, Bluetooth, mobile network technology or tracking devices attached to any other possession or vehicle.

Two aspects of the Bill will propose a separate offence of assault upon shop workers and previous legislation restricting shop thefts with a value of less than £200 to the Magistrates’ Court will be scrapped.

Respect Orders are proposed. These appear to be a re-branded form of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs).  They will be used in conjunction with new powers to seize off-road bikes used in parks and e-scooters used on pavements.

Stalking Protection Orders are to be strengthened, along with a new offence covering spiking and a law preventing registered sex offenders from changing their names while still a risk.

The Bill seeks to Implement a recommendation of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, creating a new duty to report child sexual abuse, backed up by criminal penalties for those who seek to cover up abuse.

A full summary of the proposals in the Crime and Policing Bill can be found here.

Contact one of our expert criminal lawyers

It is clear that the Crime and Policing Bill will once more amend the law and bring in a host of new offences.  Our solicitors are able to advise you in relation to any aspect of the new or existing laws.  Please do not hesitate to contact us if you are facing an investigation or prosecution.

Advice and representation in a police interview under caution will always be free of charge to you.

Legal Aid will often be available to defend court proceedings.

We have offices across the East Midlands.

Contact your nearest office here. 

Alternatively you can use the contact form below

Category Archives: News

Sentencing guidelines now exist for a wide range of offences.  New guidelines that govern the imposition of driving disqualifications have been published and will affect all cases sentenced after 1 April 2025.

The new guidelines can be found here.

Much of the guidelines simply restate what are the established rules.  One effect of the guidelines might be to encourage Magistrates or Judges to impose discretionary re-tests (or extended re-tests) for allegations not obviously captured by such a sentence before.

Paragraph 21 of the new guideline says:

“Where there is discretion to order a re-test (whether extended or ordinary), the court may wish to do so where there is evidence of inexperience, incompetence or infirmity, or the disqualification period (with or without a period in custody) is lengthy, meaning the offender is going to be ‘off the road’ for a considerable time.”

This will be important for drivers because as the guideline also sets out:

“The extended retest costs the offender double the amount of the standard practical test. It contains the same elements as the ordinary practical test, but will always be more than 60 minutes in duration, and will always include an emergency stop exercise and driving on roads where the national speed limit applies.”

Our role is to be aware of changes of emphasis within Sentencing Guidelines and tailor persuasive arguments to allow the sentencer to avoid or minimise driving disqualifications where the circumstances permit.  This may involve gathering helpful information relating to the effect of a driving ban or your character.

Contact an expert in road traffic law

Individuals may be at greater risk of driving disqualifications until re-test are passed. We have offices across the East Midlands and will happily travel across the country to provide representation for all types of offences.  Follow the link for contact details.

Alternatively you can use the contact form below.

Category Archives: News

In the ongoing battle against crime, the Police now seem to be keen on prosecuting drivers for offences involving messages on car stickers.  Are they caught up in the culture wars?

A woman appeared in Chester Magistrates’ Court and pleaded not guilty to a public order offence. The case involves a car sticker with a message saying, “Don’t be a c*nt”. It could be argued that the local police ignored the advice.

She has been prosecuted under Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 which makes it a crime to use threatening or abusive words or behaviour or to display such behaviour within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress.
It will be interesting to see how the Court resolves the charge. But this is part of a rising trend for people to be targeted by the police regarding messages on social media, t-shirts and on car stickers.

During Brexit many police offices advised motorists to remove badges which said “b*ll*cks to Brexit”. Whether they could have successfully prosecuted for such behaviour is a moot point.

In 1978 in Nottingham, a record store manager was prosecuted for displaying the classic Sex Pistols album, “Never mind the b*ll*cks, here’s the Sex Pistols”. The case was successfully defended by John Mortimer QC who called a professor to show that the offending word was not actually offensive, bearing in mind its derivation from Old English.

At the time of their initial success, the band Inspiral Carpets earned some notoriety for their squiggly-eyed cow ‘Cool as F**k’ T-shirts; a student at Oxford Polytechnic was prosecuted for wearing one.

Recently, a Manchester United supporter was warned by the Police about a sticker which read “On the first day God created United, then completely f*cked up and created City”. She agreed to inserting an asterisk, as have we.

There is a debate to be had about how far the police should get involved with jokes that may be in poor taste, and which would arguably not offend most people. There is a debate to be had as to where to draw the line with people who swear or say offensive things at football matches where traditionally swearing has been tolerated.

In the meantime, if you want to buy a car badge, or a t-shirt with a message. You should consider whether the message could be viewed as abusive and likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress. The safest bet is probably to use a judicious asterisk!

Contact one of our expert criminal lawyers

Caught up in the culture wars? Our solicitors are able to advise you in relation to any aspect of the laws concerning public displays of material that may be viewed offensive. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you are facing an investigation or prosecution.

Advice and representation in a police interview under caution will always be free of charge to you.

Legal Aid will often be available to defend court proceedings.

We have offices across the East Midlands.

Contact your nearest office here. 

Alternatively you can use the contact form below

Category Archives: News

If you are being sentenced for an offence, the court will be aware of, and may take into account, any previous convictions you have. Whether this has any impact upon the sentence passed will very much depend on the date of those convictions and the relevance of any to the more recent offending.

If you plead not guilty, the court or jury can only be made aware of any convictions in certain circumstances. The relevant law is known as the ‘bad character provisions’.

What are the circumstances?

Prior to these provisions being introduced the court could be made aware of any bad character by way of similar fact evidence. So, for example, if a burglar had a particular or unusual way of committing offences, a Modus Operandi or MO, the detail could be given to the trial court. Whilst there were other ways in which evidence of bad character could be admitted, the general presumption was against evidence of previous convictions being used.

The new provisions expanded on the old law.

A defendant’s previous convictions may be admitted in court in the following circumstances:

• all parties agree
• a defendant introduces them himself
• it is relevant to an important matter in issue between the defendant and the prosecution
• it has substantial probative value in relation to an important matter in issue between the defendant and a co-defendant
• it is necessary to correct a false impression given by the defendant
• the defendant has made an attack on another person’s character

If you said in evidence when charged with theft, that you would never steal anything, and you had convictions for theft, it would mean the court is likely to be told about them.

If you called the prosecution witness a liar, you might find your convictions before the court.

As with the old law, any convictions based on your ‘MO’ could also be introduced. So, if you have previous convictions for burglary and are now charged with burglary, the prosecution may apply to admit this evidence.

Does this only apply to defendants?

You can also make an application for the bad character of a non-defendant or witness to be out before the court in certain circumstances.  Prosecution guidance as to disclosure of third party bad character evidence is here.

Instructing a specialist in bad character evidence

The law in respect of the bad character provisions is extremely complicated, there is extensive case law on the subject and this article is a very brief overview. Some practitioners are of the view that there is little that can be done to avoid bad character evidence being admitted – this is not something that we agree with, no concession should be made unless and until a detailed analysis of the circumstances has been carried out.

We can oppose any application on your behalf or make an application for a non-defendant’s character to be introduced.

We have the knowledge and experience to make these arguments on your behalf and guide you through the process.

The introduction, or otherwise, of any convictions may play a crucial part in the outcome of any trial.

Legal Aid will often be available to defend court proceedings.

We have offices across the East Midlands.

Contact your nearest office here. 

Alternatively you can use the contact form below

Category Archives: News

Much of a solicitor’s time will be spent with cases at the police station, the Magistrates’ or Crown Court.  Occasionally cases proceed further to the High Court, Court of Appeal or even the Supreme Court.

Magistrates’ Court solicitor Ian Carter recently represented clients  before Nottingham Magistrate’s Court in a trial that raised a point of law relating to police powers.  The decision to dismiss the case by the District Judge was subject to a prosecution appeal to the High Court.

In DPP v Price and Darby [2024] EWHC 2864 (Admin) the High Court was asked to consider whether the relatively new offence of Assault upon an Emergency Worker introduced in 2018, was substantially different an alternative offence of assaulting a Constable in the execution of their duty.

A first obvious difference is that the new offence covers all emergency workers and not just police officers. While the reality is that the vast majority of cases will involve assaults upon the police, the offence includes, for example, fire fighters or ambulance workers.

A more subtle difference is in the wording – for an assault on a police officer it had to be shown that he was acting at all times in the exercise of his duties.  This is construed as ‘strictly lawfully’ in exercising police powers. If an officer made an honest mistake in terms of wrongly detaining a person or wrongfully trespassing on private property, then it was a clear defence to the charge where an individual had used reasonable force in response to the unlawful act.

The new charge instead contains a broader wording – the emergency worker must simply be acting in their functions as an emergency worker.  Initially, it was perhaps thought that this change of wording may have made no difference.

The case of Darby and in the preceding case of Campbell v DPP it was held that the fact that a policeman was not acting lawfully did not necessarily mean that they were acting outside their functions.

The question for the court in the Darby case was whether the absence of a formal complaint of criminal damage from Price meant that police were acting outside their function as emergency workers when they entered the property to arrest Price.

The correct approach for any court when considering cases involving the exercise of police powers .  While an officer committing an offence may well be acting outside their functions as an emergency worker, unlawfulness is not decisive as to whether an officer is or is not acting within their function of an emergency worker.  It is simply a relevant factor.

As a result, the law had become more difficult for people who find themselves being subjects of unlawful exercise of police powers.  Absent any bad faith on behalf of the officers, it will perhaps be difficult to show that officers were acting outside the functions of their role.

Contact one of our expert criminal lawyers

Such cases will often require a detailed analysis of police powers in any given situation.  You will wish to seek expert advice on such points.  Please do not hesitate to contact us if you are facing an investigation or prosecution.

Advice and representation in a police interview under caution will always be free of charge to you.

Legal Aid will often be available to defend court proceedings.

We have offices across the East Midlands.

Contact your nearest office here. 

Alternatively you can use the contact form below

Category Archives: News

Measures have been signed into law this week to ban the keeping of primates as pets.  There are a number of reasons why keeping primates in a domestic setting is problematic.

The legislation brings in a licensing scheme setting strict rules to ensure that only private keepers who meet new welfare and licensing standards will be able to keep primates, delivering on a government manifesto commitment and Action Plan for Animal Welfare pledge to provide greater legal protection for pet primates.

The measures come into force on 6 April 2025, when all primates in England will need to be kept to these zoo-level standards, in effect banning the practice of keeping primates as pets.

It is estimated that up to 5,000 primates are currently kept in domestic settings as pets in the UK. These wild animals have complex welfare and social needs and, according to most experts, cannot be adequately cared for in these environments. The new measures will improve the welfare of potentially thousands of these intelligent animals.

What is the relevant legislation?

The new rules are contained within The Animal Welfare (Primate Licences) (England) Regulations 2023.

What is the penalty for breaking the rules?

There are two potential offences to be considered under The Animal Welfare Act 2006.

• Section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 makes it an offence for a person who is responsible for an animal to cause the animal unnecessary suffering. This offence carries up to five years imprisonment.
• Section 9 requires a person who is responsible for an animal to provide for the animal’s welfare needs in line with good practice. This offence carries up to 6 months imprisonment.

In addition, the 2023 Regulations create an offence of not complying with a licence condition which carries a maximum penalty of an unlimited fine.

How can we help?

If you require advice or representation in relation to any aspect of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 then please contact an expert criminal solicitor at one of our offices.

Alternatively you can use the contact form below.

Category Archives: News

Many people ask the question ‘should you represent yourself in court?’  This is in many cases because they know they are not eligible for legal aid or perhaps think they are not eligible.  People make this decision often without checking the position with a solicitor.

A recent study by Dr Charlotte Walker of York St John University revealed the following:

“In this study, in Court A, in 80 out of 220 (36%) hearings, the defendant appeared unrepresented; and in Court B, this was the case in 25 out of 183 (14%) hearings.

The defendants appeared without legal representation in 105 out of 403 (26%) hearings in total, which represents a significant minority.

Based upon the observations and interviews, this was due to a range of reasons including financial factors; defendants not wanting to delay proceedings; and defendants not seeing the value of having a lawyer.”

We accept that not everyone necessarily needs to be represented in court.  However, if legal aid is available then this is an entitlement.  It makes sense to ensure that all angles are covered.

It is perhaps ironic that some of the seemingly more basic cases, such as road traffic prosecutions, often throw up the trickiest legal issues.

According to Dr Walker, numerous studies have found that unrepresented defendants tend to struggle to represent themselves in court (Dell [1971], McBarnet [1981], Shapland [1981], Transform Justice [2016], Walker [2021]).

Can I afford legal representation?

If you are eligible for legal aid in the magistrates’ court, there is no cost to you. In the crown court, a contribution may be payable depending on your income. We can tell you in advance what the rules are in this regard.

You can read more about the legal aid schemes here.

Where legal aid is not available, many people are surprised at just how affordable “private representation” is. Many people have the idea that solicitors charge many hundreds of pounds per hour, and whilst a few do in corporate and commercial work, the pricing in criminal law is much more competitive and fixed fees are commonly offered for many cases.

You can read more about some of our fixed fees here.

There is no one answer to funding your criminal case, but you should always contact us for free to find out your funding options in detail. You have nothing to lose by doing so.

Contact an expert criminal defence lawyer

Before you have to ask the question ‘should you represent yourself in court’ contact one of our criminal defence solicitors at your nearest office.

Alternatively use the contact form below:

Category Archives: News

On Friday 23 February 2024 partner Denney Lau had the honour and privilege of hosting the 147th President’s Annual Dinner for the Sheffield and District Law Society.  Denney has been president for the last year.

In an inspirational speech before the attendees, Denney acknowledged his progress from a humble background where he was the first in his family to attend University.

Upon arrival in the United Kingdom as an immigrant, he was unable to speak the language and was, in effect, ‘without a voice’.  He became a solicitor to provide others with a voice and ensure their right to be heard.  Having embarked on that course, however,  he never imagined he would be the holder of such a prestigious position.

Denney extended his thanks to all of his fellow lawyers for continuing to provide people with that voice, and attending the dinner to make it such a special occasion.

As well as presenting an opportunity for local lawyers to get together, awards were given to those locally who have excelled in their respective specialisms.