In Focus

Practitioners should be well aware by now of the changes to sentencing practice brought about by Part 1 of the Sentencing Act 2026 with effect from 22 March 2026, significant among which is the presumption in favour of a suspended sentence order for...

Talking heads relied on by the media have invariably described the offence of misconduct in public office as hard to prove. Is that right and, if so, what does it signify? As a common law offence, it has evolved in case law. Although prosecutions misconduct...

Sentencing Principles Presumption of Suspended Sentences for sentences under 12 months [Comes into force 22 March 2026] The SA2026 represents a welcome move towards widening the breadth of sentences that can be served in the community. There will now be...

In a recent case before Southwark Crown Court, R v Pearce , which concerned two counts of misconduct in public office, HHJ Baumgartner found that a Metropolitan Police (MPS) employee was not a “public officer” within the meaning of the law. The...

The latest available figures at the time of writing point to the estate for male prisoners in England and Wales being at near full capacity; approximately 99%. In order to ease the burden of our overcrowded prisons, between October 2023 and June 2025...

Those working in the criminal justice system (CJS) and directly with defendants will be familiar with the shock, uncertainty, and fear that can accompany prosecution. For neurodiverse defendants, the court process can be all the more confusing and stressful....

TOM HAYES AND CARLO PALOMBO: THE LIBOR/EURIBOR SAGA - THE FINAL CHAPTER Mr Hayes was the first person to be prosecuted by the SFO in connection with attempts to influence key benchmark rates of interest used in financial markets; in his case the...

In a case decided last year, the Court of Appeal upended the evidential status (as generally understood) of defence statements so significantly that every criminal practitioner will want to master the consequences. The case is R v Roehrig [2024] EWCA Crim...

In this major article,  Rudi Forston KC surveys the proposed changes to the PoCA regime to be brought about when and if the Crime and Policing Bill passes into law. The changes are significant. All criminal practitioners will be grateful for the...

The Crime and Policing Bill 2025 creates a raft of new criminal offences from possession of blades, points, offensive blades weapons with intent, offences of child criminal exploitation, encouraging or assisting serious self -harm, concealing one’s...