Trial by Jury - On Death Row

WEBINAR

Date: 7th July 2020
Time: 5pm - 6.15pm
Format: via Zoom

This vitally important Webinar will address government proposals to restrict the right to trial by jury in the United Kingdom.

Trial by jury for serious offences is “more than an instrument of justice.” It is a right that has underpinned the Criminal Justice System for many centuries. 25 Bedford Row believes that the proper response to the Covid-19 crisis is not to alter, affect or suspend this right, however temporary the proposals may be, but to find alternative ways in which the Criminal Justice System can be re-opened.

The government has a responsibility to re-open the Crown courts, and to provide maximum facilities and resources to revive the criminal justice process. To impose curbs on such an important principle risks undermining the very premise upon which the right to be tried by one’s peers is based.

The expert panellists will discuss the grave proposals for substitution of jury trial by Judge only, or alternatively, Judge and two magistrates and the far-reaching consequences of government policy.

Based upon their different areas of expertise, the Webinar panellists will explain why “the lamp that shows that freedom lives” must continue to shine bright. 25 Bedford Row is determined not to allow trial by jury to become another needless victim of Covid-19. Such a huge miscarriage of justice must be avoided.

Chairperson: Jeremy Dein QC, Joint Head of Chambers, Head of Crime Group 25 Bedford Row.

Speakers:

Paul Mendelle QC: Joint Head of Chambers, 25 Bedford Row, Former Chair of the Criminal Bar Association.
Professor Cheryl Thomas QC (Hon): Professor of Judicial Studies at UCL Laws. Professor Thomas has conducted ground-breaking research in the UK and other jurisdictions on courts, judges and juries, and is the country’s leading expert.
Professor Luke Marsh: Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law, The Chinese University of Hong Kong and Door Tenant at 25 Bedford Row. Professor Marsh has held visiting positions at law schools including Oxford, Cambridge, Columbia in New York and the University of California, Los Angeles. Professor Marsh has published widely in the fields of criminal law and procedural justice. His latest book (with Mike McConville), The Myth of Judicial Independence: Criminal Justice and the Separation of Powers, recently published by Oxford University Press, provides a comprehensive examination of case disposal methods and criminal justice policies and practices. For more information see here.
Sushil Kumar: Barrister, 25 Bedford Row and First Tier Tribunal Judge.

NOTICES

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RECORDINGS

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