Lecturer: Miljen Matijašević
G10, room 6/I, Tue 11:30-12:30
e-mail: miljen.matijasevic@gmail.com
Session 8
1.
Revision of the last session
2.
Criminal Procedure in England
3.
Vocabulary work
The Legal Profession in
England
1.
Who are solicitors? Who are their clients?
2.
Where do solicitors usually work?
3.
What sort of work do they generally do?
4.
Do they appear in court? What is the right of
audience?
5.
How do you become a solicitor?
1.
Who are barristers? Who are their clients?
2.
What sort of work do they do?
3.
How are barristers referred to in court?
4.
How do you become a barrister?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Solicitors usually work in large firms or ................ , while
barristers usually work alone.
In court, barristers are referred to as ................ .
Solicitors prepare ................ and then instruct barristers, so that
they could represent the ................ client in the court of law.
- Can you appear in the Appeal Court? – No, I’m a ................ but
my firm would instruct a ................ If a case were to go to the
Appeal Court.
– I’m looking for a lawyer to help me buy some land for a
business. – My firm can help you to ................ contracts.
- We’ve had some trouble in the past with getting large invoices
paid. – We can do ................ . If your case goes to court, we have
................ and I can ................ in the lower courts.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Solicitors usually work in large firms or PARTNERSHIPS, while
barristers usually work alone.
In court, barristers are referred to as COUNSEL.
Solicitors prepare BRIEFS and then instruct barristers, so that they
could represent the LAY client in the court of law.
- Can you appear in the Appeal Court? – No, I’m a SOLICITOR but
my firm would instruct a BARRISTER. If a case were to go to the
Appeal Court.
– I’m looking for a lawyer to help me buy some land for a
business. – My firm can help you to DRAFT contracts.
- We’ve had some trouble in the past with getting large invoices
paid. – We can do ADVOCACY. If your case goes to court, we have
THE RIGHT OF AUDIENCE and I can APPEAR in the lower courts.
Complete the table with the words from the same family
VERB
NOUN
NOUN (person)
Partner
Partnership
Partner
Trainee
Advise
Practice
specialise
Complete the table with the words from the same family
VERB
NOUN
NOUN (person)
Partner
Partnership
Partner
Train
Traineeship/
Training
Trainee
Advise
Advice
Adviser
Practise
Practice
Practitioner
Specialise
Specialism
Specialist
How to Become a Solicitor (6:37)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZDEsYZMpMw

Spotlight on: Becoming a Barrister (2:14)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVBYmfItyCk

My Life as a Barrister (3:41)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyaXyDSyIYY

Silks and Barristers (4:42)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rHZzjcRB3g

Unit 10
CRIMINAL LAW

deals with certain forms of conduct for
which the state reserves punishment,
such as murder and theft
the parties (UK):
◦ THE CROWN – i.e. the state
e.g. R v Collins – the Crown against Collins
R stands for ‘Regina’, i.e. ‘Rex’, latin: Queen or King
◦ DEFENDANT – the person being prosecuted, the
alleged criminal

the state is the prosecutor

has interest in fighting crime


criminal justice is administered with the
help of the police
the police investigate a crime, apprehend
suspects and detain them in custody




direct impact on the criminal procedure
The Human Rights Act 1998 introduced the
rights laid down in the European Convention
on Human rights (Art 5 and 6) into English
law in 2000
introduces provisions governing the right to a
fair trial, presumption of innocence (Art 6)
and the right to liberty and security (Art 5)
all English statute and case law must now be
measured against these provisions
1.
2.
In the determination of his civil rights and obligations
and of any criminal charge against him, everyone is
entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable
time by an independent and impartial tribunal
established by law. Judgment shall be pronounced
publicly but the press and public may be excluded from
all or part of the trial in the interests of morals, public
order or national security in a democratic society, where
the interests of juveniles or the private life of the parties
so require, or to the extent strictly necessary in the
opinion of the court in special circumstances where
publicity would prejudice the interests of justice.
Everyone charged with a criminal offence shall be
presumed innocent until proved guilty according to the
law.


governs matters pertaining to unlawful arrest and detention
and lays down the conditions under which an individual can
be deprived of his or her liberty
It also provides that everyone who has been the victim of
arrest or detention in contravention of the provisions of this
Article has an enforceable right to compensation.
Most prosecutions undertaken by:

◦
Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)
Other special prosecution bodies:

◦
Serious Fraud Office (SFO)
◦
Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA)
STANDARD OF PROOF

in criminal trials, the burden of proof
is on the prosecution, who, unlike in
civil trials, must prove guilt beyond
reasonable doubt




upon investigation of a criminal act, the
police may apprehend suspects and decide
whether the offender should be
prosecuted
if so, a file is sent to the CPS
CPS then decides whether there is a
realistic prospect of conviction
they must be sure that the evidence is
legally admissible and reliable.



next they must consider whether a
prosecution would be in the public interest
criminal proceedings may be initiated by
the serving of a requisition to appear in
court (a.k.a. summons), or a warrant of
arrest, issued by a magistrates’ court
prosecution is not initiated in all cases, but
the offender may only be cautioned


in many cases of petty crimes, instead of
being prosecuted, offenders receive a police
caution
this is an official warning intended to:
◦ deter first-time offenders from re-offending, i.e.
committing the act another time
◦ remove the necessity of a court appearance
◦ deal quickly with less serious offenders

this is not a conviction, but results in a
criminal record – may be considered in future
trials as evidence of bad character


the defendant has a right not to say
anything, both in the police station and at
trial
since the entry into force of the Criminal
Justice and Public Order Act 1994, the
silence may be adversely interpreted in the
court, i.e. the silence can be taken as an
indicator of possible guilt on the part of
the defendant


the requirement to disclose all evidence
and defence/prosecution materials to the
other party in the proceedings
“It is a fundamental aspect of the right to a
fair trial that criminal proceedings (...)
should be adversarial and that there
should be equality of arms between the
prosecution and defence.“ (Rowe v UK)
however, the European Court of Human
Rights warned that “entitlement to
disclosure of relevant evidence is not an
absolute right”

three factors that justify withholding of
evidence:

◦
national security
◦
protection of witnesses
◦
preserving secrecy in police investigations

There are three categories of criminal offence in the UK:
Summary offences (or petty crimes)
1.
◦
least serious criminal offences; triable in magistrates’
courts; jury trial not available
Indictible offences
2.
◦
most serious offences, triable in the Crown Court; more
severe penalties are available: trial by jury
Triable either way
3.
◦
criminal offences triable either in magistrates’ court or in
the Crown Court
cases are brought before a magistrate’s
court

The defendant enters a plea

If he pleads not guilty the court evaluates
the case and may

◦
proceed to trial and sentence
◦
decide that the matter is too complex or serious for their
jurisdiction
if the case is found to be more serious, it
is committed to the Crown Court, where
more severe penalties are available, as well
as a jury trial

A case can be committed to the Crown
Court:

◦
for trial
◦
only for sentencing after a conviction in the
magistrates’ court


95% of criminal cases are categorized as
summary offences and dealt with by
magistrates’ courts
these offences include: traffic violations,
drunk and disorderly behaviour, assaults,
minor criminal damage cases, cases
prosecuted by government departments or
agencies

if the defendant pleads guilty upon being
charged, court appearance is avoided

‘No case to answer’ also available




these offences include theft, drug offences, some
acts of violence against the person
the defendant given the option to select the mode
of trial – summary trial or trial on indictment in the
Crown Court (before a jury)
they must be well informed of the procedures and
possible penalties for each of the modes
the court may, on the other hand, deem the case
too complex or serious and refer it to the Crown
Court, seeing as more severe penalties are
available there





serious offences, such as rape, murder, fraud etc.
trial by indictment – the Crown Court – before a
jury
pre-trial legal argument stage – beneficial for the
accused because the case can be dismissed before
trial due to unreliable evidence or witnesses
the judge has to assess whether the evidence is
sufficient for a possible conviction by jury
if a ‘not guilty’ plea is entered, and the evidence is
considered reliable, the case proceeds to trial





a jury of 12 is sworn in
after cross-examination, the judge sums up the
evidence and the facts of the case to the jury and
the jury retires
unanimous verdict – no longer required, but
instead a majority of 10 out of 12 jurors
if more than 2 jurors are opposed – ‘hung jury’ –
trial abandoned
if the jury convicts, the judge proceeds to
sentence
1.
a discharge
2.
a fine
3.
a community service order
(conviction without punishment)
(doing unpaid work,
receiving treatment for addictions, rehabilitation programmes,
supervision)
4.
a custodial (prison) sentence
5.
a suspended prison sentence (probation)
-
prison sentence activated only if the convict reoffends within a
certain period of time



Maximum prison
sentence: 6 months for
one offence, 12
months total
Maximum fine: £5,000
Magistrate’s court

Juries find defendants
not guilty more often
than magistrates
Harder to convince 10
jurors of guilt beyond
reasonable doubt than
1-3 magistrates
Crown court
Explain and translate the following legal terms:
1.
INDICTABLE OFFENCE
2.
OFFENDER
3.
RE-OFFEND
4.
REALISTIC PROSPECT OF CONVICTION
5.
LEGALLY ADMISSIBLE AND REALIABLE EVIDENCE
6.
WARRANT OF ARREST
7.
UNLAWFUL ARREST
8.
DEPRIVE sbd OF LIBERTY
Explain and translate the following legal terms:
1.
INDICTABLE OFFENCE – teško kazneno djelo
2.
OFFENDER – počinitelj kaznenog djela
3.
RE-OFFEND – ponovno počiniti kazneno djelo
4.
REALISTIC PROSPECT OF CONVICTION – realne šanse za osudu
5.
LEGALLY ADMISSIBLE AND REALIABLE EVIDENCE – pravno
prihvatljivi i pouzdani dokazi
6.
WARRANT OF ARREST – uhidbeni nalog, nalog za uhićenje
7.
UNLAWFUL ARREST – protupravno uhićenje
8.
DEPRIVE sbd OF LIBERTY – lišiti nekoga slobode
Explain and translate the following legal terms
1.
SUMMARY OFFENCE
2.
TRAFFIC VIOLATION
3.
PLEA
4.
CROSS-EXAMINATION
5.
ACQUITTAL
6.
INITIATE A CRIMINAL PROCEEDING
7.
PROVE GUILT BEYOND REASONABLE DOUBT
8.
ALLEGED CRIMINAL
Explain and translate the following legal terms
1.
SUMMARY OFFENCE – lakše kazneno djelo
2.
TRAFFIC VIOLATION – prometni prekršaj
3.
PLEA – izjašnjavanje o krivnji
4.
CROSS-EXAMINATION – unakrsno ispitivanje
5.
ACQUITTAL – oslobođenje optužbe
6.
7.
8.
INITIATE A CRIMINAL PROCEEDING – pokrenuti kazneni
postupak
PROVE GUILT BEYOND REASONABLE DOUBT – dokazati krivnju
izvan svake sumnje
ALLEGED CRIMINAL – navodni počinitelj kaznenog djela
Thank you for your attention!