Intermediaries in the Criminal Justice System


Book Description

This is the first book about the intermediary scheme, criminal justice’s untold ‘good news story’. Intermediaries are independent communication specialists who assist children and vulnerable adults at police interviews and trials, helping to improve the quality of their evidence and providing access to justice for those who previously had been excluded. Richly illustrated with case examples through intermediaries’ own descriptions of their work, the book also includes feedback from justice system personnel and over 70 judges. This unique book provides a comprehensive explanation of how intermediaries work in practice and gives ‘behind the scenes’ insights into the criminal process. It will be of interest to practitioners and the wider public in England and Wales and encourage consideration of the scheme elsewhere.




They Just Don't Get It


Book Description

The justice system is on a journey to improve effective participation of victims, witnesses, suspects and defendants who are deemed vulnerable and struggle with communicating in the police stations and in court. Read this book if* you think communication is important in our justice system;* you want to know more about how vulnerability is recognised and considered in our courts;* you wonder what it is like to sit in a crown court dock and not understand what is happening;* you care about vulnerable victims of sexual crimes being treated sensitively;* you would like to know more about Registered Intermediaries in the Justice System.Paula Backen is currently working as a Registered Intermediary with witnesses in the criminal courts, and as a non-Registered Intermediary with defendants and suspects in the criminal courts, parents in the family courts, and in Ministry of Defence cases. She travels the length and breadth of England and Wales, and occasionally Northern Ireland. She has presented at conference for the Family Law Bar Association, guest lectured to magistrates, judges, legal advisors and police across the country and contributed to The Advocates Gateway Toolkits. In this book, the first written by an Intermediary about this relatively new profession, Paula describes her experiences and those of the vulnerable people she has met.




Intermediaries in the Criminal Justice System


Book Description

This is the first book about the intermediary scheme, criminal justice’s untold ‘good news story’. Intermediaries are independent communication specialists who assist children and vulnerable adults at police interviews and trials, helping to improve the quality of their evidence and providing access to justice for those who previously had been excluded. Richly illustrated with case examples through intermediaries’ own descriptions of their work, the book also includes feedback from justice system personnel and over 70 judges. This unique book provides a comprehensive explanation of how intermediaries work in practice and gives ‘behind the scenes’ insights into the criminal process. It will be of interest to practitioners and the wider public in England and Wales and encourage consideration of the scheme elsewhere.




Oxford Handbook of Online Intermediary Liability


Book Description

To better understand the heterogeneity of the international online intermediary liability regime, The Oxford Handbook of Intermediary Liability Online is designed to provide a comprehensive, authoritative and 'state-of-the-art' discussion of by highlighting emerging trends. This book discusses fundamental legal issues in intermediary liability online, while also describing advancement in intermediary liability theory and identifying recent policy trends. Sections I and II provide a taxonomy of internet platforms, a general discussion of possible basis for liability and remedies, while putting into context intermediary liability regulation with fundamental rights and the ethical implications of the intermediaries' role. Section III presents a jurisdictional overview discussing intermediary liability safe harbour arrangements and highlighting issues with systemic fragmentation and miscellaneous inconsistent approaches. Mapping online intermediary liability worldwide entails the review of a wide-ranging topic, stretching into many different areas of law and domain-specific solutions. Section IV provides an overview of intermediate liability for copyright, trademark, and privacy infringement, together with Internet platforms' obligations and liabilities for defamation, hate and dangerous speech. Section V reviews intermediary liability enforcement strategies by focusing on emerging trends, including proactive monitoring obligations across the entire spectrum of intermediary liability subject matters, blocking orders against innocent third parties, and the emergence of administrative enforcement of intermediary liability online. In addition, Section VI discusses an additional core emerging trend in intermediary liability enforcement: voluntary measures and private ordering. Finally, international private law issues are addressed in Section VII with special emphasis on the international struggle over Internet jurisdiction and extra-territorial enforcement of intermediaries' obligations.







Vulnerable People and the Criminal Justice System


Book Description

Over the last 25 years there has been a growing recognition that the way in which cases involving the vulnerable are investigated, charged and tried needs to change. Successive judgments of the Court of Appeal have re-enforced the message that advocates and judges have a duty to ensure vulnerable witnesses and defendants are treated fairly and allowed to participate effectively in the process. How do practitioners recognise who is or may be vulnerable? How should that person be interviewed? What account should police and the CPS take of a defendant's vulnerabilities? How should advocates adjust their questioning of vulnerable witnesses and defendants whilst still complying with their duties to their client? How should judges manage a trial to ensure the effective participation of vulnerable witnesses and defendants? Vulnerable People and the Criminal Justice System, written by leading experts in the field, gathers together for the first time answers to these questions and many more. It provides a practical, informative and thought-provoking guide to recognising, assessing and responding to vulnerability in witnesses and defendants at each stage of the criminal process. Backed by authoritative research and first-hand experience and drawing on recent case law, this book enables practitioners to deal with cases involving vulnerable people with calmness, authority, and confidence.




Children and Cross-Examination


Book Description

In 2009, Stephen Barker was convicted of rape on the evidence of a little girl who was four-and-a-half years old at the trial, and about three-and-a-half when first interviewed by the police. The high point of the proceedings was the child's appearance as a live witness in order for Barker's counsel to attempt a cross-examination. This case focused attention on the need, imposed by current English law, for even tiny children to come to court for a live cross-examination. In 1989, the Pigot Committee proposed a scheme under which the whole of a young child's evidence, including cross-examination, would be obtained out of court and in advance of trial. In 1999 a provision designed to give effect to this was included in the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act, but it has not yet been brought into force. The full Pigot proposal was implemented, however, in Western Australia, and similar schemes operate in a number of European jurisdictions. This book of essays examines a number of these schemes, and argues the case for further reforms in the UK.




Participation in Courts and Tribunals


Book Description

Available Open Access under CC-BY-NC licence Effective participation in court and tribunal hearings is regarded as essential to justice, yet many barriers limit the capacity of defendants, parties and witnesses to participate. Featuring policy analysis, courtroom observations and practitioners’ voices, this significant study reveals how participation is supported in the courts and tribunals of England and Wales. Including reflections on changes to the justice system as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it also details the socio-structural, environmental, procedural, cultural and personal factors which constrain participation. This is an invaluable resource that makes a compelling case for a principled, explicit commitment to supporting participation across the justice system of England and Wales and beyond.




Exploring Vulnerability in the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales


Book Description

Providing a comparative analysis of both vulnerable witnesses and vulnerable suspects, this book discusses the increasingly difficult issue faced by many in modern policing, forensic psychology, criminology, and social justice studies. Examining recent legislation, guidance, current psychological theory, and contemporary research and literature, the book enhances the currently limited knowledge of vulnerability in the criminal justice system (CJS) through the presentation of theoretical understanding, case law and real-life case studies. It also explores how vulnerable victims, witnesses, and suspects progress through the system in England and Wales from initially being identified as vulnerable through to the measures used to assist them during interviews and at trial. In doing so, it provides a historical overview of how vulnerability has previously been considered, and how effective those with vulnerabilities were perceived to be in actively participating in the CJS. Further chapters consider how vulnerable individuals are safeguarded, the differences in services available to them, and what this may lead to in terms of effective participation in the system. How vulnerable groups are interviewed, what is considered best practice, and whether such practices are suitable also come under scrutiny. Exploring Vulnerability in the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales is important reading for students and scholars of policing, forensic psychology, criminology, and social justice studies. It will also be of use for any organisations that conduct internal investigations such as non-government organizations, security and defence organisations, and corporate organizations.




Understanding Restorative Justice


Book Description

This unique book is a clear and detailed introduction that analyses how restorative justice nurtures empathy, exploring key themes such as responsibility, shame, forgiveness and closure. The core notion of the book is that when a crime is committed, it separates people, creating a ‘gap’. This can only be reduced or closed through information and insight about the other person, which have the potential to elicit empathy and compassion from both sides. The book explores this extraordinary journey from harm to healing using the structure of a timeline: from an offence, through the criminal justice process and into the heart of the restorative meeting. Using case studies, the book offers a fresh angle on a topic that is of growing interest both in the UK and internationally. It is ideal as a comprehensive introduction for those new to restorative justice and as a best practice guide for existing practitioners.