Criminal

The legal profession's leaders have mounted a robust defence of trial by jury, following reports that Justice Secretary David Lammy is considering restricting it to rape, murder, manslaughter and other cases that are in the public interest

The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has referred three murder convictions to the Court of Appeal after reviewing arguments that the prosecution relied on a stereotyped ‘gang narrative’

Prisoners are in a ‘state of disrepair’ with overcrowding and dilapidated buildings having a ‘profound impact on the ability of prisons to deliver rehabilitation’, MPs have warned

The senior manager test—as set out in the Crime and Policing Bill—prioritises deterrence over strict legal fairness, writes Tom McNeill

Sir Brian Leveson has warned MPs the criminal court system ‘cannot survive as it presently is’

In NLJ this week, Sailesh Mehta and Theo Burges of Red Lion Chambers examine the government’s first-ever 'Afghan leak' super-injunction—used to block reporting of data exposing Afghans who aided UK forces and over 100 British officials. Unlike celebrity privacy cases, this injunction centred on national security. Its use, the authors argue, signals the rise of a vast new body of national security law spanning civil, criminal, and media domains

The Afghan leak super-injunction highlights the growing body of national security law spanning ever-increasing areas of practice, write Sailesh Mehta & Theo Burges

The UK’s anti-money laundering supervisory regime is facing significant change: Mark Evans, president of the Law Society, sets out what this means for its members

Criminal silk Richard Wright KC will lead an urgent independent review of stalking laws, the Home Office has announced