Criminal

Robust legislation is needed to tackle the online advertising of prostitution, Lesley Manley, barrister at Church Court Chambers, urges in this week’s NLJ. New laws have been mooted, and must be ‘enforceable and effective’ and ‘avoid any unintended consequences’, she writes.

Peter Sullivan has had his conviction quashed, after serving 38 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.

Neil Parpworth shares his reaction to the Charter for Londoners

The Crime and Policing Bill is a monster—running to 317 pages and with 137 clauses! Helpfully, Michael Zander KC, NLJ columnist and Emeritus Professor, LSE, has summarised the key provisions. In this week’s NLJ, he presents part one of his guide.

The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has been widely criticised, notably for its mishandling of the case of Andrew Malkinson (pictured), who spent 17 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. This culminated in the Law Commission’s recent proposal that the CCRC’s ‘real possibility’ referral test be replaced. But not everyone agrees. In this week’s NLJ, Professor Graham Zellick, who chaired the CCRC from 2003 to 2008, mounts a strong defence of the test.

Professor Graham Zellick KC, the Criminal Cases Review Commission’s second chairman, argues that the Law Commission’s proposal is wrong

Respect orders, cuckooing & more: Michael Zander KC reports on the provisions of the mammoth Crime & Policing Bill

Corporates who self-report wrongdoing ‘promptly’ will be able to negotiate a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) rather than face prosecution, unless ‘exceptional circumstances’ apply.

Two brothers have been sentenced at Southwark Crown Court in the first-ever UK prosecution of Russian sanction breaches.

The former Lord Chief Justice Lord Burnett, former Lady Justice of Appeal Dame Anne Rafferty and former director of public prosecutions Max Hill KC have backed the creation of an intermediate criminal court consisting of a judge and two magistrates.