Crime Brief

CRIMINAL PROCEDURE RULES

The Law Society has published a practice note detailing solicitors’ duties under the Criminal Procedure Rules (CrimPR). The purpose of the practice note is to provide assistance to the profession in seeking to define the extent of duties and burdens under the rules, and to identify and address the ethical problems that are likely to arise from their imposition. It examines the following: (i) the solicitor’s duty to the court; (ii) the solicitor, the client and the court, “a divided loyalty”; (iii) the CrimPR; and (iv) the approach of the court towards solicitors under CrimPR (see www.lawsociety.org.uk).

Rule amendments

The second amendment to the CrimPR 2005 was implemented on 1 October 2007. The following changes are made:
- A new Pt 65 (appeal to the Court of Appeal: general rules), in substitution for the existing Pt 65 (appeal to the Court of Appeal against ruling in preparatory hearing). The rules that relate to an appeal against a ruling in a preparatory hearing are found in the new Pt 66.