Michael Zander KC, emeritus professor at LSE, revisits his long-forgotten Crown Court Study (1993), which surveyed 22,000 participants across 3,000 cases, in the first of a two-part series for NLJ
Decades later, its findings still resonate: 79% of jurors rated the system ‘good’ or ‘very good’, with near-universal praise for judges and advocates. Almost 90% thought judges performed ‘very well’ in fairness and control; most jurors found the evidence easy to follow and the verdict understandable.
Even convicted defendants viewed their lawyers favourably—around 70% rated solicitors positively.
Zander notes that such enduring confidence in juries, fairness and professionalism remains striking amid modern scepticism. His rediscovered data, now freely available online, offers a rare empirical snapshot of justice that still informs debates on juries, bias and courtroom performance.
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