What limits should be placed on cross-examination, asks Geoffrey Bindman
It is impossible not to feel sympathy for the parents of the murdered teenager Milly Dowler in their complaints of distress at their cross-examination at the trial of their daughter’s killer. Aggressive and callous treatment of such witnesses by advocates can never be justified. Evidently the Dowlers felt it as such, whatever may have been intended.
Advocates
There are serious questions about the role and conduct of advocates in our courts. On the one hand the advocate must be able to ask any question and put forward any argument that his client would be entitled to do. The lawyer’s job is to present the case of the defendant with skill and clarity, not to censor the defence.
On the other hand, the lawyer must observe professional standards which do not apply to the lay client.
Some years ago I was a witness at a costs hearing following a lengthy libel trial where I was solicitor for the successful plaintiff. The defendant, a national
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