30 June 2020
Criminal barristers have voted against cutting jury trials and overwhelmingly in favour of converting more buildings into courts
A high turnout (92% of the Criminal Bar) responded to a Criminal Bar Association (CBA) survey on jury trials and extended hours. Only six per cent would consider supporting restrictions on the right to trial by jury, but 83% were in favour of temporarily reducing jury numbers and two-thirds supported temporarily replacing the jury with a judge and two magistrates in either-way offences. 95% favoured the use of additional buildings outside the court estate. See the full results at: bit.ly/38fefts.
Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland revealed last week that legislation to allow trial without jury in certain categories of cases is being seriously considered.
A coalition of Young Legal Aid Lawyers, Society of Black Lawyers and other groups said this week that ‘abolishing juries for either-way offences under the guise of a COVID-19 emergency response is disingenuous and a threat to the integrity of our criminal justice system’, in a statement that highlighted the lack of judicial diversity.
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