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In the crown court, while a fine is not the most common punishment meted out, when they are imposed they tend to be very large. Do I have to pay the fine all at once? Sometimes a court will order full payment (and may give a period of time for this to be completed), but … Continued

When clients turn their mind to what punishment they might receive if they plead guilty to, or are convicted of, a criminal offence, in most cases the thought is whether it might be a prison sentence, a community penalty, or a hefty fine. Sentencing Is Its Own Risky Business – The Hidden Penalty While the … Continued

The High Court has given judgment in the first of what are referred to as ‘right to be forgotten’ cases. The ‘Right to Be Forgotten’ – An Unsatisfactory Score Draw Two applicants referred to in the judgment as NT1 and NT2 had been convicted in the past of a criminal offence. In both cases, the … Continued

The law of self-defence is again in the spotlight following the case of 78-year-old Richard Osborn-Brooks who was briefly investigated after the fatal stabbing of a burglar who entered his property. Mr Osborn-Brooks woke in the early hours to find two men in his house and stabbed one of the intruders in the upper body, … Continued

The DBS is a government organisation responsible for the reporting of convictions and other information to employers and other relevant organisations. What Data is Held? The DBS holds three classes of information: Class 1: spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings Class 2: class 1 information plus police intelligence information (for example the … Continued

In Entick v Carrington (1765), a case concerning the entry to and searching of premises, the court ruled: “…if this is law it would be found in our books, but no such law ever existed in this country; our law holds the property of every man so sacred, that no man can set his foot … Continued

The unlawful death of a child is always a deeply traumatic act and one that shakes any society to its core. For some parents, it represents not only a deeply personal and tragic loss but the beginning of a nightmare. The reality in most murder and manslaughter cases is that the perpetrator is known, and close … Continued

Many in the medical profession are up in arms following a recent High Court case involving Dr Bawa-Garba (General Medical Council v Bawa-Garba [2018] EWHC 76 (Admin). The case followed on from proceedings before the Medical Practitioners Tribunal which had rules that Bawa-Garba should be suspended from practice for a period of one-year. That ruling … Continued

BSB Partner Jonathan Black writes for Legal Voice on why disclosure must remain in the news. Disclosure was a ticking bomb ready to explode. For years lawyers campaigning against legal aid cuts were advised by sympathetic reporters that they needed real examples about real people. Whilst we all had clients who could say that their … Continued

Laws that criminalise unlawful violence date back to 1861 and are used every day in criminal courts to support prosecutions. Despite what might appear to be an obvious legal position, the question is often asked as to whether, despite those laws, it is permissible to ‘smack’ a child. The simple answer is that it is … Continued

A phone call and a summons into school about a Child’s “sexting behaviour “ can be deeply traumatic for all involved and have potentially life and prospective career changing consequences for the child and is obviously distressing for the parents. The Law as it stands Making, distributing, and possession of indecent images of children is … Continued