*/
Poor advocacy and a lack of specialist training is denying vulnerable young people justice, a critical report has claimed.
The study, commissioned by the Bar Standards Boards and CILEx Regulation, found the quality of advocacy in youth courts highly variable.
Advocates lacked specialist knowledge of the statutory framework for dealing with young people and were not always able to communicate appropriately with young defendants and witnesses.
It suggested that the formal nature of court proceedings and their adversarial nature can impede effective participation by young people, and time pressures linked to legal aid reforms lead to an ‘emphasis on swift justice which undermined genuine justice’.
It criticised the profession for undervaluing the important work of the youth court, seeing it as a place where young lawyers can ‘cut their teeth’, rather than a place where serious cases are often heard.
BSB chair Sir Andrew Burns said the regulator would work to improve the standard of advocacy by barristers representing young people.
Poor advocacy and a lack of specialist training is denying vulnerable young people justice, a critical report has claimed.
The study, commissioned by the Bar Standards Boards and CILEx Regulation, found the quality of advocacy in youth courts highly variable.
Advocates lacked specialist knowledge of the statutory framework for dealing with young people and were not always able to communicate appropriately with young defendants and witnesses.
It suggested that the formal nature of court proceedings and their adversarial nature can impede effective participation by young people, and time pressures linked to legal aid reforms lead to an ‘emphasis on swift justice which undermined genuine justice’.
It criticised the profession for undervaluing the important work of the youth court, seeing it as a place where young lawyers can ‘cut their teeth’, rather than a place where serious cases are often heard.
BSB chair Sir Andrew Burns said the regulator would work to improve the standard of advocacy by barristers representing young people.
Update from the Chair of the Bar
Save the Children UK is the latest charity to benefit from a £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs via the company’s Giving Back initiative
AlphaBiolabs has been awarded the contract to provide drug, alcohol, and DNA testing services for Hull City Council, following a rigorous competitive tender process
By Clement Cowley, Partner at The Penny Group
Modernising communication and collaboration at a leading Chancery set. A Zexi case study
How to build profile without compromising professional duties. By Naumaan Farooq, Co-Founder of Inked PR
A decade of reviews and research has disrupted accepted thinking in the search for causality. Suicides following abuse have overtaken domestic homicides. Is the law keeping up? Professor Susan Edwards KC (Hon) examines recent cases and the obstacles to successful prosecution
At least not that way, says Richard Paige
Heritage as an anchor and a compass, finding our common humanity and embracing the power of the outsider – Melina Antoniadis’s lessons learnt
Seeing the full picture – Baljit Ubhey OBE outlines the CPS action plan to tackle violence against women and girls, offering insights directly relevant to courtroom practice
Lauren Fullerton examines the how, what and why of setting up a second chambers base
