Separate Courts
What should a motorist do if they committed three offences of speeding at the same location on three different days within the same week and three summonses were issued from different Magistrates’ Court: Willesden Magistrates’ Court, Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court and Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court? Recently, I was instructed in such…
What to expect in the Covid Courts
COVID COURT What can you expect when you have to appear at, or accompany someone to, Guildford Magistrates’ Court and Staines Magistrates’ Court during Covid? This is not official guidance, only what I have experienced from visiting Guildford Magistrates’ Court and Staines Magistrates’ Court. The criminal Courts are remaining open…
The importance of a conference (Limited disclosure of prosecution evidence and an unwillingness by the courts to agree to an adjournment)
Why is a conference necessary before attending court? I attended the Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court at a first appearance on a drink/drive case. The prosecution disclosure of evidence was minimal, and the court refused to grant an adjournment for me to properly consider the evidence. This situation has been created…
Businessmen – Know Your Limits!
Lack of judgement about your speed, coupled with a lack of judgement about your ability to communicate, could cost you your licence. My working environment, the courtroom, is an artificial place. The rules and customs there are known only to the initiated. To an outsider, it is a mysterious place…
The Clerk to the Magistrates’
The Clerk to the Magistrates’ The lay decision makers in the Magistrates’ Court do not usually have formal legal qualifications. The clerk is a qualified lawyer who advises on the law. He or she sit in front of the bench and could be mistaken for fulfilling an administrative rule; do…