Bystander John Thornhill, the MA chairman, is quoted in yesterday’s ‘Times’ (paywalled, I’m afraid) as defending magistrates against allegations of ‘conveyor-belt justice’ and over-harsh sentencing in riot cases. Once again, he did not go out of his way to stress that magistrates had little to do with it, as almost all of these cases have  [ Read More ]

Lynne Featherstone Am I bovvered? That was the gag line from Catherine Tate – and we all laughed. But there was nothing funny about the real life representation of lots of young people who were not bothered at all. Their consciences weren’t bothered. They weren’t bothered about the victims of their actions. They weren’t bothered  [ Read More ]

Tim Worstall Hang the bastards and hang them high. Currently, section 16 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 gives courts the power to award costs that are “reasonably sufficient to compensate the defendant for any expenses which he has properly incurred in the proceedings”. The last government wanted to introduce a scheme that limited  [ Read More ]

A Lawyer What’s the difference between a lawyer and a prostitute? A lawyer keeps screwing you after you die. How can you spot a lawyer walking down the street? He will have his hands in someone else’s pockets. There are many jokes about lawyers. The jokes mainly criticise the perceived reputation that all lawyers are  [ Read More ]