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Category: PDS advice

Get the latest news and advice from Public Defender Service. The PDS can help with your defence in criminal law cases if you qualify for legal aid.

Abuse of Process – ‘A promise, is a promise’

Published:

What the case of Mansfield v DPP [2021] EWHC 2938 (Admin) means for an abuse of process defence.

Is ‘posting annoying tweets’ a criminal offence? The impact of R v Scottow

Published:

The recent High Court decision stressed that the Article 10 right to freedom of speech includes the right to cause offence.

The Sentencing Code 2020

Published:

The Sentencing Act 2020 or ‘the Sentencing Code’, as it is often referred to, came into force on 1 December 2020 and applies to all those convicted on or after this date.

Legal advice regarding Coronavirus offences

Published:

The current Coronavirus pandemic has presented all of us with unprecedented challenges, especially whilst under lockdown.

Impact of the Coronavirus on the criminal justice system

Published:

The COVID19 pandemic has meant that every aspect of society, including the Criminal Justice System, has had to adapt to the many new challenges that we face.

The importance of receiving good legal advice in the police station

Published:

Getting the right advice at the right time is critical when you are being interviewed at the police station.

Better case management

Published:

New rules and guidance have been published (for both Magistrates and Crown Court cases). Everyone must adhere to these rules.

HMCTS Reforms

Published:

In collaboration with the Senior Judiciary and the MOJ, HMCTS is investing £1bn to reform the courts and tribunal system.