Blog
Direct access Barrister | Criminal, Motoring & Regulatory Law
Is this Bust Card worth the paper it’s written on?
You're at the climate change march and the atmosphere's getting a little fresh. Someone's shoved a police officer and now the cops are rounding up people in the immediate area. You've done nothing wrong, but PC Joe is talking to you. What do you do if PC Joe asks for...
Should I go No Comment at my police interview?
Sometimes people ask me if they should "go no comment" in their police interviews. The big problem with this question is that they're trying to figure it out for themselves, rather than asking asking the police station rep who has seen the police evidence. And the...
Should I accept a simple police caution?
Most people at the police station want to get the experience over with as soon as possible. They turn down the free legal advice and accept simple police cautions because they're scared of being charged with a crime. Some people think that a simple caution is just a...
No left turns on Mare Street
Let's me start by saying: The following is not legal advice. I have no idea whether any particular person should appeal their PCN or not. The following is offered for information purposes only. I've been following the Hackney Gazette's reporting that 6,596 fines were...
HMOs, Leaseholders & Estate Agents at Magistrates Courts
I've been busy advising landlords on HMO liability over the past month. Some were looking for "quick" advice. While I am known for turning round work fast - "quick" is another matter. "Quick" implies, "off the top of your head, what's the answer?" Whether a person has...
Contract disputes and saving driving licences
I've been resolving contract disputes lately - and during the last few weeks, I've been dealing with: Whether a "life-time membership" is enforceable against a purchaser of a private gym; The enforceability of an agreement between non-married parents to send their...
Papers, please (Magistrates Court Style)
Defendants in court now must declare their nationality. If a Defendant is a citizen of more than one country, s/he must declare all citizenships held. As of 13 November 2017, "A person commits an offence if, without reasonable excuse, that person fails to comply with...
In the frame for Assault Obstruct PC? Read this.
I represented a family who were all charged with Assault / Obstruct PC. After engaging in deep legal research and repeated viewing of the police officers' body worn camera footage - as well as CCTV from the local council, I was able to effectively cross-examine the...
What it’s like to represent yourself in court
If you are thinking about representing yourself in court without getting legal advice first, do yourself a big favour and read this article written by Emily Dugan. It's an excellent insight of what can happen to the wo/man who is her/his own lawyer. Of all the stories...
Governance & Standards Committee Complaints Basics
Are you a councillor under threat of Governance & Standards committee referral and investigation for an alleged breach of your local Code of Conduct? There are basic procedures your Monitoring Officer should be following. These basics are found in the Localism Act...
