Reports and Briefings

GOVERNMENT CONSULTATION ON ITS POLICY PROPOSALS FOLLOWING THE criminal legal aid independent review (‘clair’)

Only one in ten applicants to the Criminal Cases Review Commission have legal representation. Flaws in the legal aid system are to blame. These are our recommendations for improving legal aid for would-be appellants.

POVERTY IS NOT A CRIME

Why the government must urgently de-criminalise the non-payment of the TV Licence fee - a low-level offence that disproportionately impacts women and those on low-incomes.

CONVEYOR BELT JUSTICE

Did you know that around half of all criminal prosecutions in England and Wales are carried out behind closed doors in a process called the Single Justice Procedure? Read our briefing to find out why we believe it needs urgent reform.

No chance? The case for reforming the referral test from the Criminal Cases Review Commission to the Court of Appeal

The ‘real possibility’ test governs whether the Criminal Cases Review Commission can refer a case to the Court of Appeal but it leaves people with little chance to access justice. We explain why reform is urgently needed.

JUSTICE SELET COMMITTEE CALL FOR EVIDENCE, Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences

The IPP sentence is outdated, inhumane and in need of immediate retrospective abolition. We call on Government to implement a new statutory scheme to re-sentence all IPP prisoners.

DESTROYING THE EVIDENCE

The government is prematurely destroying trial transcripts in Crown Court criminal cases which are crucial for identifying miscarriages of justice. Even when they’re available, they are prohibitively expensive. There’s a simple fix that needs urgent attention.

Rapid Redress: Reforms for the swift rectification of wrongful convictions in England and Wales

It took APPEAL client Andrew Malkinson two decades to clear his name. We set out reforms which will help ensure wrongful convictions are rectified more swiftly.

JUSTICE SELET COMMITTEE CALL FOR EVIDENCE, Open justice: court reporting in the digital age

Transparency and open justice are key to ensuring criminal cases can be effectively scrutinised to ensure that miscarriages of justice are identified and public confidence in the system is maintained.

LAW COMMISSION’S PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON THEIR 14TH PROGRAMME OF LAW REFORM

APPEAL proposes five policy areas that we believe must be reformed to mitigate the risk of miscarriages of justice in England and Wales. They included changing the “safety test” and “real possibility test”, access to disclosure and trial transcripts as well as reforms to the single justice procedure.

justice committee call for evidence on women in prison

Women face a unique set of problems when criminalised for low-level offences and when committed to prison. We support community-based models that address underlying needs, with the overall aim to reduce the female prison population. We also demand that survivors of abuse are given support in the justice system.

THE POLICE, CRIME, SENTENCING AND COURTS BILL

The Bill will replace the Coronavirus Act 2020, extend the use of video and audio hearings and enable more participants to attend criminal hearings remotely.

HOME AFFAIRS COMMITTEE CALL FOR EVIDENCE ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS

In this government response, we recommend safeguards to ensure the system stops inappropriately criminalising victims of abuse.

HOME OFFICE CALL FOR EVIDENCE ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS STRATEGY 2021-2024

We recommend safeguards to ensure the system stops inappropriately criminalising victims of abuse.

REPORT FROM THE WESTMINSTER COMMISSION ON MISCARRIAGES OF JUSTICE

APPEAL is the secretariat to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Miscarriages of Justice which set up a commission to inquire into the effectiveness of the miscarriages of justice watchdog, the Criminal Cases Review Commission. The report calls for more resources for the CCRC, changes to the way it investigates and reforms of the legal tests it applies to cases.

JUSTICE COMMITTEE INQUIRY INTO THE FUTURE OF LEGAL AID

We propose changes to the legal aid system that would allow those appealing criminal convictions to access more effective representation.

DEPARTMENT FOR DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA & SPORT CONSULTATION ON DECRIMINALISING TV LICENSE NON-PAYMENT

We call for the end of the use of criminal sections for the non-payment of TV license fees, an offence which disproportionately targets women.

hOME OFFICE CONSULTATION ON THE DOMESTIC ABUSE BILL

A large proportion of women in prison have a history of abuse and the system is failing to support them. We recommend reforms that will help provide better outcomes for these women.

justice committee consultation on disclosure of evidence in criminal cases

Crucial evidence is routinely withheld from defendants. We recommend bold changes including the establishment of an Independent Disclosure Agency. This response was written jointly with the Cardiff Law School Innocence Project.

As part of this, APPEAL obtained documents from HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) under the Freedom of Information Act that revealed the full extent of the disclosure crisis. You can read more here.