The Criminal Bar Association (CBA) held its Winter Conference on Saturday 30 November 2024. Tom Wainwright and Elena Papamichael from Garden Court’s specialist crime and protest team were invited as guest speakers to address the audience of over 150 criminal barristers.
Elena provided an update on developments in the caselaw concerning protesters, with a particular focus on recent appellate endorsement of the withdrawal of defences from protesters at trial. Elena made the case that this approach represents an unconstitutional shift that increasingly restricts the role of the jury and its ability to provide checks and balances on the power of the executive.
Tom went on to provide a history of the principle of jury equity and acquittals according to conscience, and how these sit within our constitution, looking at examples of such cases throughout history and around the world. Tom explored academic and judicial observations on what acquittals according to conscience mean for our justice system and the role of the jury.
This lecture comes at a time when vast legislative instruments have come into force which seek to curtail protest rights, for example, the Public Order Act 2023 and the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.
It may be that these themes become more prominent in the coming months and years.
