Insights
Answers to the questions people ask before they know who to call. Written once and corrected when the law changes, rather than posted and left.
The questions
- Barrister or solicitor: the difference
A solicitor runs your case: they take it on the court record, gather and serve evidence, and deal with the court. A barrister advises on the law and argues the case in court. For most Crown Court cases you need both, though a barrister can sometimes be instructed directly.
- The duty solicitor, or your own lawyer
The duty solicitor is free to everyone, whatever you earn, and is available at the police station at any hour. Your own solicitor is also free at the police station if they take legal aid. The duty solicitor is almost always the right choice at that moment, because they are there now.
- Released under investigation: what it means
Released under investigation means you have been arrested and let go while the police carry on investigating. You are not on bail, there are no conditions, and there is no time limit. It is not the end of the case, and a charging decision can still come months later.
- Police interview under caution
An interview under caution is a recorded questioning where what you say can be used as evidence. You are entitled to free legal advice first, whoever you are. You can answer, decline to answer, or give a written statement, and each of those choices has consequences at a later trial.
- What a King’s Counsel does
A King’s Counsel is a senior barrister appointed for excellence in advocacy, usually after twenty years or more in practice. KCs take the most serious and complex cases, normally leading a junior barrister. About one barrister in ten is a KC.
If your question is not here
His PA can tell you whether this is the kind of case he takes, and who else is available if it is not.