Victims given greater access to justice through legal aid reform – Ministry of Justice

‘Innocent people who have suffered miscarriages of justice, personal harm or injury are among those who will benefit from upcoming changes to legal aid means testing coming into effect this year.’

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Ministry of Justice, 14th March 2024

Source: www.gov.uk

Jailed bankers appeal against interest rate ‘rigging’ convictions – BBC News

‘Two former bankers jailed for rigging interest rates are appealing against their convictions after an eight-year battle to clear their names.’

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BBC News, 14th March 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

What is the Post Office Horizon bill and why is it controversial? – The Guardian

‘The Post Office (Horizon system) offences bill, published on Wednesday, will quash the convictions of people resulting from the scandal, which involved hundreds being wrongly prosecuted on the basis of a faulty IT system. Here the Guardian explains the thinking behind the bill and why it is controversial.’

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The Guardian, 13th March 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Post Office scandal victims convictions to be quashed – BBC News

‘A new law will be introduced on Wednesday to clear the names of the hundreds of sub-postmasters wrongly convicted in the Post Office scandal.’

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BBC News, 13th March 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Post Office scandal victim feels ‘survivor’s guilt’ after compensation – BBC News

‘Former sub-postmaster Jo Hamilton says she feels “survivor’s guilt” after settling with the Post Office over the Horizon IT scandal for an undisclosed sum.’

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BBC News, 5th March 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Edith Thompson: Hanged woman’s case denied pardon bid – BBC News

‘The case of a woman hanged over 100 years ago for the murder of her husband does not meet the requirements for a royal pardon, a commission has ruled.’

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BBC News, 28th February 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Ministers to press ahead with legislation to exonerate Post Office Horizon victims – The Guardian

‘Ministers have vowed to press ahead with legislation to automatically overturn convictions related to the Post Office Horizon scandal by the end of July.’

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The Guardian, 22nd February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Horizon scandal: Five short-changed postmasters to get full compensation – BBC News

‘A small group of former sub-postmasters whose convictions were overturned have finally been told they will receive full compensation.’

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BBC News, 12th February 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Horizon scandal: post office operator cleared after years of suffering in silence – The Guardian

Posted January 26th, 2024 in appeals, computer programs, fraud, miscarriage of justice, news, postal service, theft by sally

‘A former post office branch operator who suffered in silence and endured humiliation after being convicted of fraud based on evidence from the faulty Horizon IT system has had her conviction quashed by the court of appeal.’

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The Guardian, 25th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Criminal review body missed chance to clear Andrew Malkinson in 2013 – The Guardian

‘The organisation responsible for investigating miscarriages of justice missed a major opportunity to reconsider Andrew Malkinson’s case, internal documents suggest.’

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The Guardian, 24th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Majority verdicts in England and Wales brought in ‘partly for racial and class reasons’ – The Guardian

Posted January 24th, 2024 in bias, charities, criminal justice, equality, juries, miscarriage of justice, news by sally

‘The introduction of majority verdicts in criminal trials in England and Wales was partly motivated by a desire to dilute the influence of minority ethnic people and the labouring classes serving on juries, according to research.’

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The Guardian, 24th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Robert Craig: The constitutional implications of legislating to exonerate the Post Office sub-postmasters – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘Some commentators have claimed that the decision to expedite the process of formally exonerating the sub-postmasters potentially runs afoul of certain core constitutional principles, in particular the separation of powers. It has also been claimed that the “crown does not have a prerogative of justice but only a prerogative of mercy”. This blog considers and challenges those claims.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 16th January 2024

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Two men jailed on racist police officer’s evidence have convictions overturned – The Guardian

‘Two men who were framed by a racist and corrupt detective for the same offence he was later jailed for have had their convictions posthumously quashed by the court of appeal 46 years later.’

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The Guardian, 18th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Courts “could cope” with large number of Post Office appeals, says LCJ – Legal Futures

‘The courts “could cope” with a large volume of criminal appeals in the wake of the Post Office scandal, the Lady Chief Justice told MPs yesterday.’

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Legal Futures, 17th January 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

‘Dangerous path to go down’: four legal experts on the Post Office exoneration bill – The Guardian

‘The government’s decision to pass a law overturning the convictions of post office operators has left many lawyers and judges uneasy.’

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The Guardian, 11th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Update law on computer evidence to avoid Horizon repeat, ministers urged – The Guardian

‘Ministers need to “immediately” update the law to acknowledge that computers are fallible or risk a repeat of the Horizon scandal, legal experts say.’

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The Guardian, 12th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

SRA: No plans to act yet on Post Office scandal lawyers – Legal Futures

‘The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) could take action against solicitors over misconduct in the Post Office scandal before the public inquiry ends but has yet to see evidence that requires it.’

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Legal Futures, 10th January 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Post Office scandal could lead to rules change on private prosecutions – The Guardian

‘Rules to prevent companies taking private prosecutions in the way the Post Office went after innocent post office operators are being considered by the government.’

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The Guardian, January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Were lawyers complicit in Post Office’s corporate governance failures? – Legal Futures

‘A solicitor who acted for three wrongly convicted sub-postmasters has questioned whether lawyers advising the Post Office’s board were more motivated by continuing the retainers than giving proper guidance.’

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Legal Futures, 8th January 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Ministers to meet to discuss Post Office Horizon scandal – BBC News

‘Ministers are to meet to consider possible ways of clearing the names of hundreds of sub-postmasters convicted in the Post Office Horizon scandal.’

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BBC News, 8th January 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk