The Law Show15 Nov 2016

Joint Enterprise and Homicide Law

Joint Enterprise is the law by which a group of people can be convicted with the same offence and earlier this year the Supreme Court ruled that Joint Enterprise law had been misinterpreted for 30 years.

This gave campaigners significant hope as they say Joint Enterprise is an unjust law, especially when applied to murder convictions because all defendants face the same mandatory life sentence even if they were periphery players.

But these hopes were dashed when the Court of Appeal announced that it was not going to permit thirteen Joint Enterprise murder convictions to be reviewed. Joshua Rozenberg explores why the court came to this decision - and asks if the perceived unfairness over Joint Enterprise points to bigger problems with the law of homicide.

Also on the programme: Soon-to-be President Donald Trump has said one of his most important tasks will be to appoint a judge to the US Supreme Court, which he has said would be pro-life and pro-gun ownership. To what extent can he be sure that the Supreme Justices will do his bidding?

And after 500 years, the trial of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark will be heard in London in a mock trial featuring real QCs, and a real judge. Law in Action hears how the prosecution and defence are going to state their case.

CONTRIBUTORS

Gloria Morrison, campaign co-ordinator for JENGBA (Joint Enterprise, Not Guilty by Association)

Alison Levitt QC

Bob Neill MP, chair of the Justice Select Committee

James Zirin, lawyer and author of Supremely Partisan

Ian Winter QC

Ruth Brock, chief executive of the Shakespeare Schools Festival

Shaheed Fatima QC

Lady Justice Hallett

PRODUCERS: Matt Bardo & Richard Fenton-Smith EDITOR: Penny Murphy.

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(118)

What are Blitz courts?

So-called blitz courts are being expanded across England and Wales. A number of courts across the two countries have been holding regular blitz hearings since April. Multiple cases are heard every day...

17 Juni 27min

Political donations and the law

The Representation of the People Bill 2026 is in the King’s Speech which means it’s on the Government’s legislative agenda and is going through Parliament. The Bill covers parliamentary ballots cross ...

10 Juni 28min

Why were three teen rapists not given custodial sentences?

Note: this episode contains frequent references to rape, sexual assault and physical assault. There's been public confusion and outrage over the sentences given to three teenage boys, who were convict...

3 Juni 28min

The Renters Rights Act - In Detail

The Renter’s Rights Act came into force at the start of May, and it marked the biggest change to how private rentals work in England in a generation. There are a host of new protections and legal enti...

27 Maj 28min

How tough are the UK's asylum laws?

The Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s Restoring Order and Control policy is underway. It's based - in part - on measures carried out in Denmark which cut asylum claims there to a 40 year low. From now ...

25 Mars 28min

When is it legal to go to war?

Under international law, when can a country declare war on another?Was it legal for Israel and the United States to have carried out "pre-emptive" airstrikes across most of Iran’s provinces, which sta...

18 Mars 28min

Is it legal for police to use live facial recognition technology?

The Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says she makes “no apology” for announcing the roll-out of Live Facial Recognition (LFR) to all the police services in England and Wales. Under a government white ...

11 Mars 27min

The plans to limit jury trials in England and Wales

The courts system in England and Wales is in an unprecedented crisis. The backlog has reached 80,000 cases, and some defendants are being told they won't be able to have a criminal trial until 2030. T...

4 Mars 27min