Prosecution and criminal courts in UK

The United Kingdom does not have a single unified legal systemEngland and Wales have one system, Scotland another, and Northern Ireland a third. England and Wales The Crown Prosecution Service, or CPS, is a non-ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for public prosecutions of people charged with criminal offences in England and Wales. Its role is similar to that of the longer-established Crown Office in Scotland, and the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland. The CPS is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions (currently Keir Starmer QC) who answers to the Attorney General for England and Wales (currently Dominic Grieve, QC, MP). The Crown Prosecution Service is responsible for criminal cases beyond the investigation, which is the role of the police. This involves giving advice to the police on charges to bring, being responsible for authorising all but a very few simple charges (such as begging), and preparing and presenting cases for court, both in magistrates' courts and, increasingly, the Crown Court. Scotland The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (Scottish Gaelic: Oifis a' Chrin agus Seirbheis Neach-casaid a' Chrin) provides the independent public prosecution service for Scotland, and is a Ministerial Department of the Scottish Government. The department is headed by Her Majesty's Lord Advocate, who under the Scottish legal system is responsible for prosecution, along with the area Procurators fiscal. In Scotland, almost all prosecution of criminal offences is by the Crown. Northern Ireland The Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland (PPSNI) is the department of the Northern Ireland Executive responsible for public prosecutions of people charged with criminal offences in Northern Ireland. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland. Its role is similar to that of the longer-established Crown Office in Scotland, and the Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales. The CPS is the largest employer of lawyers in the UK, dealing exclusively with criminal prosecutions. At the end of March 2006, it employed a total of 8,775 people; almost a third of which were qualified prosecutors. They deal with more than 1.3 million cases annually in the Magistrates' court and approximately 115,000 in the Crown Court. Other staff include Associate Prosecutors, who are not qualified lawyers but are specially trained to review and present limited range of cases in magistrates' courts, paralegal staff who carry out work required to implement decisions and progress existing cases, and administrative staff who deal with tasks such as tracking the

progress of cases, liaising with other agencies, matching incoming material to case files and copying and sending out documents.

Criminal courts
European Court of Human Rights Adjudicates alleged human rights violations of the ECHR. If you exhaust your rights of appeal domestically, the ECtHR in Strasbourg may be your last hope. Supreme Court of the United Kingdom The final court of appeal for all criminal cases arising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but not Scotland. Judicial Committee of the Privy Council In cases involving "devolution issues", you may have a right to appeal above the High Court of Justiciary to the Privy Council, located in the Supreme Court Building in London. Court of Appeal, Criminal Division In England and Wales, and Northern Ireland, hears appeals from the Crown Courts. Decisions may be taken by a single judge or following a full hearing. If a single judge dismisses your appeal, you may take your case to the Criminal Cases Review Commission , who can refer the case back to the Court of Appeal for a full hearing. High Court of Justiciary Sitting as the Court of Criminal Appeal , is normally the final court of appeal for criminal cases arising in Scotland (although see box above regarding jurisdiction for "devolution issues"). Crown Courts In England and Wales, and Northern Ireland, processes serious (indictable) criminal offences. Also, hears appeals from Magistrates' Courts (see box above). Magistrates' Courts(incl.Youth Courts) Handle trials of less serious, summary (non-indictable) criminal offences. Sheriffs' Court, Criminal In Scotland, processes serious (indictable) criminal offences.