The Secret Barrister

Gosh. This book is a revelation to someone who's worked on the edges of the criminal justice system.
As the 'name' of the author implies, this is written by a barrister of some years' experience. His clients are ordinary members of society. Some of them have done wrong, some have had wrong done to them. Others have been erroneously accused of wrong-doing. And they're subject to a system which, at bottom, though imperfect, has got plenty going for it: but is letting them down. Blame years - especially recent years - of chronic underfunding which has brought the legal aid system the Probation Service and aspects of the legal profession to the brink of collapse. Blame politicking- the desire to please a public who are all too ready to lock 'em up and throw away the key - for policies which do little or nothing to reform a prisoner and fit him or her to re-enter society with no motivation to re-offend. It's frightening stuff. But written with a light and humorous touch which kept me turning the pages.… (mehr)

Another DNF in the same vein as Nudge...a highly specialist and academic topic, this time talking about how the legal system works in the United Kingdom. To be honest, the writing is quite compelling...at least compelling enough for me to keep struggling through this short book for the better part of this year, one page at a time.

It kind of hurts to give up on this book (im almost half way through)...but i think learning to let go is healthier for my reading life.

besides...there's always another book in the TBR pile!… (mehr)

Fake Law is one of those books that really should be compulsory reading in schools. Probably aspiring journalists and politicians should be required to pass an exam on it before being allowed to practice their chosen professions, particularly in England and Wales; the book makes no reference to Scotland, where we do things differently, and that's probably wise since The Secret Barrister practices in England and Wales and that's her area of expertise (we don't know whether TSB is male or female but rightly or wrongly I seem to hear the voice of a woman, and one from north of the Trent, probably north of the Mersey. I may be spectacularly wrong but I'm sticking with it until I know better).

The English Civil Law and its protections is often held up as one of the institutions to be proud of in principle (here in Scotland I'll reserve full judgment), but unlike other institutions like the NHS or the BBC, most people feel that involvement with the law is about other people, unsavoury types who aren't like them, so either through ignorance of how the law works or through the heart getting the better of the head, they resent its protections when it seems to be giving bad people benefits they don't deserve. Most people, of course, will pass their lives without ever being arrested and charged with an offence they didn't commit but some will find themselves on the wrong side of the law – it happens more often than we like to think – and when they do they may suddenly be grateful to have one of those lawyers who get murderers, rapists and paedophiles 'off the hook' on their side. And however much politicians and tabloids rail against huge amounts of Legal Aid being paid out to wrong'uns (who never actually see a penny of it as it is paid to the lawyers in less-than-generous remuneration for their work), those caught on the wrong foot should not have to sell their home to clear their name. The law should be available to all who need it. And don't get me started on the High Court and Supreme Court lawyers unfairly charged with "defying the people's will" over things like Brexit. Their only bias is towards the law as it stands (a bit of a mess to be honest, much of it inscribed in centuries of case law, but we pay them well for knowing their way around the labyrinth) and don't deserve the tabloid bile ("ENEMIES OF THE PEOPLE") and consequent death threats piled on them for maintaining it.

The law is imperfect, and it certainly isn't in the business of being sentimental. It protects all those who act within it, even deeply-unpleasant toerags, but our freedom hinges on its consistent application to angels and devils alike. We all ought to understand a lot more about it, and that's where this book is a good start.

… (mehr)