Read more
Criminal defence at the investigative stage has attracted growing attention due to the shifting focus of the criminal process onto pre-trial stages, and the recent European regulations adopted in this area. Increasingly, justice practitioners and legislators across the EU have begun to realise that 'the trial takes place at the police station'. This book provides a comprehensive legal, empirical and contextual analysis of criminal defence at the investigative stage from a comparative perspective. It is a socio-legal study of criminal defence practice, which draws upon original empirical material from England and Wales and the Netherlands. Based on extensive interviews with lawyers, and extended periods of observation, the book contrasts the encountered reality of criminal defence with the model role of a lawyer at the investigative stage derived from European norms. It places the practice of criminal defence within the broader context of procedural traditions, contemporary criminal justice policies and lawyers' occupational cultures. Criminal Defence at Police Stations questions the determinative role of procedural traditions in shaping criminal defence practice at the investigative stage.
The book will be of interest for criminal law and justice practitioners, as well as for academics focusing on criminal justice, criminology, socio-legal studies, legal psychology and human rights.
List of contents
1. Introduction;
2. The Role of a Defence Lawyer at the Investigative Stage: The View from Europe;
3. The Netherlands: Lawyer as ‘Trusted Person’ and Provider of Information;
4. England and Wales: Lawyer as Advisor and Provider of ‘Active Defence';
5. The Influence of Legal Procedural Traditions: Observations from the Field;
6. The Influence of Contemporary Criminal Justice Policies;
7. The Influence of Occupational Cultures of Lawyers;
8. Concluding Remarks;
Appendix: Notes on the Research Methodology
About the author
Anna Pivaty is postdoctorate researcher at the Faculty of Law, University of Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Summary
Increasingly, justice practitioners and legislators across the EU have begun to realise that 'the trial takes place at the police station.' This book provides a comprehensive legal, empirical and contextual analysis of criminal defence at the investigative stage from a comparative perspective.
