I was interested to read the recent criminal update by Anthony Edwards (‘Rights to information in the police station’) about the implications of changes brought in to comply with EU Directive 2012/13/EU on the right to information in criminal proceedings.
Fair Trials has played an active role in the consultation process surrounding the creation of the directives which make up the EU procedural rights ‘roadmap,’ and we are anxious to see both their effective implementation and subsequent use.
Central to its use will be practitioners who know how to make use of it, and so we have just launched a new online training programme which includes one module dedicated to the directive. It offers a comprehensive overview and explains how to make the most of the directive in everyday practice.
All of the courses in this programme are free and we encourage all UK-based criminal defence practitioners to take advantage of them. In light of the impact the directive will have on the day-to-day work of lawyers, ensuring that the procedural rights package is understood and effectively used is key to guaranteeing the provision of minimum fair trial standards across the EU.
Jago Russell, chief executive, Fair Trials, London EC4
