The Law Commission has recommended that children and young people who appear in Crown court trials should have a statutory right of appeal against a judge’s decision to allow reporting of their identity.
Section 39 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 allows a judge to restrict reporting that might lead to the identification of a child or young person who appears as a defendant or witness in a Crown court trial.
However, if the judge refuses to order the restriction, the Law Commission said it is doubtful whether there is any way for that refusal to be challenged. It recommended a specific right of appeal to the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal.
The commission said: ‘If a child or young person is identified in reports of the proceedings there is no way in which that information, once made public, can be retrieved. We consider therefore that it is a situation in which the importance of the right justifies a right of appeal, even though that might mean holding up the trial.’
Paul Mendelle QC, chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, said it was a ‘sensible’ recommendation.
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