Joshua Rozenberg presents Radio 4's long-running legal magazine programme, featuring reports and discussion on matters relating to law
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The new Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor, Alex Chalk KC MP
The new Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor Alex Chalk KC MP speaks to Joshua Rozenberg. How does he respond to criticisms levelled at the reforms of the Parole Board proposed in the Victims and Prisoners Bill? And how does he reconcile his wish to "provide individuals with the due process which is the hallmark of our legal system" with some aspects of the Home Office's Illegal Migration Bill, that aims to stop people crossing to the UK in small boats? Mr Chalk also speaks about new measures to protect investigative journalists from malicious libel actions, and confirms that the new Lord Chief Justice will be a woman, for the first time in a thousand years.
Most of the senior judges in England and Wales are male, white, middle-aged and former barristers. The new head of the Judicial Appointments Commission, Helen Pitcher, in her first broadcast interview, tells Joshua that diversity is very important and admits its an issue in the judiciary. So how will she increase it? We hear about projects and research to help remove barriers and ensure senior judges reflect the society they serve.
What is it like to do your job after a diagnosis of Parkinson's? The condition affects people differently, but many have a tremor, fatigue, reduced mobility in their arms, legs, or both, and some can have depression. Joshua meets a High Court judge, Sir Nicholas Mostyn, to find out how he has been able to carry on working despite the condition. What are employees' rights in this case? And what is it like for those in other lines of work? We also hear from a nurse with Parkinson's on how she does it.
Presenter: Joshua Rozenberg
Producer: Arlene Gregorius
Researcher: Bethan Ashmead Latham
Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele
Editor: Clare Fordham
13/6/2023
28:32
How well is the Parole Board protecting the public?
Is the Parole Board getting it right with prisoner releases? Last year, the then Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Dominic Raab thought not, and introduced reform proposals to, as he saw it, re-prioritise public protection and trust in justice. These proposals are in the Victims and Prisoners Bill that's now before parliament. But the Parole Board tell Joshua Rozenberg that public protection is their top priority anyway, and that only 0.5% of those they release go on to commit other serious offences.
What can the law do when a husband takes his wife on a trip abroad, such as to his or her country of origin, and abandons her there, without the means to return? Typically in such cases, the man confiscates his wife's passport, documents and mobile phone, and then returns to the UK without her. If there are any children, the husband takes those with him, leaving the wife and children separated from each other. Often, the wife's right to live in or return to the UK is tied to her marital status. We hear from someone who became a victim of "transnational marriage abandonment" as it's called, when she was taken back to India.
Artificial Intelligence or AI is changing how we live and work. Generative AI is able to produce written texts and many other types of content, including soon perhaps legal documents. Could such AI be used to deliver justice more quickly and cheaply than lawyers and judges? What safeguards should there be? And could it help clear huge backlogs in the courts? Joshua speaks with Professor Richard Susskind, one of the world's leading experts on AI and the law.
Presenter: Joshua Rozenberg
Producer: Arlene Gregorius
Researcher: Bethan Ashmead Latham
Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele
Editor: Clare Fordham
Conviction rates for rape trials are lower than those for other criminal trials, and the court experience can be intrusive and harrowing for survivors. The Law Commission of England and Wales (the independent body that advises the government on law reform), has just published a new consultation paper for how to change this. Criminal law commissioner Prof Penney Lewis, and before her Independent Sexual Violence Adviser Annabelle Edwards of Rape Crisis, speak about the reforms they'd like to see.
The Scottish government's Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform (Scotland) bill also aims to improve rape trials. If passed, it would abolish the "not proven" option for acquittal, create specialist rape courts, and controversially establish the option of judge-only, non-jury trials as a pilot scheme, as it's feared rape myths might influence some jurors. Fiona Leverick, professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Justice at the University of Glasgow and Tony Lenehan KC, president of the Faculty of Advocates' Criminal Bar Association discuss the bill.
The Hollywood stars and former married couple Johnny Depp and Amber Heard faced each other during two separate libel trials that asked whether or not Mr Depp physically abused Ms Heard. Depp lost the first case, against the owners of the Sun newspaper. It was heard by a judge in the High Court in London. Depp won the second case, against his ex-wife, decided by a jury in the United States. Nick Wallis is the only journalist to have covered both trials. He contrasts them in his new book "Depp v Heard, the Unheard Story".
Presenter: Joshua Rozenberg
Producer: Arlene Gregorius
Researcher: Bethan Ashmead Latham
Sound engineer: Neil Churchill
Editor: Clare Fordham
Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele
23/5/2023
28:48
The Legacy of the Good Friday Agreement
For a special edition recorded on location in Belfast, Joshua Rozenberg returns to Northern Ireland 25 years after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, which he reported on at the time.
Meeting old contacts and new, he finds out what it took to get the negotiations over the line and what legacy the ground-breaking peace deal has had. He also hears about the challenges involved in achieving justice for the murders that remain unsolved; what problems remain with paramilitaries; and the UK government's attempt to bring about reconciliation. Will its Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill help, or rub salt in old wounds?
And on the legal differences between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, Joshua meets a campaigner who had to travel to England to have an abortion. As a result of an intervention by the Westminster government, terminations have since become legal (up to a point in the pregnancy), but some women still have to leave Northern Ireland to have the procedure.
Guests:
Denis Murray, former BBC Ireland correspondent
Peter Sheridan, former senior police officer, now CEO of Cooperation Ireland
Louise Mallinder, professor of law at Queen's University Belfast
Naomi Connor, co-convener of Alliance for Choice
Presenter: Joshua Rozenberg
Producer: Arlene Gregorius
Researcher: Diane Richardson
Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele
Studio Engineer: Graham Puddifoot
Editor: Simon Watts