• You owe a duty to the court to act with:
independence in the interests of justice. This duty overrides any inconsistent obligations which you may have.
• You may not knowingly or recklessly….
mislead the court
• You must not abuse
your role as advocate
• You must take reasonable steps to ensure that the court has before it,
all relevant decisions and legislative provisions. o This includes drawing attention to the court any decision or provision which may be adverse to the interests of your client.
Example of not misleading the court
Not disclosing information without the client’s consent, and testing in cross- examination the reliability of the evidence of the prosecution witness and then address the jury that the prosecution had not succeeded in making them sure of the clients guilt.
Example of misleading the court
Suggest that the client did not commit the crime, suggesting someone else committed the crime, putting forward an alibi.
Mandatory sentence EXAMPLE
The non-disclosure of previous convictions will result in the court failing to pass the sentence required by law. Thus you must advise: if consent is refused, you will have to cease to act
Non-mandatory sentences EXAMPLE
if client does not agree to disclose the previous convixtions, you can continue to present the client, but must not say anything to mislead the court, i.e. you could not advance a positive case of previous good character. But if judge directs a question, you must not lie, so you would have to withdraw.
Documents: if your client has a document which should be disclosed but has not been, you…
cannot continue to act unless your client agrees to the disclosure.
What does it mean when it says: “you must not abuse your role as an advocate”?
You must not draft any statement of case, witness statement or other document containing:
Can you make, offer to make, payments to witness contingent on evidence/outcome?
no
Conduct on your part which the public may reasonably perceive as undermining your honesty, integrity or independence is likely to
diminish the trust and confidence which the public places in you or in the profession, in breach of CD5.
Example of compromising your independence:
To any client, professional client or intermediary
If offered a gift, consider
The clients best interests (CD2) requires the barrister to
You duty to act in the best interests of each client is subject to
your duty to the court.
Your duty not to mislead the court will include the following obligations: .
make submissions, representations or any other statement;….
You must not call witnesses to give evidence or put affidavits or witness statements to the court which you know, or are instructed, are untrue or misleading, unless you make clear to the court the true position as known by or instructed to you.
Knowingly misleading the court includes:
Your duty to the court includes drawing attention to t
the court any decision or provision which may be adverse to the interests of your client. It is particularly important where you are appearing against a litigant who is not legally represented.
Your duty to the court does not prevent you from putting forward your client’s case simply because you do not believe that the facts are as your client states them to be…
what is the only obligation?
as long as any positive case you put forward accords with your instructions and you do not mislead the court. Your role when acting as an advocate or conducting litigation is to present your client’s case, and it is not for you to decide whether your client’s case is to be believed.
EXAMPLE: entitled to tell your witness that evidence appears to conflict, and that the court might find evidence difficult to accept. But if the witness maintains that it is true, it will be recorded in the witness statements and you will not mislead the court if you call them to confirm this.
You duty to the court does not permit or require you to disclose confidential information which you have obtained in the course of your instructions and which your client has not authorised you to disclose to the court.
What do you do if your client tells you they have committed a crime?
What happens if
client tells you that they have committed the crime:
WHAT WOULD MISLEAD THE COURT?
BUT YOU would mislead the court if: if you were to set up a positive case inconsistent with the confession, as for example:
If there is a risk that the court will be misled unless you disclose confidential information which you have learned in the course of your instructions, you should ask the client for permission to disclose it to the court. If your client refuses to allow you to make the disclosure you must cease to act, and return your instructions. In these circumstances you must not reveal the information to the court.
EXAMPLE: client says they have previous convictions which the prosecution is not aware, you may not disclose this without their consent.
EXCEPTION:
. However, where MANDATORY SENTENCES apply, the non-disclosure of previous convictions will result in the court failing to pass the correct sentence required. In this situation, YOU MUST advise your client that if consent is refused to your revealing the information, you will have to cease to act.
In situations where mandatory sentences do not apply, and your client does not agree to disclose the previous convictions, you can continue to represent your client but in doing so must not say anything that misleads the court.