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The effective use of agents in the magistrates’ court

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The effective use of agents in the magistrates' court (PDF, 1.0 MB)

The CPS uses agents – lawyers not directly employed by the CPS – in just over a quarter of all cases presented in the magistrates’ courts. This inspection report reviews this practice and identifies recommendations, issues to address and examples of good practice.

The inspection examined 90 magistrates’ court files dated from June to September 2019. The files covered nine CPS Areas: Cymru–Wales, London North, Merseyside and Cheshire, North West, South East, Thames and Chiltern, Wessex, West Midlands, and Yorkshire and Humberside.