Out of court disposals survey: criminal defence lawyers & legal representatives

This survey is for criminal defence lawyers and accredited representatives and aims to gather data on use of cautions, community resolutions and other diversion and out of court disposals (OOCDs) options in England and Wales. The survey is being conducted by the charity Transform Justice as part of a three-year programme funded by the Lloyds Bank Foundation which aims to promote the effective use of diversion from prosecution.
Responses to this survey are anonymous and the data collected will not be shared with any third parties. We estimate the survey will take around 5 minutes to complete. Please reach the final page to save your responses. Thank you for taking the time to respond.

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In which of the following police force area(s) do you provide legal assistance and/or representation?

Derbyshire

Norfolk

Suffolk

Sussex

West Yorkshire

West Midlands

Lancashire

Other (please specify):

This is required

We are interested in understanding the most common barriers to a suspect receiving an out of court disposal rather than being charged, for summary or either way offences. In your experience, which of the following are the most common barriers to a suspect receiving an out of court disposal? Please rank the options where 1 = most common barrier and 8 = least common barrier. (If you are on a mobile phone/tablet, please drag the options into your preferred order)

1 of 8 - Lack of availability of suitable OOCD options. Select to start reordering

Lack of availability of suitable OOCD options

2 of 8 - Negative police perception of suspect. Select to start reordering

Negative police perception of suspect

3 of 8 - Lack of awareness of OOCD options by police/ legal representative. Select to start reordering

Lack of awareness of OOCD options by police/ legal representative

4 of 8 - Suspect does not make an admission. Select to start reordering

Suspect does not make an admission

5 of 8 - Complainant support for prosecution. Select to start reordering

Complainant support for prosecution

6 of 8 - Seriousness of the offence. Select to start reordering

Seriousness of the offence

7 of 8 - Domestic abuse element to the offence. Select to start reordering

Domestic abuse element to the offence

8 of 8 - Suspect’s offence history. Select to start reordering

Suspect’s offence history

Reset order

Please specify any other common barriers not mentioned in the list above:

This is required

Evidence indicates that racially minoritised people may be less likely than white defendants to be offered/accept an out of court disposal, and therefore more likely to be prosecuted (possibly due to higher levels of mistrust in the criminal justice system). Does this reflect your experience?

Yes

Not sure

Please expand on your above answer:

This is required

Where it is likely that the suspect will be convicted in court if prosecuted, what would help lead to more effective use of diversion from prosecution? Please rank from most helpful (1) to least helpful (7)
(If you are on a mobile phone/ tablet, please drag the options into your preferred order)

1 of 7 - Greater use of voluntary interviews. Select to start reordering

Greater use of voluntary interviews

2 of 7 - More engagement between police and legal representative after the interview. Select to start reordering

More engagement between police and legal representative after the interview

3 of 7 - Better disclosure by the police after interview and before charge. Select to start reordering

Better disclosure by the police after interview and before charge

4 of 7 - Fewer suspects being unrepresented at the police station. Select to start reordering

Fewer suspects being unrepresented at the police station

5 of 7 - Greater awareness of diversion options amongst police. Select to start reordering

Greater awareness of diversion options amongst police

6 of 7 - Better disclosure by the police before interview. Select to start reordering

Better disclosure by the police before interview

7 of 7 - Less stringent admission criteria for out of court disposals. Select to start reordering

Less stringent admission criteria for out of court disposals

Reset order

Please expand on your answer or specify any other actions you think would be helpful:

This is required

Do you have any other comments about your experience of out of court disposals, including any potential benefits or concerns relating to their use as an alternative to prosecution?

Would you be willing to be contacted by Transform Justice to discuss these issues further? If so, please leave your email/mobile below. (This information will not be shared with any third parties and will only be used for the purpose stated above. Giving your email does not in any any way affect the anonymity of your response to the survey)

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In which of the following police force area(s) do you provide legal assistance and/or representation?

Evidence indicates that racially minoritised people may be less likely than white defendants to be offered/accept an out of court disposal, and therefore more likely to be prosecuted (possibly due to higher levels of mistrust in the criminal justice system). Does this reflect your experience?

Where it is likely that the suspect will be convicted in court if prosecuted, what would help lead to more effective use of diversion from prosecution? Please rank from most helpful (1) to least helpful (7) (If you are on a mobile phone/ tablet, please drag the options into your preferred order)

Do you have any other comments about your experience of out of court disposals, including any potential benefits or concerns relating to their use as an alternative to prosecution?

Where it is likely that the suspect will be convicted in court if prosecuted, what would help lead to more effective use of diversion from prosecution? Please rank from most helpful (1) to least helpful (7)
(If you are on a mobile phone/ tablet, please drag the options into your preferred order)