Edmonds Marshall McMahon have today (2nd September 2015) been featured in The Times article ‘Victims go private in battle for justice’
The article talks about the rise in individuals and companies taking out private prosecutions due to the severe cuts in public prosecutor’s budgets.
Cases are being brought not only by companies and organisation such as Sky, the Premier League, The British Phonographic Industry and the Federation Against Copyright Theft but also by private individuals who have been failed by public prosecutors.
The article goes on to talk about potential upcoming private prosecutions, using the example of the families of two women who died in the Glasgow bin lorry crash in 2014.
Kate McMahon of Edmonds Marshall McMahon was quoted as saying that the main reason for the growth in private prosecutions was ‘cutbacks to law enforcement and prosecution agencies’. ‘Some 85 per cent of our clients, corporate or individual, have first tried to get interest from the police or their cases have been rejected by the CPS.’
The CPS were asked to comment on the matter and were quoted saying ‘The service continues to bring prosecutions whenever a case is referred to us with sufficient evidence and where it is in the public interest to prosecute. But individuals also have the right to bring a private prosecution to the courts.’
If you are considering taking out a private prosecution or want to talk about the possibilities of it you can contact us by email on enquiries@emmlegal.com or call us on 0207 583 8392.