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The Crown Court Study (Pt 2)

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05 December 2025 / Michael Zander KC
Issue: 8142 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , In Court , Criminal
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Three decades ago, Professor Michael Zander conducted a large-scale study on the way the criminal justice system works. In the concluding part of this series, he examines the findings on wasted time, weak cases & other matters
  • This is the concluding part of an NLJ series on the findings of a 1993 study on the views of those who work in and use the Crown Court.
  • The study has recently become accessible online: eprints.lse.ac.uk/129889/

The Crown Court Study (CCS) (HMSO, 1993) was a very large research project I conducted while a member of the Runciman Royal Commission on Criminal Justice. No such study has ever since been carried out in the courts of this country, or I imagine anywhere else. I believe that most of its findings are as relevant today as 30 years ago. In Part 1 of this series (‘The Crown Court Study (Pt 1)’, NLJ, 28 November 2025, pp15-17), I examined the views of those who work in and use the Crown Court. In this concluding part,

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