Vol 1 Issue 5 Winter 2005 Newsletter

Criminal Law : Early Release of Prisoners

The Criminal Justice Act 2003 changes the provisions governing the early release of prisoners. Under the Criminal Justice Act 1991 eligibility for early release depended on the length of sentence imposed by the trial judge.

A prisoner sentenced to custody for between 1 and 4 years was eligible for automatic release on licence at the half- w ay point of his sentence.
A prisoner sentenced to custody for more than 4 years was eligible to apply for early release to the Parole Board at the half-way point of his sentence but was not certain to be released into the community.

Prisoners released under either automatic conditional release or discretionary conditional release were subject to licence conditions until the three-quarter point of licence expiry date of their sentence and, in certain circumstances, until their sentence expiry date.
Under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 all prisoners sentenced to custody for more than 12 months will be automatically released at the half-way point of their sentence and remain on licence until the sentence expiry date. Parole for such prisoners ceases to be relevant.

Prisoners released early remain at risk of recall to prison if they commit further offences or breach licence conditions. Recall will become the bread and butter of the Parole Board in future and practitioner may expect to see an incr ease in the n umber of oral hearings to determine whether recall was justified in the first place.
Further analysis of the early release provisions can be found on the Rougemount Chambers website.

Spotlight On: Sara Trumper

Sara Trumper specialises in Family Law. Sara studied Classics at the University of London. She then spent eight years in Crete, Greece, where she worked for much of the time as an English language teacher and became a fluent modern Greek speaker. On her return to Britain, Sara undertook a post-graduate diploma in law and then the Bar Vocational Course as a “mature” student. She was called to the bar in 1996. After completion of pupillage, she joined Holborn Chambers in London, where she had a general common law practice. She joined Rougemont Chambers in December 2000.

Since then, her intention has been to develop a specialist family law practice. In her early days on the Western Circuit, there was very little family work in chambers and Sara undertook a wide range of common law work, impressing solicitors in all spheres. Within eighteen months, however, she had built up a substantial practice in her chosen area and was able to concentrate on this exclusively by the third anniversary of her arrival in Chambers.
Sara’s caseload is divided equally between children (public and private) and financial work. She enjoys the variety and finds that the more complex ancillary relief and TOLATA claims “exercise muscles that are rarely used in Children Act matters”. She is very numerate and clear of thought, which is why she is so successful, and indeed, highly sought-after, in her ancillary relief work. This side of her practice also includes disputes between co-habitees and Inheritance Act claims and she is now branching out into the area of civil partnerships. A recent seminar on Cohabitees and Civil Partnership (given together with Nick Berry and Andrew Worthley) received a very warm welcome from members of the Devon and Exeter Law Society.

Catherine Strigner, Family Partner with WBW Solicitors comments:
“Sara has a practical, common sense approach towards problems and puts both clients and Solicitors at their ease. She is always willing to go the extra mile to assist and that can make all the difference. Sara is always up to speed with changes in the law, she is a very good advocate and has a great sense of humour”.

With regard to both public and private child law, Sara is renowned for her meticulous preparation and calm approach in court. As a mature entrant to the Bar with an “interesting and varied” life experience, Sara is able to bring a measure of maturity and insight to this sensitive area of work. Pennie Lennon, Family Partner at Scott Richards says of Sara:
“Sara represented a client of mine in one of the most difficult Section 8 cases I have ever had; she dealt with the matter with aplomb and good humour. I would recommend her service to anybody; clients love her. It is just so easy to instruct her and the service she provides is second to none.”

Against a background of increasing financial constraints upon the Bar, Sara is insistent upon including publicly funded w ork in her practice. She considers it a fundamental part of her work to represent publicly funded clients in all areas of law in which she is instructed.
In her private life Sara lives near Honiton with her young son and keeps cats and chickens. She enjoys cooking and entertaining,racket sports and skiing.

Quality Assured

Rougemont Chambers has passed the compliance part of the Quality Mark award with flying colours. This confirms that the procedures that chambers have put into place to ensure the highest quality of service have been adhered to and rigorously followed. The Legal Services Commission confirmed that again ,Rougemont Chambers was the first Chambers in the South West (Devon, Cornwall and Somerset) to receive the Full Quality Mark award.

The scheme is designed to recognise good practice management within chambers. The award indicates that chambers complies with the Bar Council’s Practice Management Standards and Guidelines. This document, which is regularly reviewed, sets standards of best practice for the administration of chambers.

Commenting on the good news, David Parker, Practice Manager and Senior Clerk said “The award of Quality Mark to Rougemont Chambers proves that our ethos of always putting the client (both professional and lay) first, is good for the client and good for our business.”

The Community Legal Ser vice w eb site states: “The aim of the CLS is to improve access, for the public, to quality information, advice and legal services through local networks of services supported by co-ordinated funding and based on an assessment of local needs. Initially it will consist of members with a Quality Mark for the level of service they provide.”
There are those who believe that one day in the future, solicitors (and other “front line providers”) with public funding franchises will only be allowed or will at least be encouraged to use ONLY those chambers who have been awarded the Quality Mark. If that is the case, then this award is certainly good news for the Family and Criminal teams within chambers but also good news for chambers as a whole, as the process of achieving Quality Mark has improved the way that chambers operates and has consolidated our business procedures.

Stop Press

Chambers is proud to welcome two new tenants, following successful completion of their pupillages. Andrew Worthley has accepted tenancy with chambers with eff ect from 1 October. He enjoyed a very successful pupillage, undertaking a wide range of common law work, and his services are already in high demand.
Charles Murray accepted tenancy with effect from 7 November, after completing a third-six month pupillage. Charles previously worked as a solicitor with a Higher Audience Rights certificate at Messrs Tozers in Exeter . He therefore brings a wealth of experience to his practice at the Bar. Chambers is also pleased to w elcome back Jenni Wilson after her period of work in Kenya,on behalf of the criminal law rights organisation,CLEAR.