Jon Whitfield QC (now KC)

Following the Proclamations of King Charles III as monarch and the change from Queen's Counsel to King's Counsel I will be at @JonWhitfieldKC

@Specodi @harriepw @snowleopardess Where such crimes are alleged any investigation is likely to be led by a very senior lawyer advising on evidence etc as the investigation progresses. As for political interference, it is rare in terms of specific case but as a generality politicking has trashed the CJS.

@jonwhitfieldqc @harriepw @snowleopardess But are the police equipped to be able to make an appropriate, informed and impartial decision in a case involving crimes against humanity? Are the police fully independent of political influence? I’m asking because I don’t know.

NEW: The Metropolitan police will not open an investigation into 10 British nationals accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity while fighting with the IDF in Gaza.

@Specodi @harriepw @snowleopardess It’s the job of the police to investigate. They deliver the evidence to the CPS who decide whether to prosecute or not. Judges play no part in this process. If the case is prosecuted in court it will then go before a judge or a judge & jury

@harriepw @snowleopardess Why is it left up to the met police to decide whether to investigate? Why not the judiciary?

@flyabout7 Congratulations. And presumably himself is now Great Uncle Lord Ralphington?

I have some good news. Something lovely happened today. I became a Grandad for the first time to my beautiful Granddaughter Sophia Rose. Both my daughter and baby Sophia are doing well and to say I’m chuffed is an understatement. ☺️

@MAMBarLife Next step will be same as prof discipline cases. Statement or recording is evidence in chief, witness not taken through it, straight to XX. Of course that relies on judge having read the papers & understood/spotted the areas you may want to XX on or this too will be curtailed.

Say the reforms come into effect & judges in the Crown Court start trying cases alone. There’s going to have to be other reforms & rule changes in the works. The time estimate for a trial is principally based upon how long the evidence is going to take. So how does this change?

@JohnApplebyLD @Joanna__Hardy Haha - I don’t think I have ever seen the words MoJ and spend wisely in the same sentence

@Joanna__Hardy It's probable that not having a jury will save some cost, and that might help speed things up if spent wisely. I wish, if so, that Lammy would admit this.

Giving evidence to the House of Commons Committee scrutinising the Bill to restrict jury trials, Samantha Hillas KC says that a 20% saving takes a 5 day trial to 4 but that a judge has to then write a ruling: ‘When is that going to be written? That’s your fifth day, isn’t it?’

@mrkingsley1987 @luxemiaa Airlines now often charge to choose a seat so it looks like people skip this to save the charge then expect to sit where they want anyway. Seats are assigned for the (rather grizzly) reason of ID if something goes badly wrong so it’s not just a nuisance it has a purpose.

@luxemiaa I keep seeing this in flights- passengers consistently occupying seats not meant for them because they didn't do proper Seat Selection during Flight Booking. ..you did well by demanding for your Seat... they should do better next time

This woman said: Just boarded my connecting flight home from Tokyo and guess what? Someone is sitting in my window seat 😂 I can’t make this stuff up… twice in one day! I told them they were sitting in my seat and they replied “can you sit over there because we’re all together?” I said “no”. They were taking too long to move so I motioned the flight attendant and she yelled “take your assigned seats so we can go!”. The man got up and moved across the aisle to his.......

@jonblackbsb @Joanna__Hardy A nuanced discussion only arises from a considered, careful process. This is neither. It has no grounding in reason stats experience or justice. It will not deliver what they claim but they will impose it anyway. There is no nuance because whatever we say will make no difference

@Joanna__Hardy Sadly Sarah has been encouraged to promote a tabloid narrative about this affecting only “victims” and its the criminals “game the system” I am disappointed at the lack of nuanced discussion over this .

Please know - when they whip this hard - that the courts can create victims in more than one direction. Victims of crime, *of course*. But, also, victims of mistaken, incorrect and false allegations. And you could be on either side of the courtroom. Don’t forget that, either.

@Joanna__Hardy I know at least one now quite senior judge who will retire if this comes into force. I don’t doubt there are others.

Has anyone asked how many will take early retirement? Or how many will look to sit in different jurisdictions? Has anyone asked Recorders (part-time judges) if they will hand their tickets back? Has anyone asked how many will now bother applying for full time position?

Has anyone asked Judges how they will find time to: * Hear jury trials, all hearings, & sentences * Hear bench trials & write their rulings * Decide allocation/reallocation of bench trials * Determine written applications for leave to appeal * Decide appeals under the new test

@mcdermottkc_ @Adobe Haven’t used it for years! IAnnotate on iPad Foxit on windows. Just as good and a fraction of the price

They just don’t care @adobe

@Newsobsrvtn @DanNeidle @grok In addition the commercial market has been equally devalued. The invasion of Ukraine stopped the market in its tracks then Truss & Kwartang crashed it by 30%. I have watched as they nearly destroyed 3 group pension funds. Current political turmoil means no recovery in sight.

@DanNeidle @grok what’s driving the 30% fall in property prices in central London? Is this true?

I think it’s under-appreciated how much property prices in central London have fallen. If we take inflation into account - which we should - this is a 30% fall in value.

@megawhelmed @DanNeidle @Mroperandi Folie a deux sums it up nicely. LLMs and AI have no place in legal research unless the person relying on their output personally checks and reads all/any cases or maxims cited. If they do not they are negligent.

@DanNeidle @Mroperandi Folie à deux. Llms are great at saying things that sound like what you want to hear. People are great at accepting what they want to hear as true.

Random nerd thread on LLMs and legal research . LLMs remain dangerous for legal research - often very good, but prone to hallucinations, particularly when asked to find something that doesn't exist.

@RobertFreundLaw AI has no place in the writing of legal arguments.

Lawyer uses ChatGPT to help write a brief, ChatGPT hallucinates cases and quotations. Court sanctions lawyer and 4 co-counsel (for not catching the errors). The lawyer who used ChatGPT "has practiced for over thirty years." He prompted ChatGPT: "write an order that denies the motion to strike with caselaw support ...." He told the court that he normally doesn't use ChatGPT and used it this time because he was caring for his dying family members. He said none of his co-counsel were aware of this use of generative AI. Court says that because "all five ... attorneys signed both documents that included these errors, and they admit that not one of them verified that the case law in those briefs actually exist ..., their conduct violates Rule 11(b)(2).

@biped_chordate @sppeoples Cf. Steve Biko, S. Africa 1977 when he was murdered (beaten to death) by his captors.

@sppeoples "Purposefully ran headfirst into a brick wall" is a phrase from a totalitarian state security forces report

ICE agents initially claimed Mondragón had tried to flee while handcuffed and “purposefully ran headfirst into a brick wall.” But staff members at Hennepin County Medical Center determined that could not possibly account for the fractures and bleeding throughout the man’s 31-year-old’s brain. ... A CT scan revealed at least eight skull fractures and life-threatening hemorrhages in at least five areas of his brain. Mondragón entered the U.S. in 2022 with valid immigration documents. Minnesota incorporation filings show he founded a company called Castaneda Construction the following year with an address listed in St. Paul. He appears to have no criminal record. apnews.com/article/immigr…

@DanNeidle I suspect this will only change if there is a simple rule of name the people in 28 days or the property will be confiscated. No options no excuses. That however will never happen given who - including politicians - is likely to be holding assets in this way

90,000 properties in England/Wales are owned by offshore companies. Almost half unlawfully hide their true ownership We've found them, mapped them, and published everything ▶️ This 60-second video shows how to find secretly owned property near you 📊 Details & stats below

@racenerd2 @TimHarford @EE A good way to get a better deal is to ask to transfer. They will almost always the give you the deal they claim they cannot give. It’s simply business and the loyal customer is the cash-cow that they milk.

EE tried to move me to a new, costlier plan for my mobile after my contract expired. I requested a PAC code. 45 mins later I had a phone call from a very helpful EE agent who was able to offer me a package that was dramatically better than any of their regular offerings, just to stop me going elsewhere. Might be worth a go?

Lovely email from @EE explaining: "we’ve moved you to our latest pounds and pence terms. In future, your price change won’t be affected by inflation, so you’ll know exactly how much it will increase each year." Great to know I won't be confused by percentages! (They're raising my monthly bill by more than 30%.)

@TimHarford @EE Err - you wont be affected by inflation but you will be hit with price rises. 🤔

@klofmag @dragcityrecords Reminiscent of Jon Martyn - Small Hours

“low clouds hang, this land is on fire” is such a beguiling album. Spellbinding and significant, this is Tashi Dorji operating at the highest level. @dragcityrecords klofmag.com/2026/01/tashi-…

@RespondUnable @Joanna__Hardy Repairs/Maintenance 🤣🤣 Court estate has not been looked after for decades. But seriously - we have a backlog because for over 10 years between 10 & 30% of courts have been closed as govt has sold them or refused to fund a judge to preside over trials. We should be at 99/100%

@Joanna__Hardy Isn't it impossible to hit 100% - some will always be undergoing repairs/maintenance etc. So what is your target.

Well well well *sips tea*

@ecolitical @Joanna__Hardy I rather think HH used that word very specifically. In court he was sharp in his analysis and fastidious in his language. He knows exactly what he means by that word and, with respect to many CC judges, he is right.

@Joanna__Hardy Using the word *conceit* is emotive, implying frivolous, ephemeral. A more neutral word would be belief.

His Honour Geoffrey Rivlin KC has entered the chat 👀 ‘The latest MOJ proposal/s presage one of the most radical and revolutionary events in English legal history. Yet it has not appeared in any manifesto’ committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidenc…

@sdavieslaw You may well be right - I no longer follow stats on police numbers since they are never reliable. However even if better policing did contribute to more cases one would expect a *competent* Govt to increase capacity at court not decrease it by 20% and flog the real-estate.

@jonwhitfieldqc I do not accept the increase of police as a significant driver worthy of mention in policy. Boris Johnson’s police recruitment drive merely replaced natural wastage. Plus the inexperience of new recruits is hardly going to ramp up efficiency. It’s a deflection to the 10-20% point

Justice Minister, Sarah Sackman MP blames increase demand entering the system as a cause of the backlog in the Crown Court. Remember, the Minister wants to get rid of jury trials. The reality is it’s simple maths. We do not dispose of more than what we receive. Sort disposals!