The Right to Access to a Lawyer at Police Stations: Making the European Union Directive Work in Practice

New Journal of European Criminal Law, Vol. 5, Issue 4, 2014

Warwick School of Law Research Paper No. 2015/11

31 Pages Posted: 20 May 2015 Last revised: 23 Jun 2015

See all articles by Jacqueline Hodgson

Jacqueline Hodgson

University of Warwick - School of Law

Edward Cape

University of the West of England (UWE) - Bristol Law School

Date Written: May 18, 2015

Abstract

Recent EU Directives provide for a range of procedural protections for suspects and accused persons, going beyond the more broadly articulated standards set out in the European Convention of Human Rights. These reforms are to be welcomed, but their implementation poses a range of challenges for Member States. Drawing on recent empirical research, this article focuses on one measure, the right to legal assistance during police custody. It discusses the range of complex and often inter-related factors that operate to help or to hinder the process of ensuring that the right is ‘practical and effective’ and not merely ‘theoretical and illusory’. Member States do not share a common procedural tradition and alongside ensuring sufficient financial and human resources, effective implementation will require shifts in the legal and occupational cultures of police, prosecutors and the criminal bar.

Keywords: defence, police custody, procedural rights, suspects

Suggested Citation

Hodgson, Jacqueline S. and Cape, Edward, The Right to Access to a Lawyer at Police Stations: Making the European Union Directive Work in Practice (May 18, 2015). New Journal of European Criminal Law, Vol. 5, Issue 4, 2014, Warwick School of Law Research Paper No. 2015/11, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2607573

Jacqueline S. Hodgson (Contact Author)

University of Warwick - School of Law ( email )

Gibbet Hill Road
Coventry CV4 7AL, CV4 7AL
United Kingdom
02476 524163 (Phone)
02476 524105 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/law/staff/academic/hodgson

Edward Cape

University of the West of England (UWE) - Bristol Law School ( email )

Frenchay Campus
Coldharbour Lane
Bristol, BS16 1QY
United Kingdom

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