Shaping the future of justice ⚖ Observing London's magistrates courts, gathering data, and taking action.
Joined May 2023
- Tweets 344
- Following 83
- Followers 604
- Likes 182
67 Photos and videos
CourtWatch London retweeted
Defendants won't always understand the complex legal language used by court professionals.
Here Prof. Jessica Jacobson touches on the barriers to making sure defendants can understand and effectively participate in their own hearings.
🎧 Listen now: pod.fo/e/3ecb82
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CourtWatch London retweeted
Defendants struggling to hear let alone understand court proceedings: new report from @TransformJust1's CourtWatch project revealing ‘rude, dismissive and careless’ behaviour from judges and court staff. Shocking that so many defs can't follow proceedings thejusticegap.com/defendants…
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⚠️Last chance to sign up for our webinar tomorrow!
We'll be diving into what our courtwatchers observed in London magistrates' courts - were the courts efficient? Were court staff kind? Could defendants participate effectively?
🔗Join us! Register now: eventbrite.co.uk/e/courtwatc…
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CourtWatch London retweeted
Join us at this CourtWatch London webinar!
☑️ Hear about findings from both our newly-released reports
☑️Hear from courtwatchers on their experiences and their takes on defendant treatment and efficiency in London magistrates’ courts.
🎟️ Register now - eventbrite.co.uk/e/courtwatc…
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CourtWatch London retweeted
💡New Insight 💡
Judging kindness: are magistrates' courts getting it right?
🔗Hear more about @CourtWatchLDN findings - sign up for our webinar on Tuesday 14th April 1pm-2pm: eventbrite.co.uk/e/courtwatc…
transformjustice.org.uk/news…
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CourtWatch London in the Law Society Gazette ⚖️
📖Read our brand new report on treatment of defendants in London magistrates' courts here: transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
lawgazette.co.uk/news/call-f…
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Thanks to everyone who came to our event on Tuesday to mark the launch of our new report.
A special thank you to our panel @Kirsty_Brimelow, Rosemin Najmudin & Barbara Bond.
🔗Read the report on treatment of defendants in London magistrates' courts here: transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
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CourtWatch London retweeted
A huge thanks to @legalhackette at @thetimes for this brilliant article drawing on our new @CourtWatchLDN report.
🔗Read the report here: transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
Mar 26
Concern over ‘rough justice’ in magistrates’ courts
Critics warn of increase in delays and heightened miscarriage of justice risk
@thetimes thetimes.com/uk/law/article/…
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CourtWatch London retweeted
Mar 26
Concern over ‘rough justice’ in magistrates’ courts
Critics warn of increase in delays and heightened miscarriage of justice risk
@thetimes thetimes.com/uk/law/article/…
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⚠️ New CourtWatch London report!
How are defendants treated in the magistrates' courts? Are they able to effectively participate in their hearings? Find out what our courtwatchers observed in our brand new report ⬇️
🔗transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
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A few courtwatcher observations on videolinks:
👁️🗨️"The video link was so bad, maybe the trial really should have been stopped."
👁️🗨️"Video link not brilliant, defendant just managed to hear his solicitor."
Leveson recommends increase in the No of defendants who appear on video for their 1st magistrates' court appearance. This would be a disastrous move for defendants' effective participation, for lawyer's ability to communicate with their clients & for Nos on short prison sentences
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👁️🗨️“An hour was lost… The first prosecution witness was due to give evidence by videolink and this wasn’t working in the court room we were in.”
👁️🗨️"Defendant needed to speak to lawyer (also on video) court had to be cleared as not able to mute this conversation. "
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Is increasing remote hearings really the answer to increasing efficiency in the courts? In our latest report, we argue not... 🔗 transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
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CourtWatch London in the Law Gazette! 👀
🔗➡️And have a read of our brand new report exploring efficiency (or lack thereof) in London magistrates' courts here: transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
lawgazette.co.uk/news/over-a…
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CourtWatch London retweeted
How can magistrates’ courts make the best use of their time and resources? We explore the inefficiencies contributing to the court backlog in our brand new @CourtWatchLDN report: transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
Jan 23
Suspects in crimes such as theft, assault and criminal damage are waiting up to four years to appear before magistrates because of record court backlogs, a study has revealed @TransformJust1 @PenelopeGibbs2 @PoliceInspForum @DavidLammy @sarahsackman @TheCriminalBar @thebarcouncil @TheLawSociety @MagsAssoc @VictimsComm @VictimsC @NotThatBigIan @DannyShawNews telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01…
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⚠️ New CourtWatch London report!
It’s finally here… the culmination of more than 2300 magistrates’ court hearings observed, recorded and analysed. A massive thank you to all of our volunteer courtwatchers for making this possible!
Read it now: 🔗transformjustice.org.uk/publ…
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CourtWatch London retweeted
💡New Insight 💡
Dr Jill Harbord of University of Sussex explores the marginalisation of people facing homelessness in our magistrates' courts. Read it now ⬇️
@Shelter | @crisis_uk | @StMungos | @centrepointuk | @HomelessLink | @Nacro | @JUSTICEhq
transformjustice.org.uk/news…
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CourtWatch London retweeted
29 Dec 2025
Exciting news that @CourtWatchLDN have announced funding to expand into the whole England and Wales. 👏👏 Courtwatch volunteers observe magistrates courts producing reports that are used to help inform and influence HMCTS, Judges and Magistrates. lawgazette.co.uk/features/ju…
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7 Nov 2025
Courtwatchers have been questioning whether some cases belong in court at all.
At @TransformJust1, we’ve long argued that many offences could be resolved better outside of court.
See what some courtwatchers had to say below ⬇️
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7 Nov 2025
With over a million people going through the magistrates’ courts each year, is it really sensible to keep relying on an overstretched system, especially when court sanctions are often less effective at preventing future crime?
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7 Nov 2025
🔗 Explore our work on out-of-court resolutions here: transformjustice.org.uk/focu… and let us know your thoughts below ⬇️
#CourtWatchLondon #TransformJustice #OutofCourtResolutions
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