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Falsely Accused of Crime

Appeals Solicitors

Raj Chada
Partner
Ruth Harris
Ruth Harris
Partner
Caroline Liggins
Caroline Liggins
Partner
Chloe Hartnell
Chloe Hartnell
Partner
Darrell Ennis-Gayle
Darrell Ennis-Gayle
Partner
Graeme Hydari
Graeme Hydari
Partner
Jessica Davis
Partner
Kerry Spence
Kerry Spence
Partner
Laura O'Brien
Laura O’Brien
Partner
Mike Schwarz
Mike Schwarz
Partner
Sean Caulfield
Sean Caulfield
Partner
Abbi Hart
Abbi Hart
Trainee
Amy Coulter
Amy Coulter
Trainee
Aneka Thirurajah
Aneka Thirurajah
Associate
Cally Gormally
Solicitor
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Charlotte Gamble
Paralegal
Donjeta Canolli
Donjeta Canolli
Paralegal
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Ella Ferriter
Paralegal
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Ellie Horan
Paralegal
Emily McNally
Emily McNally
Solicitor
Francesca Cociani
Francesca Cociani
Associate
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George Steel
Solicitor
Ghislaine Sandoval
Ghislaine Sandoval
Solicitor
Izzie Bond-Mills
Izzie Bond-Mills
Paralegal
Jessica Atkinson
Jessica Atkinson
Solicitor
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Jessica Murray
Solicitor
Justin Stuart-Mills
Consultant Solicitor
Katie McFadden
Katie McFadden
Associate
Kiran Mehta
Kiran Mehta
Consultant
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Lara Ideo
Solicitor
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Lauren Shore
Paralegal
Marina Afzal-Khan
Marina Afzal-Khan
Paralegal
Maxine Barker
Maxine Barker
Associate
May Spencer
Paralegal
Michael Ackah
Associate
Shelby Keppel
Shelby Keppel
Consultant
Shivani Mehta
Trainee
Shyan MacTavish_Website
Shyan MacTavish
Solicitor
Sinéad Vaughan
Paralegal
Somaya Yassine_Website
Somaya Yassine
Paralegal
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Viviane Bablin
Solicitor

At Hodge Jones & Allen we know criminal proceedings can have a devastating effect on people’s lives. We never dismiss any case as insignificant. It’s significant to you and, therefore, to us.

Our success in appealing decisions has also led to an intimate understanding that the right decisions aren’t always made, and cases are often dealt with unfairly. A feeling of injustice will stay with people forever.

That’s why we’re dedicated to offering thorough and fearless advice and assistance on appeals. Whether you’re appealing a driving ban in the Magistrates’ Court or a conviction for murder in the Crown Court, you need a lawyer who is prepared to consider all angles and isn’t afraid to fight for your interests. We will walk you through your options and advise you on the merits of an appeal.

Hodge Jones & Allen_Chambers 2023_pngOur Crime team have been ranked in the Chambers & Partners 2024 legal directory. The team was described as “extremely strong in terms of criminal defence and particularly protest cases” and were praised for their “dedication to clients”.

Legal 500 uk-top-tier-firm-202

“Hodge Jones & Allen are possibly the best firm of criminal solicitors conducting publicly funded work, and also offer an excellent service to privately funded clients. They have a large team that has continually prospered through recruiting excellent trainees and investing in people.” – Legal 500, 2024

Why choose Hodge Jones & Allen?

Highly Experienced

Decades of experience of criminal litigation means we know what should and shouldn’t happen in a criminal trial. We can review areas where you think the judge or your previous legal team got it wrong.

Experts suited to your needs

We work with specialist counsel, who regularly appear in the Court of Appeal, the High Court, the Supreme Court or European Court of Human Rights. We identify experts best suited to your individual case.

Lawyers who care

Our ethos of fighting injustice means our lawyers take the time and effort on fresh evidence appeals, are innovative in legal challenges and leave no stone unturned in fighting your corner.

"THE SERVICE I RECEIVED WAS NOTHING SHORT OF BRILLIANT AND I COULDN'T FAULT THEM IN ANY WAY. AND THEY GOT ME EXACTLY THE RESULT THAT I WANTED."

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Featured cases

Featured Case: R v G

Nigel Richardson, consultant and former senior partner, was instructed for a high profile appeal against conviction on behalf of a gin heir. He was convicted in the magistrates’ court of assaulting his 93 year old mother. His conviction was successfully overturned following an appeal to the Crown Court.

Featured Case: R v X

Nigel Richardson acted on behalf of a man who had been convicted of raping his wife. An appeal was mounted on the basis of fresh evidence resulting in the conviction being successfully overturned and a re-trial being ordered. Following conviction at the second trial, a second appeal against appeal was lodged on the basis of the inadequacy of the Judge’s summing up. Once again the conviction successfully was overturned and no retrial ordered.

Featured Case: R v Y

Gary Monks, Partner was instructed in the successful appeal against conviction of a man accused of sexually assaulting a young female relative while she was aged seven years old. Mr Monks worked closely with experienced counsel Ben Newton of Doughty Street Chambers to undertake a careful analysis of the language used by the trial Judge. This demonstrated that he hadn’t dealt with the case impartially and then went on to misdirect the jury in relation to the evidence.

Featured Case: R v C

Partner Graeme Hydari instructed in a terrorism case before the Supreme Court dealing with the definition of the offence under section 4 of the Explosives Act 1883.

Featured Case: R v S

Associate Caroline Liggins was instructed to act on behalf of a man convicted of murder at the Old Bailey. Representation was transferred from another firm of solicitors after conviction, but before sentence. Ms Liggins stepped in at late notice and worked with experienced counsel to prepare mitigation. Our client received a sentence significantly lower than expected, and Ms Liggins is now working on an appeal against conviction.

Featured Case: R v Stansted 15

 Raj Chada, Head of Criminal Defence acted in the high profile matter in Court of Appeal. Mr Raj Chada represented the defendants who were convicted of terror related offences for taking direct action to prevent a charter flight from leaving. They took this action to prevent an immigration removal flight at Stansted airport. Raj Chada instructed Clare Montgomery QC in this complex appeal, dealing with international human rights law and the ambit of this terror related offence.

Clients have had their conviction of “endangering safety at a public airport”, a terror related offence, quashed by the Court of Appeal.

Featured Case: R v Z

Raj Chada is instructed in this ground breaking appeal of a conviction of obstruction of a highway. This is another complex appeal in the Supreme Court dealing with ambit of article 10 and right to protest.

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Leading criminal defence solicitors

Top ranked solicitors

Our top ranking team have years of experience representing the innocent. We stand up to the prosecution who will always be represented by an experienced solicitor or barrister. We know how to fight and win cases.

Here to help

Representing you at the police station or in court if you need urgent representation call us today. Share a few details with us and we’ll let you know how we can help you.

Call FREE 24 hours a day

If you are calling outside our offices hours (9:30am to 5:30pm) call our free phone 24 telephone, and there will always be someone at the other end of the telephone to assist you.

Contact our specialist team on
0808 271 9413
or request a call back.
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Frequently asked questions

How can I appeal a conviction or sentence on the magistrates’ court?

You have an automatic right to appeal against a conviction and/or sentence in the magistrates’ court. This means that you do not have to justify your decision to appeal. You are entitled to appeal because you disagree with the decision. An appeal form must be submitted within 21 days of the date of sentence, unless you can demonstrate good reason for submitting it outside of that time.

When appealing a decision of the magistrates’ court, the appeal will be dealt with in the Crown Court. When appealing a conviction from the magistrates’ court the Crown Court will hear all the evidence afresh. This means new and fresh evidence can be relied upon that was not used in the magistrates’ court.

When Crown Courts deal with appeals from the magistrates’ court there will not be a jury. The case will be dealt with by a Crown Court Judge and two magistrates.

Some decisions from the magistrates’ court can be appealed directly to the High Court by way of case stated or judicial review. This appeal procedure can be relied upon, for example where the magistrates’ court have made an error on the law.

Appealing a conviction or sentence in the Crown Court?

Appeals from the Crown Court are dealt with by the Criminal Court of Appeal. The procedure is very different when appealing a decision of the Crown Court, compared to a decision of the magistrates’ court.

The first step is identifying grounds of appeal. You can only appeal a conviction in the Crown Court if the Court of Appeal finds that the conviction was unsafe. Appeals against conviction from the Crown Court will normally arise where there has been an error in law or procedural unfairness. Below are some common issues that form the basis of an appeal against conviction:

  • Evidence is wrongly admitted or excluded
  • Ineffective legal representation
  • Errors in decisions made by the trial judge or the way the judge dealt with the case including the way that the evidence was summed up for the jury
  • In some cases, new evidence may give rise to an argument that the conviction was unsafe
  • You can appeal against a sentence in the Crown Court if it is manifestly excessive or in some other way unlawful.

Once grounds of appeal have been identified, an application for permission to appeal must be sent with a detailed description of the grounds of appeal. This is considered by a single judge of the Court of Appeal who will decide whether or not to grant permission to appeal. The application for permission to appeal must be submitted within 28 days of the decision being appealed.

In some cases the Court of Appeal may extend the deadline for submitting an application for permission to appeal, even where the deadline has passed. We understand that there may be many reasons that an appeal may need to be considered after the deadline has passed.

Criticising decisions of experienced Crown Court Judge’s or calling into question the representation provided by experience lawyers can be daunting. We will help you present difficult arguments in a professional manner.

Can I appeal my case to the Supreme Court?

The Supreme Court replaced the House of Lords as the highest Court in the UK. Appeals from the High Court and Court of Appeal will be dealt with by the Supreme Court.

As in the Court of Appeal, permission must be sought to appeal to the Supreme Court. It will only be granted where the Court of Appeal certifies that a point of law of general public importance is involved in the decision and it appears to the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court that the point is one which ought to be considered by the Supreme Court. For this reason, decisions of the Supreme Court can change the way the law is applied.

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"The service I received was nothing short of brilliant and I couldn’t fault them in any way. And they got me exactly the result that I wanted."

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