Following a 7 day trial at Inner London Crown Court, Rupert Hallowes’ 75 year old client was yesterday found not guilty by the jury of all counts of a six count indictment, which alleged sexual assault of a child under 13. The trial was one of the few not to be impacted by the Criminal Bar’s current industrial action, which is confined only to publicly funded defence cases. Rupert was privately instructed by his lay client. The outcome was and is, however, a salutary reminder of the continuing iniquity of the provisions of LASPO 2012 which prohibit defendants who elect to fund their own representation from claiming back their legal costs on acquittal. For those with income or assets over a certain threshold, justice comes with a heavy price tag.
Rupert Hallowes was instructed by Simon Harrison of SKH Law Ltd
