What’s the best case you’ve ever done?

What’s the best case you’ve ever done?

This is a question I get asked from time to time, usually by someone who has just found out I’m a criminal lawyer. It makes a nice change from the question ‘how can you represent someone you know is guilty?’

There are some cases I’ve won against the odds and others where there was a lot at stake for my client. In truth though, most lawyers consider their ‘best cases’ to be the ones that were complex, serious, high profile or a combination of the three. For me, it was a case I did nearly ten years ago where I represented one of four defendants in a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

The two main defendants were long-standing members of the Liverpool underworld. The elder of the two had served sentences for armed robbery and it was during one of these stretches that he discovered the money that could be made from drug dealing. Here was an occupation that could produce far higher profits with what appeared to be reduced physical risks. He teamed up with the second defendant and before long the two were involved in a plot to import large quantities of heroin.

When they were arrested for this offence they spent time on remand and discovered that is was possible to earn a reduction in sentence by passing information on criminal activity to the authorities. They gave information to their handler which resulted in arms caches being discovered throughout Merseyside. Many weapons were discovered including submachine guns, handguns, Kalashnikovs and plastic explosive. When they appeared for sentence, 18 years’ was imposed on each but the Judge was persuaded to write to the then Home Secretary, inviting him to exercise the royal prerogative for mercy. In the end, the sentence was commuted to 5 years’ and they were soon back on the streets.

Over the years, the police investigated and discovered that the pair had conspired together to have the weapons planted so that they could be ‘given up’ to the authorities. Experts gave evidence to the effect that all of the weapons came from just two sources and that the same process had been used to re-activate previously de-activated weapons. It was as a result of this agreement to trick the authorities that led to them being with a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

So there you are. You can’t win every case but you can do your utmost with all of them. Every now and then you get one that constitutes a career highlight.