Claire Brocklebank

Defence

R v Pedler – defended 4 week trial involving conspiracy to supply 100kg of Class A drugs. Encro-chat and cell site expert evidence. Defendant acquitted.

R v Sawyer  – defended. 7 day trial. Robbery and section 18 in prison involving a £12k watch and the victim’s face being cut with an improvised weapon. Convicted but received a 5 year sentence.

R v Wood – defended a trial in absence. Affray and possession of an axe. Defendant had been identified by an eye-witness at a VIPER. Defendant was acquitted.

R v Das – fraud trial listed for 8 days, defendant was employed by a school and was accused of stealing the dinner money by carrying out false accounting to cover his thefts. Cross-examined prosecution accountant. Combed through thousands of pages of printed material to find evidence that the fraud also occurred when the defendant was off work. Successful half time submission.

R v Byfield – defended a 5-day section 18 trial. Defendant was acquitted of section 18, acquitted of possession of an offensive weapon and convicted of section 20.

R v Caragiouiu – 5 day stalking trial. Defendant acquitted.

R v R – Successfully defended an appeal against conviction in relation to a serious sexual assault.

R v White – defendant charged with aggravated burglary, negotiated a plea to simple burglary and possession of a bladed article. The defendant received a suspended sentence.

R v Hussain – only counsel to make a half-time submission in a case of Affray. The points raised resulted in acquittals for all three defendants.

R v Place – defendant pleaded guilty on day of trial to robbery of his partner’s ex-boyfriend. Following mitigation the court imposed a suspended sentence.

R v Gilchrist – defended a section 47 trial involving identification by an acquaintance. The defendant was acquitted.

R v S – defended a youth who was charged with being the leader of a prison riot. Agreed a plea to a violent disorder resulting in a 9 month sentence.

Prosecution

R v Mahmood – successfully prosecuted a shopkeeper charged with selling counterfeit cigarettes, supplying cannabis and handling stolen goods. Prosecuted the contested Confiscation proceedings.

R v Barber – VAT fraud valued at £140,000 involving a sham business and falsified invoices. Drafted a response to basis of plea. Prosecuted a trial of issue in which the court found in favour of the prosecution. Instructed to prosecute the subsequent confiscation proceedings.

R v Cranston – affray and assault. Defence served a ‘defence statement’ which purported to argue that there was no case to answer. Drafted and served a response dealing with the legal matters raised. At the next hearing the defendant pleaded guilty.