CPS Launches Legal Challenge After Bail Granted Because of Barristers’ Strike

Lawyers from the Criminal Bar Association, which represents barristers in England and Wales, set up a picket line outside the Old Bailey in central London, on June 27, 2022. PA

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has launched a legal challenge after several judges released suspects on bail because delays caused by the barristers’ strike meant they had exceeded their custody time limits.

The CPS has been granted the right to have a judicial review of at least three cases where judges rejected an application by a prosecutor to extend the custody of suspects beyond the limit.