Enhancing Fairness and Defence Rights in Criminal Proceedings

- Clear and foreseeable notification system of all measures affecting defendant in criminal process

- Clear and foreseeable practice of courts regarding presumption of innocence and privilege against self-incrimination

- Formalised standards of proof in law and practice for different areas of investigation and trial.

- Different standards of proof developed for questions of guilt, justification for investigation, detention on remand, use of SITs,
searches and seizure of property, various types of confiscation, declarations of insanity, entrapment etc.)

- Clear and foreseeable practice in application of PPO guidelines for remand, with definition of types of bail depending on risk (of
flight, collusion, reoffending), and clarification of different standards of proof for justification of relevant risks

- Practical and effective application of home arrest, electronic surveillance, and other forms of alternative detention as matter of
preference, with detention on remand being applied as a last resort

- Greater use of plea bargaining, taking account of principles of efficiency and fairness

- Practical limitations on use of coercive measures to force settlements

— Improved regulation on handing the notification of suspicion, putting on wanted list, extradition, seizure of property and withdrawal of
seizure, temporary withdrawal of property at pre-trial stage, the order of entering information to the Unified Register of Pre-trial
Investigations, the grounds and procedure of appeal against actions or lack of activity, if the order of entering data to the register is
violated, and in other cases).

- Greater use of audio and video recording of interrogations and hearings, to ensure protection of rights of defence

- Greater use of video conferencing

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- Clear, practical and effective use of notion of “public interest” with respect to rights of defence in court proceedings

- Practical and effective mechanism of oversight of quality of legal aid in criminal process by Bar and courts

- Practical and effective application of advanced witness and forensic expert interviewing techniques, respecting the equality of arms

- Extension of jury trials to cover wide range of crimes; regular use of juries in mandatory situations

- Introduction of lay judges in minor criminal offences (misdemeanours)

- Elimination of ex parte communications by judges

- Respect for timelines, so that defence has adequate opportunity to prepare its case

- Full respect for right of defence to conduct investigations and have equal access to witnesses

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- No unjustified (unmotivated) extension of time-limits for appeal for any party; strict and short statutory limitations on extension of
time-limits

- Wider victim participation restricted to stage of pre-trial and trial; victim right to appeal (as opposed to right of prosecution)
reduced to exceptional cases

- Reclassification on appeal to milder charge acceptable, but only where right to request adjournment is given to defence and ability of
full appeal exists at appeal level

- Any exercise of prosecutorial discretion on appeal subject to test of ‘reasonableness’

- Safeguards in place for awareness of defendant being notified of appellate hearing (but no default obligation of defendant’s presence, in
case his lawyer is present)

- Safeguards in place for establishing defendant’s waiver to be present at hearing (test of ‘genuine and unequivocal’ waiver)

- Safeguards for effective counsel representation in case of video-conferencing

- No reliance on trial transcripts on appeal for fact-finding purposes, if transcript contested by parties

- In case of reversal of lower decision, remittal warranted only in exceptional cases that cannot be remedied on appeal, such as ‘serious’
procedural breaches at lower level

- Greater provision of monetary compensation for victims through compensation funds replenished by perpetrators, where perpetrators are
identified, convicted and enabled to repair damage

- Development and use of victim impact statements at trial

- Advisory role on victim statements in order to help judge formulate informed opinion

- Victim information (consultative) centres regularly provide information, and inform about early release of convicts

- Victim coordinators acting as social and psychological support tools for victims